SINGAPORE: Lawyer Kawal Pal Singh and new face Elysa Chen were seen alongside Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat during a walkabout at Toa Payoh West Market and Food Centre on Sunday (Apr 13) morning. 

Speaking on the sidelines of the walkabout, Mr Chee, a Member of Parliament (MP) with the People’s Action Party (PAP) for Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC, did not confirm whether they would stand in the upcoming polls.

Nevertheless, Mr Chee said he was “very happy” to see “younger people” like Ms Chen and Mr Singh, who are both aged 41, stepping forward to serve. 

“I think they have the passion to serve, (with their) hearts in the right place. They want to do something to give back to society and happy to welcome them,” added the second minister for finance. 

The trio walked around Toa Payoh West Market and Food Centre speaking to stall owners and shaking hands with residents for about an hour.

The other MPs for the four-member Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC are Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen, Mr Saktiandi Supaat and Mr Chong Kee Hiong. They were not present at the event.

NEW FACES 

Mr Singh is a long-time PAP activist who spoke at the party’s convention back in 2019.  Mr Singh is a managing partner at Tito Isaac and Co LLP, where he specialises in civil and commercial litigation, cross-border disputes, and family law.

He has been spotted alongside Dr Lam Pin Min at house visits and constituency events in Sengkang West. Mr Singh was also introduced at a party convention in 2020 and is the nephew of former PAP MP Inderjit Singh. 

At the time, Mr Singh said his story was “one of hope” as he charted an “unconventional” path to becoming a lawyer. In primary and secondary school, he studied in the EM3 and Normal (Technical) streams respectively, before going to the Institute of Technical Education.

“I would say, I bring hope. I bring perseverance, and using those values, I hope to serve wherever I can, if given the opportunity.” 

When asked what prompted the likely move from Sengkang to Bishan-Toa Payoh, Mr Singh said: “For me, it's not a matter of a particular area. I'm a Singaporean. I am happy to serve wherever there is a required need, and if there is a need for me to serve you anywhere else, I'll be more than happy to do so.”

Ms Chen is the executive director of youth social service agency CampusImpact. Before she was an executive director, Ms Chen was a teacher at a local junior college and a Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) journalist.

“It's been really wonderful meeting the residents, especially seeing the vibrant spirit of you know, all the elderly still very active and really engaged in the community,” said Ms Chen. 

Ms Chen, who served as a volunteer at Punggol Coast, said she hopes to encourage “the spirit of volunteerism”.  

Besides serving young people through CampusImpact, she added she has worked with parents and marshalled community resources for youth to get the support they need. 

“One area I’m experienced in is bringing together community resources and community partnerships to see young people and their families thrive.”

HOPES TO REMAIN IN TOA PAYOH

Having served as MP for the Toa Payoh West–Thomson division since 2015, Mr Chee said he hopes to remain in Bishan-Toa Payoh.

When asked whether the introduction of Mr Singh and Ms Chen would mean that either Dr Ng or he would have to leave Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC, Mr Chee said: “We will wait for PM (Lawrence) Wong and the party to announce more details later at an appropriate time.”

“I would very much hope to stay in Bishan-Toa Payoh. I've been serving here for the last 10 years. I've built up a relationship, a bond with our residents and our community. I certainly hope that I'll be given the chance to continue to serve them.”

The electoral boundaries of Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC were not altered in the latest report by the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee. There are a total of 98,505 voters in the ward, the report added.

During the 2020 General Election, PAP secured 67.23 per cent of the votes against the Singapore People’s Party (SPP), which got 32.77 per cent.

The SPP team announced last month that the party intends to contest the Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC and Potong Pasir SMC again. It also contested Bishan-Toa Payoh in the 2015 election. 

The SPP team in 2020 comprised secretary-general Steve Chia, as well as past candidates Melvyn Chiu, Williiamson Lee and Osman Sulaiman.

Mr Chia added that while the slate of candidates for both constituencies - one for Potong Pasir and four for Bishan-Toa Payoh - has already been confirmed, the party will not announce any names until Nomination Day.