PM Lee rolls out amenities for AMK

Singapore

RESIDENTS in Ang Mo Kio and Sengkang West will soon enjoy more amenities and facilities such as indoor gyms, an upgraded polyclinic, park connectors and two new MRT stations.

These were some of the initiatives listed under the Ang Mo Kio Town Council's latest five-year masterplan, which was launched on Sunday by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

Mr Lee, the anchor minister for Ang Mo Kio Group Representation Constituency (GRC), also shared that the Teck Ghee estate - where he is the ward's Member of Parliament (MP) - would undergo a S$38.3 million revamp that will transform it into Singapore's second "green" neighbourhood after Yuhua in Jurong.

Details of the masterplan have been printed in a colourful 96-page book and will be distributed to residents soon. The book was released two days before Nomination Day on Tuesday and with Singaporeans set to vote at the general election (GE) on Sept 11.

Mr Lee was joined on the stage by the rest of the six-member Ang Mo Kio GRC's candidates - Intan Azura Mokhtar, Ang Hin Kee, Gan Thiam Poh, Darryl David and Koh Poh Koon. Sengkang West MP Lam Pin Min was also present.

With voters set to cast their ballots soon, Mr Lee - the secretary-general of the People's Action Party (PAP) - noted that the next two weeks would be a busy period.

"But I think it's ok. I've done this many times before, We've done our homework and preparations. We look forward to your support for us so that we can work together and continue to make our town, our neighbourhood, our city, our country better year by year for all of us," he said.

He added: "And then we will have reason to celebrate National Days and anniversaries happily for many years to come."

A stone's throw away at a coffee shop in Bishan, the PAP's organising secretary, Ng Eng Hen, observed that the mood on the ground today was "better" than at the last GE in May 2011.

Dr Ng, the Defence Minister who heads the party's five-member Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC team, said his fellow candidates have observed this when they walk around the constituency.

Residents approach them more openly to say they support the PAP and are pleased with the policies over the last four years, said Dr Ng. He insisted that the party did not take any vote for granted and would continue to work hard to serve the people.

The PAP has formally introduced all 89 of its candidates ahead of Nomination Day, as well as revealed where they would be fielded so that residents could know them better.

He added that it was unlikely that the party would have any surprises when the candidates head to the different nomination centres to file their papers. Dr Ng said: "Where they say they will stand is our current plan, up to now."

His team in Bishan-Toa Payoh comprises Senior Minister of State for Finance and Transport Josephine Teo, and first-time candidates Chee Hong Tat, Chong Kee Hiong and Saktiandi Supaat.

They will face a joint team from the Singapore People's Party (SPP) and the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) that will stand under the SPP banner.

The two opposition parties finally confirmed their slate on Sunday, with the chosen five being Benjamin Pwee, Hamim Aliyas, Abdillah Zamzuri, Law Kim Hwee and Bryan Long.

Both Mr Pwee and Mr Hamim were the DPP's secretary-general and chairman respectively, but they recently resigned and rejoined the SPP, which they both quit from in 2012.

At the 2011 GE, the pair also contested in Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC as part of an SPP team led by Chiam See Tong. That team was unsuccessful against the PAP, drawing in 43.1 per cent of the votes.

SPP chairman Lina Chiam explained that her husband, Mr Chiam, would not be contesting at next month's GE due to his age - he turned 80 in March this year - and health concerns. Mr Chiam, the SPP secretary-general, still holds the record as Singapore's longest-serving politician, having been the MP for Potong Pasir for 27 years from 1984 to 2011. He endorsed the SPP's Bishan-Toa Payoh team and wished them well at the GE.

"We have a strong team here, a very good line-up. We have two good co-leaders in Mr Long and Mr Pwee . . . they are professionals and have long experiences in their working lives. If elected, I'm sure they can still carry on their jobs very well," he said.

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