General Election 2025

GE2025: Meaningful opposition needed for PAP to govern Singapore better, says Chee Soon Juan​

SDP chief Chee Soon Juan signing autographs for attendees after the party's lunchtime rally at UOB Plaza on April 29.ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM
Shabana Begum and Lee Li Ying
Apr 29, 2025

SINGAPORE - Voters should see through the “propaganda” that the PAP is an exceptional party which does not need an elected opposition to hold them accountable, SDP chief Chee Soon Juan said on April 29.

In his lunchtime rally speech, the opposition politician listed a litany of missteps by the PAP government in the last few years to urge voters to send the Singapore Democratic Party’s candidates to Parliament.

Dr Chee also led the SDP’s call for Singaporeans to reject the PAP’s “fearmongering” that more opposition in the House would weaken the Government’s ability to field a strong team.

Speaking at UOB Plaza a day after Prime Minister Lawrence Wong’s Fullerton rally on the same stage, Dr Chee cited the PAP government’s “scandals and screw-ups” to argue that Singapore would be stronger with more opposition MPs.

Among the cases he cited were Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s handling of former Speaker of Parliament Tan Chuan Jin’s affair, the Ridout Road rentals by Law and Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam and Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, the “bungled” SimplyGo roll-out by the Land Transport Authority, and the six-day East-West Line MRT breakdown in September 2024.

Dr Chee also highlighted the $3 billion money laundering case, and remarked that it was why “Singapore is now called the world’s laundromat”.

“Believe me, there are other screw-ups which I can list out, but you have to go back to the office,” he told the downtown crowd during the sweltering afternoon rally.

These incidents showed that the PAP is not the exceptional party it says it is, said Dr Chee, who is standing in the new Sembawang West SMC.

“And if you’re not exceptional, then be humble, don’t demand exceptional salaries,” he said in a 20-minute address. “Most of all, acknowledge and accept the fact that the PAP needs meaningful opposition in Parliament to govern Singapore better.”

Dr Chee said times have changed, and Singaporeans want a more democratic system where the Government censors less and listens more.

He added that it did not look like PM Wong was off to a promising start, and cited how the prime minister had called for elections just one month after new electoral boundaries were announced.

This sent the message that PM Wong was “cut from the very same, old PAP cloth”.

“When the (PAP) started off, yes you could say that our first generation of ministers, they were capable and competent,” he said. But the quality of its present ministers, the younger set of leaders, leaves very much to be desired.”

SDP chairman Paul Tambyah, who also spoke at the rally, said he was puzzled when current PAP leaders said more opposition in Parliament would be bad for Singapore.

He recounted how he learnt survival skills by competing against the world’s best medical practitioners during his post-graduate training in the US.

“I firmly believe that healthy competition can only make someone better,” said Professor Tambyah, as he urged young people to “give the PAP a chance to improve” by voting for opposition candidates on May 3.

SDP’s candidate for Sembawang GRC, Dr James Gomez, said it was “nonsense” that the PAP would not be able to govern effectively if there were more opposition MPs.

At a rally on April 27, SM Lee had urged Singaporeans not to vote against the PAP in the hope of getting two or three more opposition MPs into Parliament, as this could lead to a loss of key ministers and put the Government “in some trouble”.

Dr Gomez said such logic was unbelievable, and came from the PAP’s desperation. “Losing ministers will be a problem for the PAP, not for Singaporeans.”

He added: “If (PM) Wong says that his team can only function when given unchecked power, then the problem is not with us Singaporeans, but with the PAP - a PAP that fears scrutiny.”


Dr James Gomez said it was “nonsense” that the PAP would not be able to govern effectively if there were more opposition MPs.ST PHOTO: KEVIN KIM
An effective government is one that has accountability, transparency, and debate, with MPs that challenge bad policies, added Dr Gomez, who is SDP’s deputy policy head.

“With SDP MPs in Parliament, there will be no more sleeping on the job,” he said. “If anyone sleeps in Parliament, you can rest assured that the SDP MPs will give them a tight slap of questions that will wake them up.”

SDP’s youngest candidate, Arrifin Sha, 27, called on the crowd to reject “the PAP’s fear tactics”, and to picture Dr Chee winning in Sembawang West SMC, Prof Tambyah in Bukit Panjang SMC, and the WP prevailing in Punggol GRC and Jalan Kayu SMC

“Keep that feeling in your hearts, hear that noise, because on May 3, it will be 10 times louder than this,” he said.

Speaking to reporters after the rally, Dr Chee said the PAP can “stomach losses here and there” and still form a Cabinet.

“The whole premise of PAP’s election message so far is just on fear…Oh you adopt SDP’s proposal, there’ll be retrenchments. You vote for the opposition, you won’t have good ministers,” he said.

“It’s just this kind of fearmongering, it is so stark (compared to) what we’re telling Singaporeans: Go vote with hope.”

GE2025: 7 election rallies to be held on April 30​

The rallies on April 30 are scheduled to run from 7pm to 10pm.ST PHOTO: GIN TAY

Vihanya Rakshika
Apr 29, 2025


SINGAPORE - Seven election rallies are set to take place on April 30, with just three days before close to 2.75 million Singaporean voters head to the polls on May 3.

The rallies on April 30 are scheduled to run from 7pm to 10pm.

Details of the April 30 rallies are as follows:



In earlier advisories, police said rally attendees are strongly encouraged to take public transport as large crowds are expected at the venues.

Motorists travelling near the rally sites should anticipate traffic diversions and potential lane closures. They are also encouraged to tune in to radio stations for real-time traffic updates.

Carparks in the area may be reserved for season parking holders only. Vehicles that are illegally parked or are causing major obstruction risk being towed away.

Security checks will be carried out in and around the rally venues, and members of the public are advised to avoid bringing large bags or any dangerous items.

Attendees are also warned not to bring items that are disallowed at rallies, such as laser pointers, canned drinks, night sticks, fireworks and firecrackers.

Other banned items include parts of firearms, live and blank bullets, spear guns, air pistols and handcuffs.

GE2025: Minimum wage will lift salaries, drive employers to redesign jobs, says PSP’s Lawrence Pek​

Progress Singapore Party’s Lawrence Pek at Teck Whye on April 19.ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN

Osmond Chia
Apr 29, 2025


SINGAPORE - Businesses should be expected to bear the additional costs of a proposed universal minimum wage, which Singapore must consider to draw more local workers back to the workforce amid rising costs of living and automation, said the Progress Singapore Party’s Lawrence Pek.

The opposition party had earlier proposed a $2,250 minimum monthly wage for all Singaporean workers, and is now calling for the Government to study its feasibility.

“The ball is in the Government’s court to properly study it,” Mr Pek told The Straits Times in an interview at Chua Chu Kang on April 29.

Mr Pek, 55, is a new face in the PSP’s four-member slate contesting Chua Chu Kang GRC.

He was rebutting remarks made by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong at PAP’s Fullerton rally on April 28. At the rally, PM Wong took aim at PSP’s call for an across-the-board minimum wage of $2,250, stating that such a policy would only accelerate inflation as companies pass down the costs of higher wages to consumers, and deter local hiring.

Mr Jeffrey Siow, a PAP candidate for Chua Chu Kang GRC, had earlier also cast doubt on the policy’s feasibility, saying that Mr Pek’s pro-business and pro-minimum wage positions are contradictory.

Singapore currently adopts the Progressive Wage Model (PWM), an initiative that aims to sustainably raise lower-wage workers’ incomes by linking wage increases to skills upgrading, productivity improvements and career progression.

But Mr Pek said the PWM is outdated and that a universal minimum wage can be feasibly implemented here.

He said it is up to businesses to re-organise the “shape, size and scope” of their firms to cope with and adapt to the cost of paying higher wages.

“The minimum wage, when imposed by any government, will force business owners to do what we call job redesign,” said Mr Pek.

For instance, companies can expand the roles and responsibilities of employees to justify a higher wage.

“If I choose to have an organisation in Singapore, it is incumbent upon me to redesign jobs based on existing labour and trade laws… such that my company can be profitable,” he said.

Mr Pek, the former secretary-general of the Singapore Manufacturing Federation, which advocates for manufacturing firms here, said that much of his views on the policy were shaped when he started a business in China and had to pay a minimum wage there.

As a business owner, he said he redesigned jobs by merging roles such as finance and human resources, and consolidating overlapping functions in supply chain management and logistics to justify the higher wage.

Asked if fewer people would be employed due to roles being merged, Mr Pek clarified that the PSP’s minimum wage proposal is not to create jobs, but to lift the salaries of lower wage workers in Singapore to protect them.

He added that the proposal for a minimum wage is not a political tool, but an economic one, as it protects the local workforce from rising cost pressures and difficult employers.

This was also in response to Mr Siow’s previous remarks that PSP’s minimum wage policy is more of a political tool than a practical solution.

Mr Pek shared a personal anecdote about a friend in his 60s who had been job hunting for over a year, but eventually turned down an offer that paid just $1,400 a month.

“He rejected the job for a very simple reason: How can I live with $1,400?”

While acknowledging that some businesses under cost pressures might opt to pass those costs to consumers should a minimum wage policy be implemented, Mr Pek pointed out that those who resort to raising prices will ultimately lose out.

Organisations will price their goods and services according to demand and supply instead of deciding based on costs, he said, rebutting PM Wong’s comments that companies will raise prices to recuperate their higher wage bills.

“It is wrong to do that. That is an academic understanding of how businesses work,” said Mr Pek.

He said the Government should play a role to support companies as they raise wages, adding that the PSP is ready to work with them on the implementation.

Mr Pek, who co-authored an article on the minimum wage policy with economist and former WP MP Leon Perera, said their research began in response to PM Wong’s 2024 interview before taking office as Prime Minister, where he expressed openness to reviewing policies.

He noted that the Government has instead rejected “the very premise of a universal minimum wage”. He said this comes even as thought leaders like former Monetary Authority of Singapore managing director Ravi Menon and former National Wages Council chairman Lim Chong Yah had suggested implementing such a policy, or to review it.

A minimum wage is unlikely to make a dent in income inequality but can lift the wages of those in the lower income brackets, Mr Menon said then, adding that the policy could complement the PWM.

Mr Pek added that advanced countries like China and Australia have also adopted a minimum wage.

“How do we take this forward? We want to engage the Government in the study of these policies,” he said.

Mr Pek later visited residents at Keat Hong with fellow PSP candidates Wendy Low and S. Nallakaruppan. They commented on other remarks PM Wong made at the Fullerton Rally, including that more opposition will weaken the PAP and cause it to lose candidates who are serving as ministers.

Mr Nallakaruppan, 60, a stockbroker, said: “If that’s the case, then I worry for the Government, because they don’t have the relevant bench strength.”

Ms Low, 48, said that the role of Manpower Minister, for instance, has seen changes every few years. The current minister, PAP’s Dr Tan See Leng, is also contesting Chua Chu Kang GRC.

The lawyer said: “I think there will be other colleagues of his who can step up to take over that portfolio.

Coalition governments have also been successful elsewhere in the world, she said, citing PM Wong’s comments made in 2024 that opposition parties could potentially win enough seats to form a coalition and run the government this election.

Ms Low said: “That might be a healthier process of making sure that we are getting the best representations to form the Cabinet in Singapore.”

GE2025: PAP Punggol team will set up new town council if elected, says DPM Gan​

DPM Gan Kim Yong speaking to residents during a walkabout at One Punggol Hawker Centre on April 29.ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG

Ng Keng Gene
Apr 29, 2025

SINGAPORE – If elected, PAP’s Punggol GRC team will form a new town council that will be chaired by Minister of State Sun Xueling, said Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong.

Speaking to reporters at One Punggol on April 29, DPM Gan said a new town council is needed as the existing Pasir Ris-Punggol Town Council has been dissolved, with the two towns split into different constituencies for the 2025 General Election.

