SINGAPORE: Jurong GRC Member of Parliament (MP) Xie Yao Quan said that he hopes to see a contest at the newly formed Jurong Central SMC in the upcoming general election, as it is important for residents to exercise their rights to vote.

The first-term parliamentarian, who helms the Jurong Central division of Jurong GRC that has been carved out as a single-seat constituency for the next election, said this on Sunday (Mar 23) in response to questions from the media about his thoughts on an opposition party contesting the area.

Red Dot United (RDU), which contested Jurong GRC in 2020, has announced after the redrawing of electoral boundaries earlier this month that it intends to field a candidate in Jurong Central.

“I don't know who will come and contest this SMC. I also don't think it is the most productive exercise for me to be thinking about who will come and contest, but I do hope that someone will come and contest this SMC,” said Mr Xie.

“I think it is important, I think it is going to be good for residents to have a chance to exercise their democratic right and to make a choice that's in their best interest. So I hope somebody will come and contest.”.

Mr Xie stressed that whether or not he will stand as a candidate is up to Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, who is secretary-general of the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP). 

However, Mr Xie added that he hopes to have the opportunity to continue serving the residents of Jurong Central.

Jurong GRC has long been seen as a PAP stronghold, with the party’s teams fielded there emerging as the best performing GRC in terms of vote share in the past two elections.

In 2020, led by then party stalwart and senior minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam, the five-member team which included Mr Xie, garnered over 74 per cent of the votes against the newly formed RDU.

Mr Tharman resigned from his parliamentary, party and Cabinet posts in 2023 to contest the presidential election.

For the upcoming general election, which must be held by November though political pundits expect it to be held as early as May, Jurong GRC will be split up and merged with other constituencies.

Mr Xie was speaking to members of the media on Sunday morning at the sideline of a walkabout at Jurong West Street 41.

Asked by CNA if he has any thoughts on his chances and whether he would be taking a different approach now that he could be potentially contesting as an SMC candidate without Mr Tharman, he said: “My mantra is, we take good care of residents. We let the rest take care of itself.”

He said that he and his team have been consistently walking the grounds and has rolled out various initiatives to help residents over the last five years.

“Every election, every contest, is different. We will just take it one contest at a time, and ultimately, it's about going out there to win the trust and the hearts and minds of our people, and that's what we intend to do,” he said.

ASSURANCE FOR EX-YUHUA RESIDENTS

One of his future plans for Jurong Central, if he is given the opportunity to continue there, is to form a town council together with the new, neighbouring Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC, said Mr Xie.

“As it is, Jurong Central division together with four of the divisions in the new Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC are already served by the same town council, so we want some continuity there,” he added.

The upcoming Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC is formed by taking in polling districts from Bukit Batok, Hong Kah North and Yuhua SMCs and Jurong GRC.

Jurong Central SMC will comprise the existing Jurong Central division and some polling districts from Yuhua SMC, which is currently helmed by Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu.

Mr Xie noted that Ms Fu has already said publicly that she is engaging her residents and assuring them that there will be a proper handover to the new constituencies.

He said that he has yet to engage the residents at the affected Yuhua area, as it is not yet certain that he will be contesting in Jurong Central SMC in the first place.

“In terms of walkabouts and me engaging the residents there, it will come in due course, when our plans are clearer,” he said.

However, he has been “in very active discussions” with Ms Fu to look at the existing programmes for residents of Yuhua and Jurong Central to see how they can be brought together.

“Ultimately we want some continuity in the programmes, so we are working out the details. But I want to assure residents that our focus is to make sure that there's continuity and that residents will continue to be well taken care of,” said Mr Xie.