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Govt may increase number of foreign workers living at Serangoon Gardens dorm
According to a report in Channel News Asia, the government will assess the situation before deciding whether to increase the number of occupants at controversial Serangoon Gardens dormitory.
The first group of foreign workers had just moved in two days ago on Friday. It caused a ruckus among residents of the rustic Serangoon Gardens estate when the plan was announced suddenly last year.
There were understandably concerns about the safety and privacy of the estate as well as if the value of the residential properties will drop as a result of the presence of a foreign worker dormitory in the vicinity.
The MP for the area Lim Hwee Hua had to attend a meeting called by the residents in order to allay their anxieties. The residents were not consulted before the plan was implemented by the National Development Ministry which still leaves a bitter after-taste in some of them even today.
A resident Goh Bock Seng said:
“Singaporeans are used to living in a community. If the workers are educated and they know (how) to behave themselves, I think it’s fine. We’ve finally accepted the fact, but we just want to say that we should have been consulted.”
Serangoon Gardens is a private residential area consisting of low-rise terrace and semi-detached houses as well as bungalows.
Its inhabitants are largely middle to upper class Singaporeans though it is becoming increasingly popular with expatriates due to its proximity to the city.
During the 2006 election, the ruling PAP won only 56.3 per cents of the votes in Aljunied GRC which Serangoon Gardens belongs to.
It is not known if the fiasco over the foreign worker dormitory will have any impact on the next general election due by 2011.
As the electoral boundaries are not announced yet, there is always the chance that residents of Serangoon Gardens may find themselves in another GRC by the time the election is held.
The Electoral Boundaries Committee which is in charge of drawing the electoral boundaries is under the purview of the Prime Minister’s Office.
Though Singapore holds regular elections every four to five years, it is not considered as an “electoral democracy” by U.S. NGO Freedom House.
Govt may increase number of foreign workers living at Serangoon Gardens dorm
According to a report in Channel News Asia, the government will assess the situation before deciding whether to increase the number of occupants at controversial Serangoon Gardens dormitory.
The first group of foreign workers had just moved in two days ago on Friday. It caused a ruckus among residents of the rustic Serangoon Gardens estate when the plan was announced suddenly last year.
There were understandably concerns about the safety and privacy of the estate as well as if the value of the residential properties will drop as a result of the presence of a foreign worker dormitory in the vicinity.
The MP for the area Lim Hwee Hua had to attend a meeting called by the residents in order to allay their anxieties. The residents were not consulted before the plan was implemented by the National Development Ministry which still leaves a bitter after-taste in some of them even today.
A resident Goh Bock Seng said:
“Singaporeans are used to living in a community. If the workers are educated and they know (how) to behave themselves, I think it’s fine. We’ve finally accepted the fact, but we just want to say that we should have been consulted.”
Serangoon Gardens is a private residential area consisting of low-rise terrace and semi-detached houses as well as bungalows.
Its inhabitants are largely middle to upper class Singaporeans though it is becoming increasingly popular with expatriates due to its proximity to the city.
During the 2006 election, the ruling PAP won only 56.3 per cents of the votes in Aljunied GRC which Serangoon Gardens belongs to.
It is not known if the fiasco over the foreign worker dormitory will have any impact on the next general election due by 2011.
As the electoral boundaries are not announced yet, there is always the chance that residents of Serangoon Gardens may find themselves in another GRC by the time the election is held.
The Electoral Boundaries Committee which is in charge of drawing the electoral boundaries is under the purview of the Prime Minister’s Office.
Though Singapore holds regular elections every four to five years, it is not considered as an “electoral democracy” by U.S. NGO Freedom House.