Besides DPM Gan who helms the PAP’s four-member slate, the other team members are incumbent Pasir-Ris Punggol MPs Yeo Wan Ling, Senior Minister of State Janil Puthucheary and Ms Sun, the incumbent MP for Punggol West. The single seat has become part of the new Punggol GRC.

DPM Gan said residents have been open with him and given their feedback during his walkabouts in the town since Nomination Day on April 23.

“It’s not all positive. They don’t say ‘oh good job, please carry on’. Some of them are quite honest, quite open and say that they’ve got problems here,” he said.

“I know that wherever I go, wherever I came from, there will always be issues because the world is not perfect,” he added.

DPM Gan was moved to helm the PAP’s Punggol team in a surprise Nomination Day switch. He had been the anchor minister for Chua Chu Kang GRC.

“You know my style in handling a crisis... we want to be transparent and open,” said DPM Gan, who is also Minister for Trade and Industry.

He had co-chaired the multi-ministry taskforce tackling the Covid-19 pandemic, and now heads another taskforce looking into the impact of American tariffs on Singapore.

DPM Gan gave examples of issues that Punggol residents have raised, including connectivity issues on their mobile phones when they were making calls in basement carparks.

He said he will oversee the Northshore area if his team is elected.

Problems that residents have raised to him will be “addressed seriously and robustly”, he added.

“I cannot promise I will solve all the problems, but I promise that I will do my level best to improve the situation in Northshore, the environment, as well as to continue to increase connectivity,” he said.

During the 14th Parliament’s term, Northshore came under Dr Janil’s Punggol Coast ward, while Ms Yeo oversaw the Punggol Shore area, which covers estates in the south-eastern end of the town.

Northshore residents have also flagged workmanship issues with their recently-completed Housing Board flats and interactions with wildlife, among problems, DPM Gan said.

“I promised them that I will sit down and work with the relevant agency to see how we can reduce the population of monkeys to make sure that at least our residents in the Northshore will feel safe,” he said.

He added that Punggol residents have also requested for more covered linkways.

Addressing the town’s younger voters, he noted that there is a wide age gap between the PAP team’s candidates – Ms Sun, the youngest, is 45, while DPM Gan, the oldest, is 66 – and said they have in total about five decades of experience in running town councils.

“Experience counts, but at the same time, we are quite open, we are quite flexible, and we are really keen to engage and listen to our younger generation,” he said.

GE2025: Banners, banter and ballots – a tale of four constituencies​

Thrust into one of the fiercest political spotlights of this election, voters are only too aware of the weight their decision carries. ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI

Wong Kim Hoh
Apr 29, 2025

SINGAPORE – The people of East Coast GRC are used to choice.

Daily, they have their pick of the “big three” hawker centres in Bedok – at blocks 16, 58 and 216 – and soignee Joo Chiat cafes, newly drawn into the GRC. Nightly, cocktails at modish bar Santai or supper in the noirish light of Simpang Bedok.

So, too, politically. Since 2006, the eastern idyll has flirted with the opposition in a near quarter-century game of “will they, won’t they”, always returning a credible result, but no prize, for the WP.

Leaning against a BMW coupe in Siglap, a resident considers his options: White or blue, “it’s a win-win for us”.

The project manager in his 40s, who gives his name as Mr Lim, is undecided on his vote. His dilemma is personal. A Joo Chiat resident, he is part of the 40,675 electors hived off from the old Marine Parade GRC, familiar with the rival leaders of the PAP and WP teams.

“For Edwin Tong, he’s done a lot. The cleanliness of the roads, the infrastructure, the new Siglap Community Club,” says Mr Lim. “But I also like Yee Jenn Jong. He’s humble, present. I always see him.”

Mr Tong, the Culture, Community and Youth Minister, has for a decade been MP overseeing the comfortable suburb, while the WP man has run in Joo Chiat since 2011, when it was a single seat, losing by a hair of 388 votes that year. And he “never left” the turf, says Mr Lim.

It is ground the two brand name parties seem to think sweet. The WP withdrew from the recast Marine Parade GRC once the ward was split from it. The PAP is likely hoping it will tip East Coast a touch whiter after its bruising narrow win in 2020.


Culture, Community and Youth Minister Edwin Tong (second from right) with (from left) PAP’s East Coast GRC candidate Hazlina Abdul Halim and retired PAP MP Cheryl Chan greeting residents during a walkabout at 85 Fengshan Centre on April 25.ST PHOTO: CHONG JUN LIANG
The tree-lined streets, or lorongs, of Telok Kurau, give little away. Here on a Saturday in mid-April, pampered pooches – some in strollers – have compelled their owners into a community pet walk. The “guest of honour” is Mr Tong, whom a spiffy-looking resident calls “Edwin” as he goes in for a handshake. The minister is in jeans and breezy short sleeves, an attire that puts him right at home with his friendly constituents.

Then, four attendees interviewed confess indecision.

Voters in the silk-stockinged enclave say Mr Yee, who came out of retirement to run, is a strong contender, but lifelong Simei resident Ms Sea, 27, says WP has fielded its second string.

Go farther east, it seems, and the talk gets louder, positions firmer.

At the smoking corner of a Bedok coffee shop, two men, both around 60, have flipped their colours. One, a retired sales and marketing man, will vote PAP, sensing a drift into two-party politics.

“I have never voted for them, but I’m very worried they will lose the two-thirds,” he says, referring to the parliamentary supermajority that gives a ruling government the ability to amend the Constitution. “The world is in a very challenging time and I realised the opposition is being very populist.” Besides, he says, Mr Tong brought in Coldplay.

The other, forced into entrepreneurship after losing his job, will go blue for the first time. “When Lee Kuan Yew was in power, I would vote PAP any time,” he says.

In usually mealy-mouthed Singapore, East Coast residents seem to need no prodding to talk politics.

At a pub in Simpang Bedok – where the waitress still calls you “sayang” – an 80-year-old retired businessman lets forth in Hokkien on the ills of the group representation constituency system.

One week from Polling Day, at the Block 58 marketplace, the WP team is on an early morning walkabout. In under five minutes, four people approach Mr Yee to pump his hand and wish him luck. He dips his head to listen to them, revealing a sparse combover.

His younger associate, Mr Jasper Kuan, talks policy with two attentive middle-aged women. They bow and thank each other after – “for listening”, “for trying”.


WP East Coast GRC candidates (in blue, from left) Nathaniel Koh, Jasper Kuan, Paris V.Parameswari, Yee Jenn Jong and Sufyan Mikhail Putra Mohd Kamil greeting residents at 16 Bedok South Market & Food Centre on April 29.ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE
Still, there are quieter declarations. At the wet market, a cosmetics store displays a small PAP flag.

End to end, the temperament of each neighbourhood differs, first subtly, then starkly. In Simei, residents keep to themselves and the coffee shops have no need for banners, ubiquitous in Bedok, exhorting diners to keep it down.

But as any “Eastie” worth his salt, like Simei native and musician Mr Lim, will tell you: “I’m a bit irritated that it’s the PAP slogan, but east side is really best side.”

‘No contest is like eating rice without fish’​

While East Coast voters thrive on the thrill of contest and the luxury of political choice, just a short distance away in Marine Parade, the mood could not be more different.

On a Saturday morning in the middle of April, residents file into Marine Terrace Market, trailed by the brassy chords of a busker’s harmonica. Above the ambient chatter, hawkers dish out bowls of lontong and plates of chee cheong fun.

The morning’s tranquillity is punctuated by the giddy roar of the nearby town carnival. Manpower Minister Tan See Leng, who many assumed before Nomination Day would lead the Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC team at the 2025 polls, ascends the stage to launch a new five-year masterplan for the town.

Dr Tan is no stranger here. In recent weeks, he seems to have redoubled efforts in the neighbourhood, going door to door to meet constituents every other day.

The message is clear: He is gearing up for a showdown. For weeks now, there have been signs. Hawkers in Marine Terrace report an uptick in politician sightings. In MacPherson, the WP’s new face, Mr Harpreet Singh, was spotted walking the ground in March.

The sleepy district has stood staunchly behind the PAP’s Ms Tin Pei Ling since 2015, with 71.74 per cent of voters casting their ballots for her in the 2020 General Election. Still, a sense of restlessness hums in the air. In an ageing estate buffeted by rising prices, residents are hungry for change.

Down south, resident Christopher Lim, 34, is looking forward to a fight.

“Of course, as voters, we love a little bit of excitement, especially if it’s in our backyard,” he says.

Then April 23 arrives. The PAP team turns up at the nomination centre at Kong Hwa School, but Dr Tan is missing from their ranks. And the WP is a no-show.


PAP’s Marine Parade-Braddell Heights team, consisting of (from left) Mr Goh Pei Ming, Ms Tin Pei Ling, Associate Professor Faishal Ibrahim, Speaker of Parliament Seah Kian Peng and Ms Diana Pang, took the GRC in a walkover. ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE
Retiree Jane Goh, 63, is on a ferry back from Batam when she hears about the walkover. To her, it feels like a slap. “It’s the last-minute nature of the switch that shocks us.”

Mr Lim feels Dr Tan should have stuck around longer to build a stronger rapport with residents.

“I think it’s important to understand that our trust in the PAP MPs is derived from a longstanding political legacy that is rooted in consistent performance,” he says.

Some residents confront the WP’s East Coast team during their walkabouts in the neighbouring ward. Others vent their frustrations online, with one comment reading: “Don’t nd to bother come back here. I will not vote for u.” (sic)

“It’s no good,” mutters 70-year-old retiree Ray Chang, shaking his head. “No contest is like eating rice without fish.”

Food delivery man Noor Hidayat, 49, says he will be spending the weekend of May 3 in Kuala Lumpur and Melaka. “Don’t need to vote, that means can go on holiday already lah!”

By the end of Nomination Day, the rest of Singapore is draped in the relevant paraphernalia. In Still Road, a banner of the WP’s East Coast team has unfurled. But on the other side of the border, the lamp posts remain bare.

‘What has the other side offered?’​

As Marine Parade’s political drama fades into anti-climax, the pulse of the election beats on in the heartland of the west.

Just before 8am on a Saturday morning, a small crowd is gathered at Teban Gardens Food Centre, waiting to celebrate the birthday of an 85-year-old man.

Sandwiched between Pandan Reservoir and the Ayer Rajah Expressway in Singapore’s west coast, the estate feels a little off the beaten track – the nearest MRT station is a good 20-minute bus ride away in Jurong East.

Over at AJ Cooked Food Stall in the food centre, Mr Choa Sian Choon, 58, watches the morning’s unusual bustle with quiet curiosity.

“I’ve been working here six months, but I’ve never seen them before,” says the cook, nodding at the group of about 20 people clad in bright red PSP polo shirts.

“The other ones, I see them around once a week. They’re familiar faces,” he says, referring to the PAP volunteers who make regular rounds.

When the stall’s owner mentions that a birthday celebration is about to kick off, Mr Choa perks up.

Teban Gardens is in the heart of Ayer Rajah, a constituency that Dr Tan Cheng Bock, now celebrating his 85th birthday, represented in Parliament for 26 years until 2006, when it was absorbed into West Coast GRC. During the last general election, he led a team which contested West Coast and lost narrowly to the incumbent PAP team in the election’s tightest race.

Five years later, he is back. But with constituency lines redrawn to rope in Jurong Spring and Taman Jurong, a new question hangs in the air: Will the 158,836 voters of the new West Coast-Jurong West GRC still remember the good doctor?

This Saturday morning, some clearly do.


Teban Gardens resident Alfred Hong (right) greeting Dr Tan Cheng Bock, former MP and PSP’s candidate for West Coast-Jurong West GRC, during the latter’s walkabout on April 26. ST PHOTO: ELIZABETH LAW
One resident, Mr Alfred Hong, has brought two pictures from the previous campaign for Dr Tan to sign. The 59-year-old has been living in the area for over two decades, and loves how quiet Teban Gardens is.

But what some call serenity, others see as isolation.

