PAP’s Aljunied team continues to roll out programmes for residents

SINGAPORE — More than six months after their loss in Aljunied GRC at last September’s General Election, the People’s Action Party (PAP) activists who contested have continued working the ground in the Workers’ Party-run constituency, rolling out projects such as an “Adopt-A-Family” community initiative.

While the search continues for a suitable candidate to take over Mr Murali Pillai as chairman to the party’s Paya Lebar branch, the remaining activists are united in serving the residents, said adviser to Aljunied grassroots organisations Chua Eng Leong yesterday, as he shared plans for Eunos residents on the sidelines of a visit to the division by Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Masagos Zulkifli. Mr Murali, who was part of the PAP Aljunied team last year, was elected Member of Parliament for Bukit Batok after a by-election on May 7.

With the “political battle” over, the Aljunied team has focused on the community, with initiatives such as a dementia prevention campaign, in view of the growing number of seniors in the municipality. About 37.24 per cent of Eunos residents are older than 50.

The Adopt-A-Family community project aims to rally the community to “adopt” and support vulnerable families in aspects such as health, education, and home improvement, among others. Grassroots initiatives are tailored to meet the unique demographics of each division, said Bedok Reservoir branch chairman Victor Lye, noting that Aljunied is “demographically diverse”. At Bedok Reservoir, for example, students from low-income families who are taking the Primary School Leaving Examination are supported by a coaching programme called Giving, Guiding, Growing.

Mr Chua and Mr Lye said residents have welcomed these efforts. “We have gotten a lot of ‘hellos’ since September last year,” said Mr Chua, noting that the team had “walked the ground on a daily basis”.

During his Ministerial Community Visit, Mr Masagos interacted with residents at the Alkaff Kampung Melayu Mosque, wet market and food centre at Block 630 Bedok Reservoir Road. On the activists’ work, he said: “The political battle is over ... more importantly, we must make sure that we serve our residents with the services and amenities they deserve.”

Effort will also be made to gather residents’ feedback so their concerns can be raised to the Government, he added. KELLY NG