Murali hits ground quickly to lay out plans forward

SINGAPORE — Immediately after nominations closed on Wednesday (April 27), lawyer Murali Pillai wasted little time: He greeted Bukit Batok residents having lunch at coffee shops, headed to the nearby housing blocks and took a feeder bus from the interchange on his way to the People’s Action Party (PAP) branch office.

The PAP candidate contesting the Bukit Batok ward had earlier spoken to the media outside the nomination centre in Keming Primary School. There, he reiterated his message that he would work hard to implement his plans to help residents address their concerns about job security and healthcare costs, among others.

With the formal start of the by-election campaign period, Mr Murali said he intends to meet as many residents as possible to explain the plans he unveiled in his manifesto on Tuesday. These include a job placement programme, a new healthcare co-operative and a mentorship programme for children in disadvantaged families.

“I understand their concerns because we’re facing a gloomy economic climate (and) they’re concerned about jobs, concerned about cost for elderly family members who may be sick, and they’re concerned about how to uplift children, particularly from low-income families. So these are the plans that I’ll be discussing with them,” he said. “I also hope that we can continue to serve Bukit Batok residents as part of the Jurong family, because Jurong is a bigger community and we would enjoy economies of scale,” he added.

Former Cabinet minister and PAP chairman Lim Boon Heng was spotted at the nomination centre lending support. Mr Lim noted that Mr Murali’s efforts in learning to speak Mandarin and the Chinese dialects Hokkien and Teochew have helped bridge the communication gap. He has seen Mr Murali work the ground in Paya Lebar, which like Bukit Batok has a high proportion of Chinese voters. He told the media that he had asked Mr Murali to work harder and meet more people so that residents would look past his race and “see his real qualities”.

Regarding Mr Murali’s chances in the by-election, Mr Lim said: “I think we realistically cannot expect to get 73 per cent; there will be a swing of sorts. It’s a bit difficult to say what the percentage would be, but I think Murali should win.”

In the General Election last year, former PAP Member of Parliament David Ong, whose resignation triggered the by-election, won 73 per cent of the vote.