For a 46-year-old administrative assistant who prefers to be known only as Siti, construction works and a lack of easy access have made daily life harder, especially when taking her wheelchair-bound mother out. Getting to shopping malls in Clementi or Jurong can be inconvenient without a car, she says.

“Maybe it’ll be better when the Jurong Region Line opens, but that’s so long away.”

She remembers Dr Tan as her MP when she was growing up.

“It’s nice that he’s coming back here again after losing, unlike some others who keep jumping around. But I worry for him because he’s already so old,” she says.

Just a 15-minute drive from Teban Gardens is Boon Lay Place Market, home to the legendary Boon Lay Power Nasi Lemak, where snaking queues of hungry students and blue-collar workers line up daily for their spicy fix.

Nestled near the bustling Jurong industrial estate, Boon Lay is a blend of old and new – ageing HDB blocks sitting comfortably alongside newer housing projects that have sprung up in recent years.

Long-time residents remember when the older three-room flats got a major spruce-up nearly two decades ago, with utility rooms added to the back of their kitchens, giving these homes a second lease of life.

For people like 68-year-old Sally Ng, Boon Lay has everything she needs right at her doorstep.

“Just downstairs, I have a wet market, a supermarket for everything I need,” she says in Mandarin. “If I want to meet my friends, the residents’ network is just below. Everyone knows everyone here.”

She’s confident that her incumbent MP, who leads the PAP team in West Coast GRC – National Development Minister Desmond Lee – will cruise to victory on Polling Day.


National Development Minister Desmond Lee (second from right) interacting with residents at the Food from the Heart Community Shop at Block 176 Boon Lay Drive on April 25. ST PHOTO: SHINTARO TAY
To her, the sheer turnout at every Meet-the-People Session says it all – residents trust him to get things done.

“The PAP takes such good care of us here, we’re very content,” she says matter-of-factly. “What has the other side offered, really – other than a lot of talk?”

‘You give voters a headache’​

But while Madam Ng takes comfort in the familiar rhythms of the neighbourhood and the steady hand of her incumbent MP, a very different political energy is gathering momentum across the island in Punggol.

Ask around, and you will find more voters swaying than casuarina trees in a monsoon storm in this GRC. Just a week ago, the air here was subdued, with both the PAP and WP keeping their strategies close to their chest.

But on April 26, as a sweltering Saturday morning gives way to a sudden downpour, the mood shifts dramatically. The surprise entry of Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong and the WP’s Mr Harpreet Singh are the talk of the town, sparking animated conversations in markets and coffee shops.

For one educator who declined to give her name, the decision at the ballot is anything but straightforward. Having moved from Choa Chu Kang – where DPM Gan was once her MP – to Punggol four years ago, the 32-year-old now finds herself torn between “a party with a proven track record and a party that offers hope”.

“I’m a Star Wars fan, so I always feel like you need hope to keep you going,” she says.


PAP’s Punggol GRC candidate Sun Xueling (left) and DPM Gan Kim Yong (second from right) mingling with residents at Punggol Waterway Point during a walkabout on April 23. ST PHOTO: AZMI ATHNI
Polling Day may be around the corner but the mother of two – grimacing as she draws her children closer – admits her vote is “still up in the air”.

Later, on their way to the library, her five-year-old daughter spots WP’s Ms Alia Mattar at One Punggol Hawker Centre, recognising her from the banners in the neighbourhood. She tells her mother she wants a photo with Ms Alia.

For Punggol voter Jeffrey Tan, 71, the sudden entry of DPM Gan in the race feels like deja vu. He had spent 25 years in Aljunied GRC and still remembers the emotional roller coaster of 2011, when the Workers’ Party clinched victory and Foreign Minister George Yeo lost his seat.

“When George Yeo lost, I cried. It was a waste because he’s a fantastic guy. This could be a repeated tragedy,” he says.

But don’t mistake his sentimentality for certainty. The surprise entries of senior counsel Harpreet Singh and DPM Gan have left him weighing his options anew.

With a wry grin, Mr Tan sums up the mood of many in Punggol: “You give the voters a headache, you know?”

This morning, he spends a long time chatting with Mr Singh and fellow WP candidate Jackson Au, praising WP for doing a “good job with recruitment”. Yet he also acknowledges that incumbent PAP MP Sun Xueling remains popular, and newcomer Yeo Wan Ling, despite being a first-term MP, has left an impression with her “bubbly” energy.

Mr Tan predicts a razor-thin race in Punggol GRC, with a recount dragging past midnight, possibly making it the last result to be called.

When asked about the odds, a 32-year-old media professional – who declines to give his name – shrugs and says: “Flip a coin.”

Another unspoken question lingers: Could there be a spillover effect from WP’s surprise victory in Sengkang in 2020?

In fact, several young residents from the adjacent Sengkang GRC have come to the One Punggol community hub, eager for a personal moment with the WP team on a walkabout.


WP’s Punggol GRC team, consisting of Ms Siti Alia Abdul Rahim Mattar (left), Mr Jackson Au (second left), Mr Harpreet Singh Nehal (second right) and Ms Alexis Dang (right) taking a picture with a resident near Punggol bus interchange on April 24.ST PHOTO: SHINTARO TAY
Among them is a 24-year-old first-time voter queuing for a bowl of the famous Botak Cantonese Porridge while clutching a copy of Journey In Blue (2020) by WP’s East Coast GRC candidate Yee Jenn Jong which he hopes to get signed.

Will the WP’s “eastern strategy” push its momentum all the way up to the north-eastern tip, reaching even Coney Island? Or will the PAP’s campaign in Punggol get a decisive lift from DPM Gan, Singapore’s “Task Force Man”, at a time of growing global tariff wars?

On the ground, residents say the same thing again and again: Municipal issues matter, but so do national ones.

Thrust into one of the fiercest political spotlights of this election, they are only too aware of the weight their decision carries. More than ever, their vote feels sacred. And they are taking it seriously.

GE2025: GST hike necessary to address rising costs but Govt will take care of you, says Shanmugam​

Law and Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam pointed out that the top 20 per cent of earners and foreigners pay most of the GST.ST PHOTO: ARIFFIN JAMAR

Anjali Raguraman
Apr 30, 2025

SINGAPORE - The goods and services tax (GST) hike was a necessary move to address rising healthcare expenses and an ageing population, said Law and Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam on April 29.

Speaking at a PAP rally for Nee Soon GRC at Yishun Stadium, Mr Shanmugam pointed out that, by 2030, those aged 65 and older would make up a third of the population.

He said: “Healthcare costs are going up. Who is going to pay for them? How are we going to pay for them?”

The GST hike – which was raised from 7 per cent to 9 per cent over two years, in 2023 and 2024 – has been a hot-button issue in this general election.

Opposition parties have been critical of the move, and have sought accountability for the timing and need for its implementation. The WP, PSP and Singapore Democratic Party have called for a reduction of the GST to 7 per cent or less to alleviate cost-of-living pressures.

Mr Shanmugam challenged such rhetoric and suggestions that the Government could tap more of the investment returns from Singapore’s reserves, instead of raising taxes.

“When people tell you you can spend without having to pay for something, in a few years, your future, your children’s future and the country’s future will go down,” he said.

He pointed out that the top 20 per cent of earners and foreigners pay most of the GST.

“We take that money and we distribute that to all those people who are less well off,” he said.

Mr Shanmugam added that the GST hike, by design, has been cushioned by the Government’s handouts.

“The majority of Singaporean households will get more money from the Government than they will pay in GST for five years,” he said.

“And if you are lower-income, what the Government is giving you will more than pay for 10 years of GST.”

He cited the GST Voucher scheme, which helps to permanently defray GST expenses for lower- to middle-income Singaporeans.

Acknowledging that many people are concerned about the rising cost of living, he said: “Never fear... economy, jobs, living expenses – as long as you are prepared to work, the Government will take care of you.”

In a wide-ranging address, Mr Shanmugam – who was flanked by the PAP team contesting Nee Soon GRC as well as former MP Lee Bee Wah, who used to helm the Nee Soon South ward – struck a sombre note when he spoke about the global economic climate.

He spoke of the uncertainty brought about by the US move to impose tariffs and the unpredictability of US actions.

“Maybe after three months, the position will become clearer, but you and I cannot say what’s going to happen,” he said, adding that while Singapore cannot control the actions of other countries, it can prepare itself.

Mr Shanmugam said: “We are not a country that waits for trouble. We prepare beforehand.”

Despite such uncertainties, he noted how discussions between Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong, who is also Minister for Trade and Industry, and US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick have been positive.

The discussions include negotiating concessions for critical exports such as pharmaceuticals, as well as facilitating access to high-end artificial intelligence chips from the American market for companies here.

“I can say, without going into detail, that the discussions have been good because there is trust – but there’s a long road (ahead). Both DPM Gan and Secretary Lutnick agreed that we should try to find a solution,” said Mr Shanmugam.

“If we can find a solution, it saves jobs. It saves businesses. So we can all hope DPM Gan remains in government after May 3,” he added, referring to DPM Gan’s role as anchor minister of a four-member PAP team facing off against the WP in the newly formed Punggol GRC.

Acknowledging concerns over the cost of living, Mr Shanmugam said the best way to help Singaporeans is to ensure that they get good jobs, such as by generating investments in the Republic and creating employment for Singaporeans.

“We’ve already put in a lot of benefits for families because we knew some things might happen, and if they happen, we better prepare for our people... as the Prime Minister said, we will do more, if necessary.”

Besides Mr Shanmugam, the PAP team contesting Nee Soon GRC comprises four new faces: former civil servant Goh Hanyan, 39; former Nominated Member of Parliament Syed Harun Alhabsyi, 40; cleaning services and pest control company director Jackson Lam, 40; and long-time Nee Soon volunteer Lee Hui Ying, 36.

It faces a Red Dot United (RDU) team comprising party secretary-general Ravi Philemon, 56; RDU chair David Foo, 60; private school teacher Syed Alwi Ahmad, 57; tech start-up business director Pang Heng Chuan, 56; and information technology consultant Sharon Lin, 40.

GE2025: First-time PAP candidates in Nee Soon GRC have roots in area and wider community, says Shanmugam​

(From left) Law and Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam leads the PAP slate for Nee Soon GRC that includes Mr Jackson Lam, Dr Syed Harun Alhabsyi, Ms Goh Hanyan and Ms Lee Hui Ying.ST PHOTO: ARIFFIN JAMAR
Tay Hong Yi and Deepanraj Ganesan
Apr 30, 2025

SINGAPORE – Two new faces on the PAP’s Nee Soon GRC slate have ties to the constituency, and all four have a track record of community service, said Law and Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam and party veteran Lee Bee Wah.

They urged voters to support Ms Goh Hanyan, Dr Syed Harun Alhabsyi, Mr Jackson Lam and Ms Lee Hui Ying at an April 29 rally at Yishun Stadium.

The rally took place four days after Mr Ravi Philemon, secretary-general of the opposition Red Dot United, questioned the decision to field four newcomers alongside Mr Shanmugam, and raised doubts about their readiness to succeed him in time to come.

Mr Philemon is leading the RDU’s bid to win the five-member group representation constituency in a straight contest.

The PAP had won Nee Soon GRC with 61.9 per cent of the vote against the PSP in 2020.

During the rally, Ms Lee Bee Wah – a Nee Soon GRC MP from 2011 to 2020 – said in Mandarin that all five on the opposition slate were new faces to Nee Soon residents.

“How much can they know about our residents? Who doesn’t know how to criticise the Government? Talk is cheap.”

Ms Lee, who was known for her colourful and vocal advocacy for her constituents in Parliament, said she had mentored the younger Ms Lee for 15 years, a fact that roused the crowd into a swell of cheers, applause and blaring air horns.

“Someone asked me, what is Hui Ying like? I told them, Hui Ying has a bit of Lee Bee Wah in her – a straight talker, sincere and hard-working.”

