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SINGAPORE – Health Minister Ong Ye Kung will lead the PAP’s five-member team for Sembawang GRC, which will include two new faces – Mr Ng Shi Xuan, 35, and Mr Gabriel Lam, 42.
At a press conference on April 22, Mr Ong confirmed that his Sembawang GRC team will be rounded out with incumbent MPs Vikram Nair and Mariam Jaafar.
Meanwhile, Ms Poh Li San will contest the new single seat of Sembawang West against Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) chief Chee Soon Juan at the coming polls.
Mr Ong said the Sembawang slate will be the PAP’s final line-up announcement ahead of Nomination Day on April 23, which leaves open who the ruling party will field in Tanjong Pagar GRC, and expected tough contests in East Coast and Punggol GRCs.
Four-term Sembawang MP Lim Wee Kiak was not at the briefing, and Mr Ong had earlier paid tribute to the ophthalmologist at a community event on April 13.
Mr Ong said on April 22 that he could not yet confirm Dr Lim’s retirement, given that Nomination Day deployments are “a complicated jigsaw (and) there’s always a need for backup and a contingency plan”.
Dr Lim’s successor in Sembawang GRC’s Canberra ward is Mr Ng, who is the director of a battery company.
Previously a public servant, he had been a grassroots volunteer in MacPherson for a decade and was vice-chairman of the MacPherson Youth Network. Mr Ng said he is passionate about young people’s health and mental well-being, and hopes to speak up for local businesses if elected.
“I run a small business, selling batteries, and I know the struggles. Too much paperwork, too many rules… Our SMEs hire 70 per cent of our workforce. Cutting red tape and helping them grow is one way to take care of our Singaporeans,” he added.
If elected, he wants to push the Government to offer more test beds for businesses to trial new ideas, and also for a faster national adoption of electric vehicles.
Mr Lam, who is chief operating officer of moving company Shalom International Movers, said he wants to champion families and second chances.
He has been involved with Yellow Ribbon Singapore since 2011 and is also an ambassador for the Central Narcotics Bureau’s United Against Drugs Coalition.
“I understand fully the importance of second chances, and second chances apply not just to those who have been incarcerated, but also to those who have made decisions in life that led to hardship,” he said.
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Ms Poh, who represented Sembawang West when it was part of Sembawang GRC, said her residents know her well, as she has been working hard on the ground, and has implemented a lot of changes in her ward.
The one-term MP said she has also been voicing her residents’ concerns in Parliament, particularly on jobs and employment.
On going up against Dr Chee in a straight fight, Ms Poh said residents should consider what each political party brings to the leadership of Singapore, especially in this critical period when the future looks uncertain.
She said her record speaks for itself, and she will put up a good fight, and that voters will make their decisions on May 3.
Mr Ong said the PAP’s manifesto for Sembawang will be released on April 23, and that the constituency has “many years, and even decades, of development ahead of it”.
Gesturing towards the nearby Sembawang Shipyard, he said its impending move to Tuas from 2026 will free up a big coastal area – next to a park and colonial houses – for future use.
The minister said there is no already-fixed masterplan for the area, nor is there one for the space next to the upcoming Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit Systemstation in Woodlands.
“We will launch quite a big exercise, as we always do, to engage residents to really imagine what can be built,” he added.
A three-way fight is expected in Sembawang GRC, which has more than 133,000 voters, with the SDP and the National Solidarity Party (NSP) having declared their intentions to contest there.
In the 2020 General Election, the PAP won Sembawang GRC with 67.29 per cent of the vote against the NSP.
- Zaihan Mohamed Yusof is senior crime correspondent at The Straits Times.
- Shabana Begum is a correspondent with a focus on environment and science at The Straits Times.
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