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The sole voter was issued a verbal advisory by the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority following investigations.
PHOTO: AsiaOne file
PUBLISHED ON June 03, 2025 3:45 PM By Sean Ler
The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) has issued a verbal advisory to the 53-year-old Singaporean man who was registered as the sole voter in one of the polling districts within Tampines Changkat Single Member Constituency (SMC).
The man, who only wanted to be known by his surname Yeo when he spoke to AsiaOne in April this year, had previously listed his business premises located in Tampines Industrial Park A as his residential address.
Yeo has since updated his address.
In a joint statement to the media on Tuesday (June 3), ICA and the Elections Department (ELD) said the man registered his address at an industrial park in 2020 as he had lived there temporarily during that period.
The agencies added that the man moved to a new residence in 2022, but did not update his address within 28 days, as required by law.
"The decision to issue a verbal advisory took into account that this was his first offence under the National Registration Act, and there was no evidence to suggest any malicious or criminal intent," added ICA and ELD.
According to the agencies, Yeo has since updated his address with ICA and the Registers of Electors will reflect his updated address when they are next revised.
Several media outlets attempted unsuccessfully to locate the single voter at the new Tampines GreenEmerald BTO project.
Contractors and security guards whom AsiaOne spoke to said that new homeowners had only received their keys and commenced renovations in February.
And since the Registry of Electors was updated as at Feb 1, 2025, there would not have been reasonably sufficient time for any new homeowner to complete even minimal renovations, move in, and have their registered address changed to the newly completed BTO.
AsiaOne managed to track down Yeo at the JTC-managed Tampines Industrial Park A in early-April and later spoke to him.
Yeo said that he had changed his residential address located in central Singapore to this industrial unit in Tampines sometime in 2020.
He told AsiaOne that as the sole proprietor of the family business, he often spends long hours at work every day.
"It was for the convenience to run this business," explained Yeo at that time, adding that he does not live in the unit.
AsiaOne later learnt that ICA had already commenced investigations after the EBRC's report.
When contacted on Tuesday afternoon after the joint statement, Yeo declined further comment.
Under the National Registration Act, all identity card holders are required to report a change of address within 28 days of moving in a new (local or overseas) residence.
The change can be done online via ICA's change of address e-service.
Those who fail to report a change of address or falsely declare their residential address may be fined up to $5,000 and jailed for up to five years.
AsiaOne has also reached out to JTC, which manages Tampines Industrial Park A, for comment.
singapore
ICA issues verbal advisory to sole voter in Tampines Changkat SMC polling district for failing to update address
ICA began investigating the 53-year-old after the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee released its report on March 11 this year
The sole voter was issued a verbal advisory by the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority following investigations.
PHOTO: AsiaOne file
PUBLISHED ON June 03, 2025 3:45 PM By Sean Ler
The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) has issued a verbal advisory to the 53-year-old Singaporean man who was registered as the sole voter in one of the polling districts within Tampines Changkat Single Member Constituency (SMC).
The man, who only wanted to be known by his surname Yeo when he spoke to AsiaOne in April this year, had previously listed his business premises located in Tampines Industrial Park A as his residential address.
Yeo has since updated his address.
In a joint statement to the media on Tuesday (June 3), ICA and the Elections Department (ELD) said the man registered his address at an industrial park in 2020 as he had lived there temporarily during that period.
The agencies added that the man moved to a new residence in 2022, but did not update his address within 28 days, as required by law.
"The decision to issue a verbal advisory took into account that this was his first offence under the National Registration Act, and there was no evidence to suggest any malicious or criminal intent," added ICA and ELD.
According to the agencies, Yeo has since updated his address with ICA and the Registers of Electors will reflect his updated address when they are next revised.
How he became an anomaly
When the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee (EBRC) released its report on March 11, there was one anomaly: one polling district -- EC 42 -- in Tampines Changkat SMC had only a single registered voter, who turned out to be Yeo.Several media outlets attempted unsuccessfully to locate the single voter at the new Tampines GreenEmerald BTO project.
Contractors and security guards whom AsiaOne spoke to said that new homeowners had only received their keys and commenced renovations in February.
And since the Registry of Electors was updated as at Feb 1, 2025, there would not have been reasonably sufficient time for any new homeowner to complete even minimal renovations, move in, and have their registered address changed to the newly completed BTO.
AsiaOne managed to track down Yeo at the JTC-managed Tampines Industrial Park A in early-April and later spoke to him.
Yeo said that he had changed his residential address located in central Singapore to this industrial unit in Tampines sometime in 2020.
He told AsiaOne that as the sole proprietor of the family business, he often spends long hours at work every day.
"It was for the convenience to run this business," explained Yeo at that time, adding that he does not live in the unit.
AsiaOne later learnt that ICA had already commenced investigations after the EBRC's report.
When contacted on Tuesday afternoon after the joint statement, Yeo declined further comment.
Under the National Registration Act, all identity card holders are required to report a change of address within 28 days of moving in a new (local or overseas) residence.
The change can be done online via ICA's change of address e-service.
Those who fail to report a change of address or falsely declare their residential address may be fined up to $5,000 and jailed for up to five years.
AsiaOne has also reached out to JTC, which manages Tampines Industrial Park A, for comment.