Ms Lee Bee Wah, 64, also pledged to continue guiding Ms Lee Hui Ying should the younger Ms Lee, 36, be elected.

She said the younger Ms Lee has helped her with Meet-the-People Sessions (MPS) and house visits, and served in the constituency’s youth executive committee, among other things.

She also said Mr Lam, 40, is a familiar face in Nee Soon – one who grew up in the constituency – calling him “the Yishun boy”.

“I have worked with him many times and I know he is a man of action,” she said.


Former Nee Soon GRC MP Lee Bee Wah was known for her colourful and vocal advocacy for her constituents in Parliament.ST PHOTO: ARIFFIN JAMAR
Mr Shanmugam also spoke up in support of all four candidates, noting that Ms Goh and Dr Syed Harun are new to Nee Soon but bring with them long years of service to the community.

Ms Goh, 39, was formerly a director in the Smart Nation Strategy Office and the national artificial intelligence group for policy and strategy at the Ministry of Digital Development and Information.

Before that, she had a stint in the strategy group of the Prime Minister’s Office, after spending around a decade at the Economic Development Board.

Dr Syed Harun, 40, is a psychiatrist by training who has, among other volunteer work, been a board member of the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore for seven years.

Mr Shanmugam indicated that appointments to political office are on the cards for both Ms Goh and Dr Syed Harun.

“If this team gets elected, and if the Prime Minister has space, and he thinks like I do, which sometimes is the case, then you will have three office-holders in Nee Soon,” he said.

In their speeches, the four first-time candidates set out their plans for Nee Soon residents if elected.

Mr Lam, who heads a pest management and cleaning firm, said he would seek the roll-out of more active ageing programmes, better accessibility and strong community care for the elderly.

He also spoke of providing second chances to young people facing challenging circumstances, and promised to draw on his experience of owning a small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) to speak up for local businesses.

“I fully understand the difficulties and challenges SMEs are facing, especially in such global uncertainty. A strong, stable PAP government gives me the confidence to excel.”

Ms Lee Hui Ying said she hopes that Nee Soon would be a home where seniors can live well and stay active, families can grow stronger with good support, and youth chase their dreams without fear.

This would involve increasing availability of good eldercare services, sport facilities and childcare facilities, she said.

She also said that becoming a candidate in the GRC meant that her journey has come full circle, after having spent nearly two decades volunteering in the area.

For his part, Dr Syed Harun said the PAP team hopes to build not just physical infrastructure, but also “paths of life that offer shelter, protection and hope”.

This includes community initiatives for those struggling with rising costs, as well as supporting education for children and enhancing care for seniors.

He also spoke about the need to strengthen harmony across races and religions, even as communities seek to preserve their cultural values, heritage and identity.

“That is Yishun’s true strength. We are all diverse, but we are united, and it is what we must preserve in Singapore and never ever let anyone else suggest or tell us otherwise.”

Ms Goh spoke of three values – kindness, hope and strength – that she said would help Singapore navigate future challenges.

Being a society built on kindness involves supporting families and caregivers, Ms Goh said. She outlined policies already in place, including increasing caregiving grants and adopting flexible working arrangements.

Hope for the future means creating jobs for all Singaporeans – ones that students and young people are excited to fill, and ones that tap the wisdom and experience of older workers, she added.

On strength, Ms Goh said a vote for the PAP is a choice to keep Singapore strong, build the kind of future that children here deserve and make Singapore a place to dream.

All five candidates – the four new faces and Mr Shanmugam – repeatedly referenced the slogan for their campaign: “Residents First”.

Addressing the audience at the rally, Mr Shanmugam, who is 66, asked: “How many of you would have seen a video of something that happened at my MPS a few weeks ago?”

He added, to raucous cheers: “What did I say in the video? I look after my residents first.

“It is part of my DNA, it’s part of Lee Bee Wah’s DNA, it’s part of the DNA of these candidates here.”

GE2025: ‘We are not beggars’, says PPP’s Goh Meng Seng on GST support schemes​

PPP secretary-general Goh Meng Seng speaking at the party's rally at Yio Chu Kang Stadium on April 29.ST PHOTO: SHINTARO TAY

Kimberly Kwek
Apr 30, 2025

SINGAPORE – Singapore is not a nation of beggars, said People’s Power Party (PPP) secretary-general Goh Meng Seng on April 29 in reference to support schemes the PAP government has in place to help Singaporeans cope with the GST hike.

At his party’s rally at Yio Chu Kang Stadium, Mr Goh, 55, said: “I’m telling you, the vision of PAP is this, it’s not only going to be a nation of fear, it’s going to be a nation of beggars. Why? Because GST vouchers are going to be the norm, every year you can expect money from the Government.

“Of course Singaporeans like it, but it is not the value we should have as a nation. We have built this nation with hard-working people that don’t expect a free lunch.”

Over the years, the Government has rolled out several programmes such as the permanent GST Voucher (GSTV) scheme, introduced in 2012 to help lower-income Singaporeans.

Enhanced at Budget 2022, the GSTV scheme now offers continued support for lower- to middle-income households and most retiree households, beyond the transitional period covered by the Assurance Package.

The GST rate increase – from 7 per cent to 9 per cent, phased in over 2023 and 2024 – has been a major point of contention in the general election, with several opposition parties proposing a return to 7 per cent or under to provide relief from living expenses.

Addressing this at the PAP’s lunchtime rally at UOB Plaza’s promenade on April 28, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said that great care was taken in implementing the goods and services tax increase so that Singaporeans who are less well off pay less than the 9 per cent rate.

Mr Goh, who is leading a five-member team in a four-cornered fight in Tampines GRC, added: “It’s difficult to tell the truth because if I say I’m against the GST vouchers, people will boo me, right?

“But I’m telling everyone this is not right, this is not fiscal discipline. You do not overtax people and return money to other people and expect them to be calling you God, appreciating you for giving them money.”

The PPP team running in Tampines GRC will come up against incumbent PAP, the WP and the National Solidarity Party.

All 10 of the PPP’s candidates spoke at the rally, which was delayed for nearly an hour due to inclement weather.

The party is also fielding a five-member team of new faces in Ang Mo Kio GRC, where they will face the PAP team, fronted by Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong, and the Singapore United Party.

Throughout the evening, PPP’s speakers raised a range of issues, highlighting concerns over MRT breakdowns, the cost of living and the national vaccine programme.

Party treasurer William Lim demanded answers to issues such as the SimplyGo roll-out by the Land Transport Authority (LTA), which was eventually reversed after public outcry, and the six-day East-West Line MRT breakdown in September 2024.


PPP party treasurer William Lim demanded answers to issues such as the SimplyGo roll-out by the Land Transport Authority.ST PHOTO: SHINTARO TAY
Pointing to Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat, Mr Lim said: “We want to demand the LTA give all Singaporeans an answer. What has happened? Is there anything SMRT breached in the maintenance schedule?”

The party will hold its fourth and final rally on May 1 at the field next to the Tampines Concourse bus interchange.

GE2025: Pritam Singh says WP does not engage in negative politics​

WP chief Pritam Singh speaking during the party's rally at the Bedok Stadium, on April 29.ST PHOTO: AZMI ATHNI
Wong Pei Ting, Joyce Lim and David Sun
Apr 30, 2025

SINGAPORE – WP chief Pritam Singh has rejected Prime Minister Lawrence Wong’s statement that the opposition party engages in “negative politics”, saying it was the PAP that had done so for years.

Speaking at a rally on April 29, he listed as examples the PAP’s initial treatment of residents in opposition wards, and the lack of access for opposition MPs to People’s Association resources.

Noting that Hougang and Potong Pasir voters were told in the past that their wards would be last in line for estate upgrades if they voted for the opposition, he said this had left a bad taste in his mouth during his youth.

“My peers and I didn’t feel like this was a Singapore we can be proud of. We didn’t feel such affinity to a country ruled by people with such small hearts,” he said at the rally in Bedok Stadium, located in East Coast GRC.

For the fifth time, WP is going head-to-head with the PAP in the constituency. It lost narrowly to the ruling party in 2020, with 46.61 per cent of the vote.

At the rally on the seventh day of hustings, the Leader of the Opposition laid out what he considers examples of negative politics by the PAP.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, the People’s Association had given grassroots advisers – including unelected ones – information on which residents were recovering from the infection, so that they could deliver care packs. But WP MPs did not get such access, he noted.

Elected opposition MPs were also kept away when new citizens were welcomed to the community at citizenship ceremonies, while losing PAP candidates presided over them, Mr Singh said.

“With immigration and integration being such a big part of our social landscape in Singapore, I am taken aback by how the PAP does not walk the talk when it speaks of a united Singapore to deal with the challenges of tomorrow,” he said.

Calling on PM Wong to change this policy, Mr Singh said: “In the long run, Singapore will lose with such a mentality from PAP political leaders. Even if the PAP cannot, Singapore can do much better than that.”

The Prime Minister earlier rebuked WP for its negative tone and attacks on Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong and his team. “Let’s reject this kind of negative politics. You should be better than this,” said PM Wong.

During his 20-minute speech, Mr Singh asked the PAP if it would allow elected WP MPs to use community clubs for food donation or distribution drives for low-income households.

“Please say yes or no before Polling Day. Let me know, so I can go and debate with PM Lawrence Wong in Parliament what is the real meaning of negative politics,” said Mr Singh.

“But if you say ‘no, cannot – you cannot come into the CCs, let things be the way they are’, it is okay. The spirit of Hougang lives in our people, and the Workers’ Party will find a way to help those people in need.”

Mr Singh said WP MPs have not been given access to use community clubs since 1981.

He also invited PAP’s East Coast GRC candidates to clarify which programmes they would halt, should they lose the electoral contest.

“Be upfront with our people, so voters can decide if the PAP really cares about East Coast or if there is no ‘together’ in their East Coast Plan,” he said.

Mr Singh argued that the PAP changed strategy over the years by allowing opposition-held estates to get public housing upgrades at the same time as, or in some cases earlier than, PAP-run estates, because the ruling party realised that its “bullying sticks and disrespectful carrots” did not work.

He said this changed because the policy lost votes for the PAP, and that the ruling party “only listens when it loses vote share and parliamentary seats to the Workers’ Party”.

“Why do you think Lee Hsien Loong and Lawrence Wong are going to Tampines, going to Punggol?” he asked.

On April 29, Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong joined the party’s Tampines GRC team on a walkabout in the town, while PM Wong did the same with the PAP’s team in Punggol GRC.

The WP is contesting these constituencies.

Added Mr Singh: “No political pressure in Parliament against the PAP, no results on the ground, no fairness, no justice on the ground.”

Mr Singh also said: “A previous prime minister said that he would have to spend his time fixing the opposition if it gains five, 10 or 20 seats. And he said this when the opposition only had two seats in Parliament.

“This is the PAP DNA. I wonder what Prime Minister Lawrence Wong would say about this – is this negative politics?”

Mr Singh, meanwhile, said that if WP wins East Coast GRC, it will not label its banners with words like “WP-run town council” – what the PAP has done with its town council banners in the last few years.

“Communities and towns are about the people who live in them,” he said, adding that the green ratings of WP town councils speak for themselves.

Town councils here are rated green, amber or red based on their estate cleanliness, estate maintenance, lift performance, management of service and conservancy charge arrears, and corporate governance. Green is the highest score.

Ultimately, Mr Singh appealed to East Coast GRC residents to vote with this in mind: “Our little red dot will shine bright when our hearts are large.”

New way forward for East Coast​

Several speakers at the rally also spoke about how East Coast voters have been let down by the PAP.

Mr Yee Jenn Jong, who helms the WP’s East Coast GRC team, and incumbent Hougang MP Dennis Tan pointed to how constituencies had disappeared whenever the PAP did not do well.

Describing the boundary changes in East Coast as repeated instances of gerrymandering, Mr Tan urged voters to put a stop to them by voting in the WP.

