Chee Hong Tat admits to visiting a block for the second time since GE2020

SINGAPORE: Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat, also the People’s Action Party Member of Parliament for Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC, acknowledged in a Facebook comment that he visited a block for the second time since the General Election of 2020.

In a recent Facebook post, Chee, who represents Toa Payoh West-Thomson ward, expressed joy at reconnecting with residents of Blk 208 Toa Payoh North and hearing their feedback.

He emphasized his team’s efforts to enhance the living environment and foster a better home for all ward residents.

While Minister Chee reaffirmed his commitment to serve the residents, a netizen commented on his Facebook post, questioning the frequency of his visits.

The netizen criticized Minister Chee for using the term ‘reconnect’, questioning when was the last time he genuinely engaged with residents, suggesting it may have been during the last GE.

In response, Minister Chee countered the netizen’s comment, confirming that this is his second visit to Blk 208 Toa Payoh North since GE2020.

He also chastised the netizen for spreading false allegations aimed at misleading others.

” it is our residents who will decide the outcome of the next GE. Not trolls like you,” said Mr Chee.

Given Chee’s emotional response to the allegation, he probably would support amendments to POFMA that would allow even MPs to issue POFMA notices against falsehoods related to their course of duties.

What’s interesting is that while Chee strongly rebutted the comment from the commenter, he did not comment on another self-professed resident of Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC who said that he had not experienced a single house visit and that his family’s communication to their incumbent MP remains unresponded to.

HDB blocks in Singapore vary in the number of units they contain based on their age and design. Older blocks, built in the 1970s and 1980s, typically have around 80 to 120 units per block.

In contrast, newer blocks constructed from the 2000s onward usually contain between 100 to 200 units.

High-rise blocks, particularly those with 30 or more storeys, can accommodate 200 to 300 units or more.

For a rough estimate, if we assume a minimum of 80 households per block, an MP would need 132 days to cover the entire electorate.

Given that it has been 1419 days since the parliamentarians assembled on 25 July 2020, MPs could theoretically have completed around 10 rounds of visits.

However, for an MP like Chee, who has been occupied with various responsibilities in the Ministry of Transport, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and even the labour movement, it is understandable that he has only visited the block twice since the last GE.

Since the transition to the country’s fourth-generation leadership led by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, who was sworn in on 15 May, there has been considerable speculation about the timing of the next General Election.

Amidst these discussions, September of this year has emerged as a potential timeframe. Both ruling and opposition parties have intensified their ground outreach efforts in anticipation of the upcoming election.