GE2020: Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC and Pioneer SMC see three-cornered fights

SINGAPORE — With the close of nominations on Tuesday (June 30) for the General Election, three-cornered fights will take place in Pasir Ris-Punggol Group Representation Constituency (GRC) and Pioneer Single Member Constituency (SMC).

In Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC, the incumbent People’s Action Party (PAP) team, led by Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean, is coming up against a team from Peoples Voice party and a team from the Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA).

SDA previously contested the GRC in the past three GEs, while this is the first time that Peoples Voice is running in a GE.

The team from Peoples Voice contesting in Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC. Photo: Raj Nadarajan/TODAY 

On Monday, SDA chief Desmond Lim told TODAY that he had asked Peoples Voice chief Lim Tean to withdraw his party from contesting in Pasir Ris-Punggol, but the latter had insisted on proceeding.

Mr Lim said: "We have worked hard in Pasir Ris and Punggol for 13 years. Every day, we give free meals to needy residents and seniors and distribute essential items such as rice and baby products to poor families." 

He also said: "Residents can tell the difference between SDA and other parties that are only full of hot air. They are so full of hot air, that they thought they will just parachute into Pasir Ris-Punggol. I'm sure that residents will elect the party that truly has a heart for the people."

Asked about the three-cornered fight in the Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC at a doorstop interview after nominations were confirmed, Mr Teo said that he has been in four-cornered fights before. 

“We welcome all those who are contesting, but we hope that voters will see that we can offer them a better tomorrow, and a stable and secure future,” he said.

Over at Pioneer SMC, a surprise independent candidate showed up at the nomination centre, Jurong Pioneer Junior College, to file his nomination papers on Tuesday. 

Little is known of him aside from his name, Cheang Peng Wah.

Mr Cheang will face off against Mr Patrick Tay from PAP and Mr Lim Cher Hong from the Progress Singapore Party (PSP).

One SMC that narrowly avoided a three-corner fight is Yio Chu Kang — after the Reform Party (RP) decided not to field a candidate there. Instead, PAP’s Yip Hon Weng will be going up against PSP’s Kayla Low. 

RP got into a spat with PSP last Thursday when RP’s chairman Mr Andy Zhu alleged in a Facebook post that PSP had not honoured an agreement between both parties on where each would contest. 

RP said that it had agreed to cede West Coast GRC in return for PSP withdrawing from various constituencies that RP had been eying, including Yio Chu Kang SMC. However, PSP said last Friday that the parties had not arrived at a formal agreement.

When asked if RP had decided not to contest in Yio Chu Kang SMC after discussion with PSP, Mr Zhu said that his party’s central executive committee had decided not to contest there to achieve opposition unity.

“For this itself, we have not spoken to PSP because it is not speaking (to us), and we decided to contest in Ang Mo Kio GRC and Radin Mas SMC,” Mr Zhu said after filing the nominations for his party at Deyi Secondary School.