Echoing the sentiment, Mr Sufyan Mikhail Putra, an East Coast GRC candidate, said: “Maybe this is our final chance to turn East Coast blue.”

Meanwhile, his teammate Nathaniel Koh reminded voters of the “promise” made in the 2020 General Election when Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat was moved from Tampines GRC to helm East Coast GRC.

“Five years ago, you were promised a future prime minister. Some of you might have voted for them because of that promise. But what happened? It became an empty promise,” said Mr Koh, asking voters to “choose another way forward”.

The WP East Coast GRC candidates also took aim at their PAP opponents, led by Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong.

Noting that Mr Tong had called for policy suggestions to go beyond rhetoric and sound bites at a rally, Mr Yee said: “Mr Edwin Tong must have a very practical and sensible plan to bring Singapore to the World Cup finals in 2034.”

He was referring to the goal for the Lions to play in the 2034 World Cup, which has drawn comparisons with the original aim to do so by 2010.

“After all, Mr Sitoh Yih Pin... said that we are so lucky to have (Mr Tong) because he is like the Lionel Messi of Singapore,” he added.

Mr Sitoh, the incumbent MP for Potong Pasir who is retiring from politics, had said at a rally that Mr Tong was as important to Singapore as the Argentinian footballer is to his national team.

Mr Sufyan, meanwhile, noted that PAP East Coast GRC candidate Hazlina Abdul Halim had apologised at an April 26 rally about life having become tougher for some young people.

Citing this, he said: “Do you want your MP to apologise to you because your lives are tougher or do you want your MP to find solutions to make your lives better?”

Ms Paris V. Parameswari, also on WP’s East Coast slate, spoke about how the Government had “lost touch”, citing the mishandling of private data when NRIC data was leaked on the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority website, among other things.

She also called for Thaipusam to be reinstated as a public holiday, noting that the festival has become a “spiritually significant affair for many Hindus in Singapore”.

Promising to do her best if elected, she said: “I can be caring and passionate, like Mother Teresa. But if the need arises to be a voice in Parliament, to ask questions fearlessly, I can be like Margaret Thatcher, the Iron Lady.”

GE2025: WP’s Andre Low apologises for ‘inappropriate’ language, remarks in leaked Telegram messages​

The WP's Jalan Kayu candidate Andre Low said the leaked messages were from a private chat among his business school classmates.ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI
Wong Pei Ting
Apr 30, 2025

SINGAPORE – Mr Andre Low, the opposition WP’s Jalan Kayu candidate, has apologised for his use of vulgarities and “completely inappropriate” remarks in a series of text messages that were leaked on social media.

In a Facebook post in the early hours of April 30, Mr Low said the leaked Telegram messages were from a private chat among his business school classmates.

Many date to the Covid-19 period when “we ranted to each other while cooped up at home”, said Mr Low, 33.

Noting that he has always been opinionated and holds strong convictions about Singapore and how it “can do so much better”, he said: “These same convictions are also what pushed me to step up to contest as a Workers’ Party candidate.”

More than 30 screenshots of text messages purportedly from Mr Low were posted to Reddit.

One of them about the noise from fighter jets flying over Sengkang read: “I can’t believe some champion military a**hole thought that noise pollution for four months is a brilliant way to celebrate NDP.”

NDP refers to the National Day Parade.

Several messages appeared to be about his work at a Meet-The-People Session.

The messages recounted how he could not get through to a resident unless he turned off his caller ID blocking service.

“They proceeded to call me every day on my personal number. IMO, these people can f*** off,” a message read.

Mr Low said he is not proud of the way he expressed his views and is “deeply sorry” for the language he used, adding that this was done in a different stage of his life.

“But regardless of the setting, there is no excuse for using such language or making disparaging comments about anyone – especially those who have placed their trust in me,” he added.

He continued: “I am now married, and soon to be a father. I have spent five years working with the Workers’ Party – first serving the residents of Rivervale and later helping to spread the word about the good work of the party.

“These experiences have opened my eyes to the lived realities of Singaporeans and Singapore firms, and I have matured over the process.”

He added that since he had spoken about transparency, accountability and the power of apologies at a WP rally on April 29, he needed to hold himself to the same standard.

Mr Low will go up against labour chief Ng Chee Meng from the PAP at the May 3 General Election.

He also apologised to Jalan Kayu voters, and said he takes full responsibility for his past actions.

“I understand that as a public figure, my words carry weight and can cause real harm,” he wrote.

“This has been a humbling experience, but I hope that I can earn your trust, and to demonstrate my sincerity in wanting to serve you.”

GE2025: PAP’s Foo Cexiang once dreamt of opening a football cafe; he now wants to bring people together as MP​

PAP newcomer Foo Cexiang meeting residents during house visits as he campaigns in Bukit Merah on April 29.ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH

Cherie Lok
Apr 30, 2025

SINGAPORE – If Edwin Tong is Lionel Messi, then Foo Cexiang aspires to be Roberto Baggio, not for dazzling footwork or goal-scoring flair, but for the legendary Italian footballer’s grit and resilience.

Breaking into a sheepish grin, the PAP newcomer says he has been unable to dribble since he tore his ligament during national service.

“If my friends see me kicking a ball, they’ll know I wayang (‘acting out’ in Singapore slang) lah. I can’t!” adds the vice-president of port ecosystem development at PSA Singapore.

The year is 1994 and Singapore is in the grip of World Cup fever. A certain ponytailed No. 10 catches his eye, and just like that, the future politician, then a mere boy of nine, gets swept along in the current of exhilaration.

He watches, transfixed, as Baggio fires Italy through the tournament one nail-biting game at a time. Eagerly, he asks his father to rouse him for the final, but wakes up only in time for penalties and the horror of watching his new-found hero sky his spot kick over the crossbar.

“Ironically, that miss made me love him even more,” recalls the now 40-year-old. “This whole idea that he came within touching distance of the trophy, was unable to win, but was still so well loved by everyone. I think when people see the heart you put in, they will love you for it.”

It is this belief that drives him to pour his all into every project, whether it is overseeing electric vehicle policy, as he did as a director at the Ministry of Transport before stepping down in April, or campaigning for a seat in Parliament.

These days, Mr Foo spends most of his time in Tanjong Pagar GRC, ploughing through block after block without so much as a toilet break. Armed with only his fraying voice and stack of name cards, he strides along HDB corridors bellowing: “Hello everyone, this is Foo Cexiang from the PAP. I’m doing house visits. I’ll be happy to see you if you’re home!”


PAP Tanjong Pagar GRC candidate Foo Cexiang joining residents in a cheer on his house visits.ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
Even now, more than midway through the hustings and just three days to Polling Day, his boundless energy has yet to ebb. He greets everyone he passes with an open smile and exuberant “Hi!”, before launching into easy conversation in English, Mandarin, Hokkien, Cantonese or Hainanese.

“For me, the natural way to connect with people is by showing them my warmth. And it’s a real warmth, it comes from deep within me, and I think they can feel it quite quickly.”

Not one to dwell on negativity, he blithely shrugs off the mean comments pelting the unflattering photo that accompanied news of his resignation, and is not daunted by sceptics, either.

“Sometimes, I meet residents who have strong emotions or challenges, and may not behave so positively towards me. But when they explain what they have been going through, it actually also energises me because I want to see how I can best gain their trust and help them.”


While first impressions are important, his track record, he believes, will count for more in the long run, should he get elected on May 3. If that happens, he plans to improve accessibility in the estate and curate more programmes to bring together residents of all ages in this eclectic, multi-generational neighbourhood.

For him, Tanjong Pagar’s diversity is its strength.

“The older generation has a lot of appreciation for this area, while the younger generation has a lot of aspirations. So they rub off one another, and that is why I’m very excited to be here.”

As father to three young girls aged three to eight, Mr Foo also understands the challenges parents face in keeping children occupied without resorting to technological crutches. His solution? To ramp up child-friendly infrastructure like playgrounds, as well as to organise more community events where parents can leave their children under the supervision of a trusted neighbour, and catch a bit of a breather.

Above all, he vows to be an MP who listens.

“Some of the residents ask me, ‘Will you speak up for us in Parliament?’ And my 100 per cent commitment is that I will certainly listen to you and understand where you’re coming from, digest it properly, and if I agree that it is in the best interest of the residents, I will speak up.

“But that is different from saying that I will raise everything you tell me, because the individual’s perspective may not be the same as (that of) the significant group of residents.”

Likewise, he asks for grace – in particular, the chance to explain to residents why certain policies get green-lit. The former civil servant is well aware that not all schemes prove universally popular, and will try his best to break down why resources are allocated in this way.


While he cannot guarantee accord, he promises to go “all in” in every interaction. No regrets, no airs – that has been his approach to life since losing his mother at age 21.

She was diagnosed with cancer in March 2006 and died, aged 51, in August that year. To make the most of her remaining time, mother and son crammed a lifetime’s worth of conversations into six months.

“We watched old videos, we talked about the past and some of the future – things like, do I hope to get married? How many children? A lot of these conversations that, if she had been around, we would probably have had in the years to come. And it was a very reassuring process,” says the eldest of three children. His father is retired.

How would she feel about his latest endeavour? Proud, he hopes.

“But I’m also very sure that she will tell me that I need to work very hard. That’s my mum. She would always say, ‘You have done this, but the next thing is going to be harder, so you need to keep on working.’”


Mr Foo Cexiang’s ability to speak different Chinese dialect has endeared him to Tanjong Pagar’s and Tiong Bahru’s older residents. ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
Because he is running on the strength of his convictions, he does not feel the need to play up party tricks or stand out in the fresh crop of newcomers making waves this election.

As he points out: “This is the first English interview I’m doing and I’m already coming to the end of my campaign. For me, it’s really about what I want to fight for.”

Over his campaign hangs the long shadow of Mr Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore’s founding prime minister and the first MP of Tanjong Pagar. He also has to fill the shoes of Ms Indranee Rajah, who has moved from Tanjong Pagar GRC to run in Pasir Ris-Changi GRC, and whose name is brought up by more than a few residents during his walkabout.

But Mr Foo feels no pressure. On the contrary, the chance to carry on their legacy galvanises him.

“I’m convinced that the PAP is still the party to take the country forward in terms of the values that we have espoused over the years,” he says.

“In today’s era of great political contest and complexity, I believe it will require deeper and more direct engagement with Singaporeans. That is why I’ve chosen to step forward.”

But he did hesitate before taking the leap of faith, held back by the prospect of ceding yet more precious time at home. Already, the demands of this election are taking a toll on his family.

“My daughter received her first Edusave award the other day, on Saturday, but I couldn’t attend (the ceremony). So there will be moments when you wish you were there.”


Mr Foo Cexiang high-fiving a resident in Bukit Merah. ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
How then will this aspiring parliamentarian, who wants to champion the welfare of children, ensure his own offspring do not end up with the short end of the stick?

By taking them along on the job, so he hopes. Should he triumph at the polls and realise his vision of putting together more family-friendly activities in the ward, his wife and children could join as volunteers or attendees – “and then the children will get to see what Papa is doing”.

His foray into politics has extracted one more sacrifice: His dream of running a football cafe will have to be postponed for now.

“Politics is a whole different calling. That was just an idea I thought would be nice.”

Still, one thing remains consistent: his goal to bring people from all walks of life together to find common ground over good conversation.

GE2025: PSP urges release of probe’s findings into volunteer harassment allegations before polls​

PSP candidates for West Coast-Jurong West GRC, (from left) Dr Tan Cheng Bock, Mr Sumarleki Amjah, Mr Leong Mun Wai, Mr Sani Ismail and Ms Hazel Poa at Jurong West on April 30.ST PHOTO: KELVIN CHNG

Ng Wei Kai
Apr 30, 2025

SINGAPORE – The results of the police investigation into allegations of harassment between PAP and PSP volunteers should be released to the public within the campaign period so voters can decide, PSP chairman Tan Cheng Bock said on April 30.

