Chiam all geared up for GRC fight
Opposition veteran says he has a team plus a good shot at winning
By Jeremy Au Yong & Kor Kian Beng
Mr Chiam's walkabout in Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC yesterday saw him visiting five coffee shops and a market, and even walking up a flight of 30 steps without help. -- ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN
ACCOMPANIED by his wife, opposition veteran Chiam See Tong yesterday appeared fit and ready to do battle in Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC.
He went on a four-hour walkabout in the constituency, visiting five coffee shops and a market, and even walking up a flight of 30 steps without help.
The 76-year-old Potong Pasir MP, who suffered a stroke in 2008, clearly felt he had a point to prove on the walkabout - his first in the area since the Feb 24 electoral boundaries report.
When asked about his health midway through the visit, he said to The Straits Times: 'You can see for yourself. I'm able to climb up a flight of steps unassisted. That should speak a lot for itself.'
Mr Chiam also addressed for the first time talk that he might not be able to muster enough candidates to contest a GRC.
'If I don't have a team, why should I waste my time walking here?' he said.
He emphasised that he had enough candidates even within his Singapore People's Party (SPP) without the need for a merger with another party.
He declined comment on who would be on his GRC team, but accompanying him on his walkabout were 23-year-old financial adviser Alex Tan and 48-year-old businessman Mohamad Hamim Aliyas.
The duo were always among the first to introduce themselves to residents. Mr Chiam's wife Lina confirmed Mr Tan could be a candidate but said the line-up would be unveiled on Nomination Day.
Mr Chiam had voiced interest in contesting the five-member Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC more than a year ago and even named his wife Lina, 62, as his successor in Potong Pasir single member constituency (SMC).
But his GRC bid was seen to have weakened when he pulled the SPP out of the Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA) this month. Talks between him and the Reform Party are also said to have stalled.
But yesterday, Mr Chiam made it clear that not only did he have a team, but he also had a close chance at the polls, saying: 'It will be a hard fight with the PAP, even if the PAP has got a lead, it's a very small lead. Maybe 2 or 3 per cent.'
He refused to contemplate the thought of losing, saying: 'The residents have confidence in me... I have a good chance of winning.'
While he does not face a three-cornered fight in the GRC, Mr Chiam stressed his belief in unity among opposition leaders, saying: 'They should put their heads in the proper places. I think they are doing this because their heads are somewhere else. It's so stupid to have a three-cornered fight.'
Meanwhile, the Workers' Party (WP) yesterday indicated it would not be budging from possible three-cornered fights in Sengkang West and Punggol East SMCs.
WP chief and Hougang MP Low Thia Khiang told Sengkang West residents during a walkabout that 'the Workers' Party will be coming here'.
Punggol East is also being eyed by the Singapore Democratic Alliance's secretary-general Desmond Lim, 42, who has been active in the area since 2005.
The new constituency will be carved out of Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC.
Sengkang West has also drawn the interest of Mr Ooi Boon Ewe, 70, of the dormant People's Liberal Democratic Party.
Mr Low, however, said he was confident of 'substantial support' in the two wards. He also described the next election as a watershed event as it is slated to produce Singapore's next generation of leaders and the fourth prime minister.
Mr Low said he believed that among the PAP's new candidates would be a future PM, though he did not name anyone.
Dr Lam Pin Min, the area's incumbent MP, who held his own walkabout in Sengkang West and crossed paths with Mr Low at Fernvale Point, said the opposition parties' interest in his ward is because they view him, a one-term MP, as an 'easy target'.
But he added: 'My advantage would be that I've served for the last five years so I've built rapport with the residents.
'I've also made quite a bit of change, turning this area from a quiet estate into a more vibrant area with new infrastructure and more organised activities.'
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Opposition veteran says he has a team plus a good shot at winning
By Jeremy Au Yong & Kor Kian Beng
Mr Chiam's walkabout in Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC yesterday saw him visiting five coffee shops and a market, and even walking up a flight of 30 steps without help. -- ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN
ACCOMPANIED by his wife, opposition veteran Chiam See Tong yesterday appeared fit and ready to do battle in Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC.
He went on a four-hour walkabout in the constituency, visiting five coffee shops and a market, and even walking up a flight of 30 steps without help.
The 76-year-old Potong Pasir MP, who suffered a stroke in 2008, clearly felt he had a point to prove on the walkabout - his first in the area since the Feb 24 electoral boundaries report.
When asked about his health midway through the visit, he said to The Straits Times: 'You can see for yourself. I'm able to climb up a flight of steps unassisted. That should speak a lot for itself.'
Mr Chiam also addressed for the first time talk that he might not be able to muster enough candidates to contest a GRC.
'If I don't have a team, why should I waste my time walking here?' he said.
He emphasised that he had enough candidates even within his Singapore People's Party (SPP) without the need for a merger with another party.
He declined comment on who would be on his GRC team, but accompanying him on his walkabout were 23-year-old financial adviser Alex Tan and 48-year-old businessman Mohamad Hamim Aliyas.
The duo were always among the first to introduce themselves to residents. Mr Chiam's wife Lina confirmed Mr Tan could be a candidate but said the line-up would be unveiled on Nomination Day.
Mr Chiam had voiced interest in contesting the five-member Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC more than a year ago and even named his wife Lina, 62, as his successor in Potong Pasir single member constituency (SMC).
But his GRC bid was seen to have weakened when he pulled the SPP out of the Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA) this month. Talks between him and the Reform Party are also said to have stalled.
But yesterday, Mr Chiam made it clear that not only did he have a team, but he also had a close chance at the polls, saying: 'It will be a hard fight with the PAP, even if the PAP has got a lead, it's a very small lead. Maybe 2 or 3 per cent.'
He refused to contemplate the thought of losing, saying: 'The residents have confidence in me... I have a good chance of winning.'
While he does not face a three-cornered fight in the GRC, Mr Chiam stressed his belief in unity among opposition leaders, saying: 'They should put their heads in the proper places. I think they are doing this because their heads are somewhere else. It's so stupid to have a three-cornered fight.'
Meanwhile, the Workers' Party (WP) yesterday indicated it would not be budging from possible three-cornered fights in Sengkang West and Punggol East SMCs.
WP chief and Hougang MP Low Thia Khiang told Sengkang West residents during a walkabout that 'the Workers' Party will be coming here'.
Punggol East is also being eyed by the Singapore Democratic Alliance's secretary-general Desmond Lim, 42, who has been active in the area since 2005.
The new constituency will be carved out of Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC.
Sengkang West has also drawn the interest of Mr Ooi Boon Ewe, 70, of the dormant People's Liberal Democratic Party.
Mr Low, however, said he was confident of 'substantial support' in the two wards. He also described the next election as a watershed event as it is slated to produce Singapore's next generation of leaders and the fourth prime minister.
Mr Low said he believed that among the PAP's new candidates would be a future PM, though he did not name anyone.
Dr Lam Pin Min, the area's incumbent MP, who held his own walkabout in Sengkang West and crossed paths with Mr Low at Fernvale Point, said the opposition parties' interest in his ward is because they view him, a one-term MP, as an 'easy target'.
But he added: 'My advantage would be that I've served for the last five years so I've built rapport with the residents.
'I've also made quite a bit of change, turning this area from a quiet estate into a more vibrant area with new infrastructure and more organised activities.'
[email protected]
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