SINGAPORE - Political parties that wish to contest Tampines in the upcoming general election must know the ground well and meet the needs of residents, Minister for Social and Family Development Masagos Zulkifli said, when asked about a potential showdown with the Workers’ Party at the polls.
Mr Masagos, the anchor minister for Tampines GRC, said: “Whoever wants to come here, must be sure that they know what are in for, and they must meet the expectations of our Tampines residents.”
Speaking to the media during the launch of the Hari Raya festivities at Our Tampines Hub on March 22, Mr Masagos was asked about competition he would face in Tampines from the other political parties, including the WP.
There have been talks of a four-way fight in both Tampines GRC and the new Tampines Changkat SMC, with both the National Solidarity Party (NSP) and People’s Power Party (PPP) announcing they intended to contest both constituencies.
The Workers’ Party has also been seen walking the ground at the new Tampines North BTO projects as recently as March 18.
The recent boundary changes saw the new Tampines Changkat SMC carved out from Tampines GRC, which will remain a five-member GRC at the upcoming polls.
Mr Masagos, who has been an MP in Tampines for some 19 years, said: “I think it’s important for anyone who comes to Tampines to know the ground, not one who just comes occasionally.”
“The residents of Tampines are very special. We’re very proud of our home, very proud of our community, and we want to keep building it,” he said.
Also at the event were the other Tampines GRC MPs - Senior Minister of State for Manpower Dr Koh Poh Koon, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Transport Baey Yam Keng and Mr Desmond Choo - and PAP new face Dr Charlene Chen, who is the second grassroots advisor in the Tampines East ward.
Other potential candidates previously spotted in Tampines were not present.
They include Mr Gabriel Lam, chief operating officer of Shalom Movers, and Mr David Hoe, principal business architect at energy company YTL PowerSeraya.
Asked why they were not there, Mr Masagos said that people come and go.
“It’s not easy to say that just because they’re (here), you can speculate that they’ll be fielded. They may not even be fielded anywhere,” he said, adding that he did not know who would eventually be fielded.
As for the new Tampines Changkat SMC, Mr Choo, who is the Mayor of North East District, is currently overseeing most of the area that falls under the new seat.
During a public breakfast event at Tampines Mart on March 22, Mr Choo said he hopes to be fielded in the SMC in the upcoming elections, as he has been serving residents there for 10 years.
He told residents he expects the road ahead to be tough, but felt he was not alone because he had the support of the residents in Tampines Changkat.
“Naturally, I would want to stay on and continue serving them by running for Tampines Changkat SMC, because these are the people that I’m familiar with and have worked with,” he said.
“But at the end of the day, it’s up to the PM, and we’ll only know for sure on Nomination Day.”
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