Dr Tan, who is contesting West Coast-Jurong West GRC, said during a walkabout in Jurong West: “We are a country of very educated people. We must behave ourselves. And they know I’m very strict because I don’t like people to shout and fight each other.”

He was referring to a Jan 4 incident between PSP and PAP volunteers at a walkabout in Bukit Gombak SMC, which the opposition party is also contesting.

Each side has made allegations of harassment against the other, and offered different accounts of what happened. Police reports had also been lodged.

With just two days of campaigning left before Singapore goes to the polls on May 3, PSP first vice-chair Hazel Poa brought up the January incident, saying she had raised it before but has yet to receive a response from the Government.

“These are very serious allegations,” she said. “We urge the outcomes of the investigations to be released to the public, so they can know the truth.”

The PSP’s Harish Pillay is facing incumbent PAP MP Low Yen Ling in Bukit Gombak SMC.

In West Coast-Jurong West GRC, the PSP team, which includes Dr Tan, Ms Poa and party chief Leong Mun Wai, is up against a team from the PAP led by National Development Minister Desmond Lee.

Mr Leong also responded to several issues which have emerged over the hustings, including the GST and government spending.

On April 29, Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam had during a rally said the opposition was “not telling the truth” about the GST increase and its relationship with inflation.

Mr Leong said: “GST is a regressive tax. You cannot run away from that, right? What the government has done is that they give GST vouchers to the lowest income Singaporeans, but it doesn’t alter the fact that GST is a regressive tax.”

He added that middle-class Singaporeans are being squeezed by such taxes, calling them a “sandwiched class”.

He added that Singapore does not need the additional revenue from the GST increase, saying the Government should choose instead to forgo spending on infrastructure – such as upgrades to Changi Airport – to improve the welfare and standard of living for Singaporeans.

“This government has buckets of excess resources on their hands, and they still continue to raise the taxes,” he said. “It (the excess revenue) is just locked up in some funds and will be spent over the long term.”

Citing the $5 billion expenditure for Changi Airport’s development, Mr Leong said such projects were commercially viable and that funds could be raised separately for them.

He added that other expenses that can be cut include public funding for SPH Media Trust, SkillsFuture and the People’s Association.

Mr Leong added that the Government, including Mr Lee, have not responded to the PSP’s proposals during the hustings.

He reiterated the PSP’s concerns about the rising cost of Housing Board flats, and said the party has proposals to ensure affordable housing.

Mr Leong said: “The Government is totally distorting the original purpose of public housing, and PSP strongly invites Minister Desmond Lee to debate that point.”

He also spoke about municipal issues faced by residents in West Coast-Jurong West GRC, saying the lifts in Jurong Spring are due for upgrades.

He said: “The size of the lift is only enough for one wheelchair to go in and then take one more person.

“How come? Over the last 20 years, the government didn’t upgrade all of these lifts in Jurong Spring? I demand, I request, Minister Desmond Lee to give a definitive answer.”

GE2025: What you need to know about the cooling-off period​

This period of campaign silence starts on May 2, and ends when polls close on May 3.ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI

Gabrielle Chan
Apr 30, 2025

SINGAPORE - The day before Polling Day is known as Cooling-off Day, during which campaigning activities and election advertising are not allowed.

This period of campaign silence starts on May 2, after midnight, and ends only after polls close on Polling Day on May 3. It is intended to give voters time to reflect on issues raised during the campaign period, before casting their vote.

Introduced in 2010, Cooling-off Day was first observed in the 2011 General Election. These rules during the cooling-off period apply to all, including voters, candidates and election agents.

This is part of a series of explainers and listicles The Straits Times has put together ahead of the polls.

Here is the list of what is allowed – and not allowed – during the cooling-off period.

No: Publishing of fresh election advertisements​

Publishing or publicly displaying new election advertisements, or making changes to any existing ads, are not allowed on Cooling-off Day and Polling Day. This applies to both online and non-online forms of election advertisements.

Online election advertising refers to any material published online that can be reasonably regarded as intended to promote, procure, or prejudice the electoral success or prospects for political parties or candidates. Such material can also be to enhance or prejudice parties or candidates’ standing in connection with any election.

These rules also apply to resharing, reposting and boosting of online content, and applies to all paid or unpaid content.

The public display of traditional forms of election advertising, such as banners, flags or posters, are also prohibited, unless they were published before the start of the cooling-off period.

Political parties are also not allowed to conduct programmatic advertising, such as using technology to automatically deliver online ads.

No: Conducting of house visits or walkabouts​

Candidates are not allowed to conduct any campaigning activities including walkabouts, door-to-door visits, canvassing of votes and distribution of flyers during this period.

The use of vehicles for campaigning is also not allowed.

No: Wearing or displaying campaign propaganda​

No one is allowed to wear, carry or display campaign symbols or materials – such as on banners, t-shirts or badges – that promote a candidate or political party.

Only candidates may wear a replica of their party’s symbol.

No: Holding election meetings or attending public events​

Gatherings, rallies or public meetings where candidates or parties address voters are not allowed.

The public is also not allowed to attend events that are being held for election purposes.

Yes: Campaign materials can remain​

Banners, flags, posters and online election-related content put up before the cooling-off period may remain in place.

Yes: News outlets publishing election-related articles​

Licensed media organisations can continue publishing election-related news reports in newspapers, on radio, or on television during the cooling-off period. But these reports must not amount to election advertising.

Yes: Sharing of personal political views privately​

Private, non-commercial sharing of personal political views and content between individuals is allowed.

This includes private conversations, text messages and direct messages, within a private chat or closed group with family or friends, as long as they are not intended for public broadcast or mass dissemination.

Group chats or channels on messaging platforms, such as WhatsApp or Telegram, must not be used to publish election ads.

GE2025: Jalan Besar PAP team greeted by smiles, waves and tears at Kampong Glam walkabout​

An emotional Madam Yip Lum Fong (right) rushed to hug incumbent MP Denise Phua during the latter's walkabout at North Bridge Road Market and Food Centre on April 30.ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH

Judith Tan
Apr 30, 2025

SINGAPORE - With just one full day remaining before election hustings come to an end, the PAP’s Jalan Besar GRC team was out in full force at North Bridge Road Market and Food Centre on April 30.

The candidates were greeted by smiles and waves from patrons and stallholders, many of whom were long-time residents of Kampong Glam, a ward under incumbent Denise Phua.

One resident, Madam Yip Lum Fong, 83, rushed forward as soon as she spotted Ms Phua. With tears flowing, Madam Yip gave Ms Phua a tight hug and told her to take care of her own health.

Madam Yip, who has a grown son with Down syndrome, also expressed gratitude to Ms Phua, who had given financial and emotional support to the mother-son duo over the years.

Madam Yip, a housewife, told The Straits Times later that Ms Phua often took great care of the residents in her ward, sometimes to a fault, and had to be told to take care of her own health. “Otherwise, she forgets,” Madam Yip said.

The PAP’s four-member slate helmed by Minister for Digital Development and Information Josephine Teo comprised Dr Wan Rizal Wan Zakariah, Ms Phua and newcomer Shawn Loh, and they were all greeted with warmth and smiles at the market and food centre.


PAP candidates for Jalan Besar GRC (from left) Josephine Teo, Denise Phua, Wan Rizal and Shawn Loh meeting patrons and stallholders during a walkabout at North Bridge Road Market and Food Centre on April 30.ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
Madam Tan Ah Moey, 83, who used to work as a stall assistant at the market, said she showed up to give her support when she found out that the PAP team was visiting.

Madam Salbiyah Mohd Yusof, 50, a healthcare assistant, was overheard wishing Minister for Digital Development and Information Josephine Teo “semoga bahagia”, which means “may you be happy” in Malay.

Despite being a new face to the area, political greenhorn Mr Loh was not lacking in admirers too, obliging with a wefie or two when asked.

Madam Liew Soo Ying, 87, said she was particularly taken by the “his genuine smile and demeanour”.

Mr Loh, a former MOF director, is currently the deputy group managing director of Singapore-based investment company Commonwealth Capital Group. He was introduced on April 16 as a new candidate joining the incumbent PAP team to contest Jalan Besar GRC in the upcoming election.


PAP candidate Shawn Loh meeting residents during a walkabout at North Bridge Road Market and Food Centre on April 30.ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
He will take over the GRC’s Whampoa ward from Senior Minister of State for Defence Heng Chee How, who has stepped down from the team.

The PAP team will be going head-to-head with the People’s Alliance for Reform (PAR), an opposition coalition of three parties – Peoples Voice, the Reform Party and the Democratic Progressive Party – in a battle for Jalan Besar GRC in the general election on May 3.

The PAR team contesting Jalan Besar comprises newcomers – freelance private tutor Chiu Shin Kong, nurse Sarina Abu Hassan, early childhood educator Vigneswari V. Ramachandran, and the party’s treasurer Mohamad Hamim Aliyas.

GE2025: 11 election rallies to be held on May 1, final day of campaigning​

The rallies are scheduled to run from 7pm to 10pm on May 1.ST PHOTOS: BRIAN TEO, GAVIN FOO, CHERIE LOK, KELVIN CHNG

Elaine Lee
Apr 30, 2025


SINGAPORE – Eleven election rallies will take place on May 1, the last day of campaigning, with large crowds expected at the venues.

Police said on April 30 that permits had been issued to six parties and one independent candidate.

They include the People’s Power Party (PPP), PSP, WP, Singapore Democratic Party (SDP), Red Dot United (RDU) and PAP as well as independent candidate Jeremy Tan.

The rallies are scheduled from 7pm to 10pm.



The PPP, which is contesting Tampines GRC, will hold a rally at a field beside Tampines Concourse Bus Interchange; PSP (Pioneer SMC) at Jurong West Stadium; WP (Hougang SMC) at Anderson Serangoon Junior College; RDU (Nee Soon GRC) at a field in Yishun Central, which is next to FutsalArena @ Yishun; and SDP (Sembawang West SMC) at Evergreen Primary School.

The PAP will be holding five rallies for Potong Pasir SMC, Aljunied GRC, Punggol GRC, Sengkang GRC and Tampines GRC at St Andrew’s Junior College, Serangoon Stadium, Yusof Ishak Secondary School, North Vista Secondary School and Temasek Junior College, respectively.

Mr Tan, the independent candidate who is running for Mountbatten SMC, will be holding his rally at Home of Athletics in Kallang.

Singapore goes to the polls on May 3. The candidates started campaigning from April 23 and may do so up till Cooling-off Day on May 2. On this day, no campaigning is allowed. The candidates and parties must stop all forms of promotion, whether in person or online.

This gives voters time to reflect on the issues raised during the campaigning period and decide on their choices without feeling overwhelmed.

In an earlier release, police said attendees are strongly encouraged to take public transport, due to the large crowds expected at the rallies.

They should also be prepared for traffic diversions, lane closures and slower traffic that may also affect pickup and drop-off points for ride-hailing services.

Police said the use of carparks near the rally sites is restricted to season parking holders. Vehicles found to be illegally parked or causing an obstruction may be towed away.

Here is a list of items that are banned at the rallies:

• Firearms and parts of firearms, including empty magazines and spent cartridges
• Live and blank bullets
• Air pistols and rifles or parts
• Spear guns
• Explosives, blasting caps, dynamites and corrosive substances
• Fireworks and firecrackers
• Parangs and machetes
• Bearing scrapers
• Walking sticks with daggers
• Antique pistols and guns
• Stun guns
• Batons and T-batons
• Night sticks
• Signal flares and other flammable materials
• Handcuffs
• Tear gas and pepper sprays
• Nanchakus
• Knuckle dusters
• Crossbows
• Industrial acid
• Bulletproof vests
• Keychains in the shape of a bullet or gun
• Wooden or metal spears
• Lighters in the shape of a gun, pistol, bullet or grenade
• Toy guns that resemble actual guns
• Kirpans
• Sharp or long objects, such as knives, that can be used as weapons
• Glass bottles
• Laser pointers
• Canned drinks
  

  ​

GE2025: Campaigning should not generate ‘heat’ without providing solutions, says Chan Chun Sing​

Education Minister Chan Chun Sing (centre) speaking to reporters before a walkabout at Tanjong Pagar Plaza Market and Food Centre on April 30.ST PHOTO: KELVIN CHNG

Lim Min Zhang
Apr 30, 2025

SINGAPORE – Campaigning should not be about stirring up people’s emotions or anger without providing them with “real, tangible solutions”, said Education Minister Chan Chun Sing on April 30.

Defining what he termed “positive campaigning”, Mr Chan said it should be about presenting the electorate with options and not about having debates that generate “heat without light”, he told reporters before a walkabout at Tanjong Pagar Plaza Market and Food Centre with the PAP’s Tanjong Pagar GRC team.

“In the nature of any contest, there will be both arguments back and forth, but I really hope to see that throughout these debates and discussions, we will generate not just heat but (also) light,” said Mr Chan, when asked about the issue of “negative politics” that was the subject of an exchange between Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and WP chief Pritam Singh on April 29.

“Light in the sense of the type of solutions we can present to fellow Singaporeans to help them make a decision as to who can better represent them in Parliament (and) which team can better help Singapore and Singaporeans get through all the challenges that are confronting us,” he added.

PM Wong had criticised the negative tone of the WP’s campaign, particularly towards Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong and the PAP team in Punggol.

Mr Singh in a rally later in the day rejected the view that his party engages in negative politics, saying it was the PAP that had done so for years.

“In fact, it is incumbent upon us to try to provide the solutions or our offer of solutions for the electorate to consider carefully,” said Mr Chan.

Mr Chan is helming the five-member slate against the People’s Alliance for Reform in the May 3 polls. His team consists of fellow candidates Alvin Tan, Joan Pereira and Rachel Ong, who had overseen the Telok Blangah area under the former West Coast GRC, and political newcomer Foo Cexiang.

Mr Chan took issue with another line of argument he said had surfaced in the campaign.

“Team A has done well, and therefore they don’t need so many good players. Team B has not done as well, so we should reward them with more players,” he said. “I think fair-minded Singaporeans will know that there is something not very correct with this line of argument.”

He said that in his more than 30 years of service in the military and then politics, he learnt that leaders must be first to take responsibility and last to claim credit.

“I find it rather amusing to hear some of (the discussion) during the debate that displays the exact opposite of this,” said Mr Chan.

He said that there were instances, where some have claimed credit for good outcomes simply because they had “contributed by not objecting”, he said.

While he did not cite any political party in particular, Mr Chan noted Singapore’s Covid-19 response and the more recent handling of the global increases in tariffs as examples.

Other examples include the Progressive Wage Model, a wage ladder tied to skill and productivity improvements. While some perceive this as equivalent to minimum wage, the idea and rationale behind this scheme is “quite different”, said Mr Chan.

The same goes for the Jobseeker Support scheme, which some have likened to unemployment insurance, noted Mr Chan. The new scheme, announced by PM Wong at the National Day Rally in August 2024, provides financial support to eligible workers who have lost their jobs due to reasons beyond their control.

Mr Chan did not refer to the WP, but the opposition party had, in a Facebook post on April 16, cited unemployment insurance as one of the 15 policies they had advocated that ended up being adopted “in some form” by the Government.

He said: “There is a role for constructive opposition in any healthy democracy, and I think Singaporeans want to see that. But we should all be humble and try not to claim more than what is due.”

Asked a follow-up question on whether his remarks applied to the WP, Mr Chan said they apply to all political parties, including the PAP.

“There is the standard we must aspire to present to fellow Singaporeans. It is the standard that we must keep, it’s a standard that we aspire to keep raising,” he said, adding that there should not be different standards for different parties.

“Once we start having double standards, we will quickly have a race to the bottom,” he said.

Mr Chan also said he had confidence that Singaporeans will want to hear “the real substance” from every policy debate. They will also want to know about the “real solutions” and who can provide and deliver on these solutions.

Also present as Mr Chan addressed the media was Mr Foo, the only new face in the PAP Tanjong Pagar line-up. The incumbent for Radin Mas SMC, Mr Melvin Yong, and Mr Eric Chua, who is contesting the new Queenstown SMC, were also there.

Mr Foo said he has completed visiting eight residential blocks in the Tanjong Pagar Plaza area in the past few days, which used to be overseen by Ms Indranee Rajah. She will be contesting Pasir Ris-Changi GRC in this election.

Based on his engagements so far, he said that residents’ support for the PAP was “very strong”.

He also said he will be continuing Ms Indranee’s initiatives such as a “huncle” programme to engage men aged 50 and above, which was launched in April 2024. Participants exercise together with the goal of improving their physical and social health.


(From left, in white) Education Minister Chan Chun Sing and his fellow Tanjong Pagar GRC candidates Foo Cexiang and Rachel Ong on a walkabout at Tanjong Pagar Plaza Market and Food Centre on April 30.ST PHOTO: KELVIN CHNG
As for younger residents, Mr Foo, a former director at the Ministry of Transport, said he would “100 per cent” hear them out and consider their concerns.

“If it’s in the interests of the greater majority of residents, I will speak up for them (in Parliament).

“But that’s obviously different from saying that I will say everything they share with me, because sometimes the individual’s interest is not always the same as the interests of the general public.”

GE2025: NSP advisor launches salvos at WP, SDP during party’s first e-rally​

National Solidarity Party advisor and founding member Ken Sun speaking at the party’s first rally, streamed live on Facebook on April 29.PHOTO: NATIONAL SOLIDARITY PARTY/FACEBOOK

Shabana Begum
Apr 30, 2025

SINGAPORE - The National Solidarity Party’s (NSP) advisor and founding member Ken Sun had choice words for the opposition WP and Singapore Democratic Party (SDP), which the party is going up against in multi-cornered fights in both Tampines and Sembawang GRCs.

“WP has a long history of abandoning constituencies they promised to serve in. It abandoned Jalan Besar in 2015, MacPherson in 2020, and now Marine Parade-Braddell Heights this year… do you think WP will continue to be here in Tampines at the next GE?”

He added that these moves made it seem like the party was treating the General Elections as “masak-masak (child’s play)”.

Mr Sun, who is not contesting the upcoming General Election, was speaking at the party’s first rally, streamed live on Facebook on April 29.

He also expressed his disappointment with the WP and SDP for “encroaching NSP’s turf” in Tampines and Sembawang GRCs, respectively.

In the 2015 and 2020 General Elections, NSP went up against the PAP in straight fights in both constituencies. In 2020, NSP garnered 33.59 per cent of the vote in Tampines GRC, and 32.71 per cent of the vote in Sembawang GRC.

Tampines has become one of the most hotly contested GRCs in the upcoming polls, with the WP and the People’s Power Party also in the running.

Earlier in the hustings, NSP’s secretary-general Spencer Ng had told the media that it would be near impossible for opposition parties to cooperate and avoid multi-cornered fights in future elections, given the eleventh-hour decision by WP to withdraw from Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC.

At the virtual rally, NSP’s president Reno Fong addressed questions about the party’s relevance.

“Some are asking, why is NSP contesting again after so many years without a breakthrough? Some say we may lose our deposit.

“We say: We’re not here to place bets. We’re here to serve. Some say the WP will attract more attention. But attention alone doesn’t solve problems. Deep roots, long commitment, and real engagement do,” said Mr Fong, who is leading the Tampines slate.

The party said it has been active in Tampines and Sembawang for years, and expressed unhappiness with SDP for attempting to stake a claim in Sembawang GRC, after last contesting there in 2006 and 2011.

In a veiled reference to SDP, Mr Sun said: “Now we have an old pretender… trying to edge us out. It had several brushes with the law in the past.”

Since 2019, SDP has been asked to put up multiple corrections under Singapore’s Iaw against fake news. Party chief Chee Soon Juan has also been sued for defamation, and jailed for holding a rally and speaking in public without a permit.

Mr Ng said earlier that the SDP had offered Holland-Bukit Timah GRC in exchange for Sembawang GRC, but NSP had turned down the proposal. NSP also said it withdrew from the new Sembawang West SMC to pave the way for a straight fight between SDP chief Chee Soon Juan and the PAP’s Poh Li San.

In the two-hour virtual rally, candidates also brought up causes they would champion if elected.

Tampines GRC candidate Eugene Yeo, 49, suggested that the Senior Employment Credit scheme be expanded to middle-aged workers who are retrenched and have children and parents to support. The scheme provides wage offsets to employers who hire Singaporean workers aged 60 and above.

His running mate Zee Phay, 32, proposed higher wages for “overworked and underpaid” infant care professionals in Singapore.

Mr Ng, who is leading the Sembawang slate, said an NSP team in Parliament would scrutinise “every line item that the PAP wants to spend on” to ensure that taxpayers’ money is not “squandered away” without due diligence.

“Is it too much for us to demand that (ministers) must think out of the box to increase our external revenue and investment returns? They have all the expertise in place… and we should whip them into shape.”

“So, let us not be content with just the whites and blues in Parliament.”

GE2025: Desmond Lee rebuts PSP’s housing criticisms, says issue has been addressed repeatedly​

Minister for National Development Desmond Lee speaking to supporters during the PAP's rally at Jurong West Stadium on April 27.ST PHOTO: BRIAN TEO

Hariz Baharudin
Apr 30, 2025

SINGAPORE - Minister for National Development Desmond Lee has hit back against statements by PSP secretary-general Leong Mun Wai that he had “been silent on national housing issues throughout the campaign”.

Mr Lee, who is anchoring the PAP team against Mr Leong’s line-up in West Coast-Jurong West GRC, said on April 30 that he has “addressed national housing issues on multiple occasions” over the ongoing election campaign.

The PAP candidate noted that Mr Leong had made the statement against him in a media interview that same morning, and pointed out that he had spoken on national housing issues at the launch of the constituency’s manifesto on April 23.

He added he also spoke on the topic in a media interview on April 25 and at the PAP rally two days after, and that some of these events were covered by the press.

Mr Leong said earlier on April 30 that Mr Lee had yet to respond to the party’s queries on national issues, zooming in on housing policy and criticising rising public housing prices.

In response, Mr Lee said that in his rally speech, he had acknowledged housing concerns that many Singaporeans have, including how Covid-19 caused the “worst construction crisis in decades”, leading to surging demand and higher prices.

The housing projects that were delayed by the pandemic have since been completed, said Mr Lee, noting how the Government has “significantly ramped up” the supply of new homes.

He added: “The market will stabilise, and we will be able to provide more affordable housing.”

Mr Leong had also said how the prices for public homes were “not going to stop rising at such a rapid pace”, and “real solutions” would need to be talked about.

In his statement, Mr Lee reiterated the importance of the new Standard, Plus and Prime housing model – introduced in 2023 – which he said would keep flats in choice locations “within the reach of young Singaporeans”.

He also reiterated that the Government was exploring more public housing options for higher-income young couples and singles.

“These are topics that PM Lawrence Wong has spoken about, and public housing is a part of the PAP National Manifesto,” said Mr Lee.

Apart from national policy, Mr Lee said that other areas covered during the election campaign included the upgrading of older estates and helping seniors age in place.

Mr Leong had also, among other things, criticised how the Government has not proposed any solution to tackle the lease decay issue in public housing, other than the Voluntary Early Redevelopment Scheme, which may not be a viable solution.

But Mr Lee said that housing had been extensively debated in Parliament before the election campaign, and the Government had set out its strategy to keep homes affordable and accessible. This includes the ramping up of supply and cooling measures where necessary.

Mr Lee said: “It is indeed a matter of concern when the PSP makes assertions with little regard for facts.

“I would like to urge the public to consider the facts and concrete plans that each side has presented when making their choice during this general election.”

Besides Mr Lee, the PAP slate for West Coast-Jurong West GRC consists of Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Finance and Education Shawn Huang, three-term MP Ang Wei Neng, orthopaedic surgeon Hamid Razak and lawyer Cassandra Lee.

They are up against a PSP team that includes the party’s top three leaders – Mr Leong, chairman Tan Cheng Bock, and first vice-chairperson Hazel Poa. The other two candidates are Mr Sumarleki Amjah, head of packaged food and business development at a food and beverage firm, and in-house legal counsel Sani Ismail.

The PAP and PSP faced off in the then West Coast GRC at the 2020 General Election, with the ruling party winning 51.68 per cent of the vote.

GE2025: Millennial town Bidadari is a new twist on an old plot​

Bidadari's prime central location saw some of the earliest completed BTO flats fetching over a million on the resale market.ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH

Carmen Sin
Apr 30, 2025

SINGAPORE - New town Bidadari wears its history lightly.

The state-of-the-art park at its centre was, for the better part of the 20th century, a cemetery. Before that, a palace housing the second wife of the Johor sultan sat on the land. Its Build-to-Order flats that provoked feverish oversubscription at launch are in the Potong Pasir constituency, once the longest-held opposition seat of Mr Chiam See Tong, the gentleman of the other side whose 27-year tenure there colours recent political history.

Now, 14 years after the PAP flipped the turf, do old bones still pull at new Bidadarians?

It is day seven of the hustings and the first thing one notices in the township’s only mall is the profusion of children and child-centric shops. With the exception of a nail salon – because mothers need pampering too – the top floor of Woodleigh mall is all clinics advertising paediatric skill and enrichment centres.

Downstairs, upmarket cafes appeal to the yuppie-tinged palates of young parents in their 30s who take up a good chunk of the some 8,872 flats that will be ready here.

One of them, Ms Rachel Lee, cuts to the chase: “Estate upgrading doesn’t trouble me during voting. National issues are more important than local.”

Besides, she adds, the hardest part is already over.

“When we first moved in, the mall was not yet open. We had to go to Potong Pasir and Serangoon to get groceries. Now it’s really good,” she says, an assessment echoed by other residents.

There is evidence of intense development. Up and running after a three-year delay is a spanking new bus interchange, a hop away from the Woodleigh MRT station and bordering the latest entrant, an open-air hawker centre.

Granular changes are flying in fast, like a seafood stall serving whole steamed pomfrets at $10 that opened the day before and bus service 148 that since early April has connected Bidadari to Potong Pasir – depositing visitors like a 78-year-old retiree who tells ST, “I’m here with my whole group!”

A resident concedes the infrastructure in Bidadari is “a little lacking” but says it is “really about waiting for the township to build up.” The 45-year-old father, who works in transport, says his vote is for the people of Singapore and his family, for the future of his children.

It is a sharp departure from the municipal battlelines of old. Opposition-held Potong Pasir had once defined a now-retired political playbook of “last in line” upgrades for constituencies not warm to the PAP. By the turn of the millennium, the estate resembled the shabby cousin of whiter precincts, the ski slope roofs of its flats that in 1984 had made the cover of HDB’s annual report, darkened by potholes.

The then-PAP contender Sitoh Yih Pin would run three election campaigns pledging coveted works like covered walkways, brighter corridors and lifts that stopped on every floor. In 2006, he promised an $80 million masterplan if elected and five years later, secured his historic win.

Today, Bidadarians agree they lucked out. Mother-of-one Rachel Sim enjoys a view of the roughly 13ha park from her flat.

Inspired by Winnie the Pooh’s Hundred Acre Wood, the park has marshlands, thick groves, rolling hills and trails primed for spotting migratory birds that come from as far as Russia – shrikes, warblers, flycatchers. In the afternoon, the 31-year-old loves walking through the rooftop gardens of the Woodleigh glen estate.

“They (planning authorities) have done the living-among-nature thing quite well. There are a lot of nice places to chill, so I don’t feel like I’m living in a huge residential estate,” she says.

Its prime central location is another big sweetener, with some of the earliest completed BTO flats fetching over a million on the resale market.

But Ms Sim, a scientist, is not thinking of selling. “It’s been very nice living here.We’re settling in,” she says.

Resident Marcus Tan is more explicit: “The cash is tempting but we don’t know anywhere else we would trade this for.” In the manner of old Potong Pasir, it seems Bidadarians cannot be bought.

Relationships – that solidifed the wins of, first, Mr Chiam, and then three-term MP Mr Sitoh – also tug at the hearts of millennial voters.

There will be a changing of the guard this election as Mr Sitoh retires and lawyer Alex Yeo takes over as PAP hopeful. His rivals are head of opposition coalition People’s Alliance For Reform Lim Tean, and Mr Williiamson Lee, of the Singapore People’s Party once led by Mr Chiam. It is a match-up with strains of a history now distant and diluted.

Ms Sim says her vote was decided after meeting the PAP and SPP candidates. The proximity of her flat to the new hawker centre meant she endured much construction noise, and road works are still ongoing, she says.

“Part of it is how the MP handles this, their responsiveness,” she says of her considerations at the ballot. “Mr Sitoh was quite on the ball with our questions about when the hawker centre will open and that was the consolation.”

Leaving this little Eden, one gets the sense that these growing pains will ease. Its denizens say the “stuff” will get built and share an optimism for greater neighbourly feeling as roots are laid down.

After all, the young homeowners know they are no longer last in line.

New town, new boundaries: Tengah goes to the polls in GE2025​

The nascent estate of 8,000 residents was part of Hong Kah North SMC, but is now in Chua Chu Kang GRC.ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN

Cherie Lok
Apr 30, 2025


SINGAPORE – Spend an hour in Tengah and you will start to understand the jokes on the @tengah.memes Instagram account. Daily life is indeed sound-tracked by the constant hum of construction, cars suddenly lose all regard for the time-honoured rules of the zebra crossing, and buses take “an eternity” to come.

Singapore’s newest town is bordered on one side by the Bukit Batok neighbourhood, and a forest on the other. Here, in the shadow of the half-built MRT line, Tengah’s 8,000 residents live, eat and work – or rather, travel to work – with acclimatised equanimity.

Questions about what life is like on this fringe of civilisation are met with polite smiles and the recurrent refrain, “It’s still a work in progress.”

There are certain things they love about their sparkling new estate, which still smells faintly of fresh paint.

“It’s very clean, and there are lots of plants and trees,” says one Mr Foo, who, like several people who spoke with The Straits Times, did not want to give his full name. The 30-year-old IT engineer moved in a year ago – not entirely out of choice, he conceded – and lives in Plantation District, former farmland now dotted with community plots.

Fellow resident Sakthi, 30, also enjoys its unique calm. “Not that many people have moved in yet, so we can still enjoy the estate in this quieter state.”

He is interrupted by the loud wail of a nearby drill, but good-naturedly brushes it off. “I’ve learned to tune it out. It’s an inevitable part of improving the neighbourhood, so we just have to accept it.”

Other highlights include the playgrounds (with veritable works of art shaped like insects, fruits and other curiosities), gym and the district’s only shopping centre, Plantation Plaza.

“(The mall) wasn’t here when I moved in six months ago, so this is already much better,” says accountant Cathy Wu, 34, whose son is off conquering an adjacent playground’s slides and swings.

While Tengah undergoes its own steady metamorphosis, the rest of Singapore hurtles towards transformation alongside it. The May 3 general election is poised to rejig the municipal make-up of the country’s various districts.

Tengah itself was previously part of Hong Kah North SMC but has been absorbed into Chua Chu Kang GRC following the shift in electoral boundaries in March, spurred in part by the proliferation of public housing developments. With the influx of new residents, the nascent town is now too big to remain in a single member constituency.

Issues like cost of living and housing affordability may have been hogging headlines, but here in Tengah, residents are more preoccupied with the hyperlocal: transport connectivity, the state of their amenities, and estate management.

“The Koufu (food court) really cannot make it,” grouses Maggie, a dentist who declines to provide her last name or age. She started work at a clinic in Plantation Plaza in February and has already exhausted all her lunch options. “There’s lots of fast food, but we can’t keep eating that.”

With a shrug, student Ms Chan says of the estate: “It’s a bit boring.”

What does the 19-year-old do on the weekends? “I usually just stay at home.” And does she have any recommendations for things to do in her backyard? “No.”

Then there are the infrastructural problems. Complaints about the problematic centralised air-conditioning and poor mobile connectivity seem to have died down, but some residents still have gripes about the district’s layout.

Mr Eugene Koo, 51, for one, has had it with the rainy season.

“This area is flooded half the time,” he laments, pointing at the walkway linking Plantation Plaza to the opposite blocks. “And there are always so many mosquitoes.”

Ms Wu adds: “My friends always say that my house is very ulu, and when they come at night, it’s all dark. So they don’t visit me very often.”

Getting out poses its own set of challenges too. Tengah’s four buses can get a little congested at times, and Grab drivers aren’t exactly champing at the bit to accept jobs in this part of town. Mr Sakthi, for instance, often has to endure four or five rejections before his app finally finds him a driver.

As they count down to polling day, the educator and his neighbours are hoping a fresh administration brings with it new improvements – better roads and more childcare options, just to name a few.

Tengah residents are the type “to mind their own business”, according to resident Patrick Sen, 43. “We don’t have high expectations – we just want somebody that can build up the infrastructure here.”

Although most residents ST spoke to on the Saturday before polling day have yet to meet the PAP or PSP candidates contesting in Chua Chu Kang GRC, the campaign has left its mark – flyers have been distributed around the estate and posters strung up on every other lamp post.

“There’s a real sense of anticipation for what’s to come, especially with malls and more schools on the way,” says Ms Shan, a 30-something mother-of-one. She added that she is “very neutral” about the election, so long as the winning party resolves any issues that crop up.

Prime Minister Lawrence Wong was upbeat on March 22, telling residents at the official opening of Tengah Community Club that the district is on the up and up.

“In another few years’ time, I’m sure this will be even better. It will be like Punggol, if not better than Punggol,” he pronounced.

In the meantime, he called on residents to strengthen their community bonds so they can “develop a stronger sense of identity and thrive”.

While Mr Foo and Mr Koo have not spoken much to their neighbours, Ms Shan finds the community here “warm and supportive.”

“Even though it’s in development, there’s already a strong sense of community, and it doesn’t feel as dense or hectic as more mature estates. I especially love my ‘Tengah mummies kampung’ – we have play dates at our playgrounds, hang out during weekends, and share and help each other whenever someone needs it.”

She does her bit for her kampung by running group buys, consolidating orders for food items like Nuyolk eggs and Rich & Good Swiss rolls from residents, and liaising with suppliers.

“I started the Tengah Groupbuy because I felt there weren’t a lot of food options around, especially when we first moved in. It’s been a fun way to satisfy cravings and build up the community along the way.”

Likewise, residents like Mr Sen and his wife, Chong Yee Teng, 39, have stepped up to plug what they perceive to be a gap in the community. The couple run Simply Acai, a home-based business supplying the dessert-deficient neighbourhood with superfood bowls.


Married couple Patrick Sen and Chong Yee Teng started their home-based business Simply Acai in September 2024.ST PHOTO: CHERIE LOK
“We realised there was no acai shop here when we moved in in the middle of last year. This is our passion, and since this is supposed to be a green estate, we thought why not make it a healthy one too,” says Mr Sen, a safety officer.

Business has yet to take off – when they started in September 2024, the couple were selling just one or two bowls a day – but this has grown to five to 10 bowls a day as neighbours have been lending their support.

As it turns out, they were not the only ones with this idea.

“We realised there were all sorts of home-based businesses doing different trades in our neighbourhood,” observes Ms Chong, a leasing manager. “Zi char, lok lok, even a bakery. It’s how we compensate for the lack of food options.”

For now, it remains an after-hours side hustle run out of their Plantation District kitchen. But one day, they hope to open a store and join the crop of budding businesses finding their footing – with a little help from their new MP – on Singapore’s north-western frontier.