Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) chief Chee Soon Juan has said that the Jurong-Clementi Town Council (JRTC) received a Bukit Batok resident’s complaint nearly a year ago but has not taken any action until now.
The issue the resident raised is the lack of a walkway in the vicinity of Block 190 Bukit Batok West Ave 6, which causes pedestrians to walk on the road alongside traffic. Residents raised the matter to Dr Chee after receiving no updates from the town council in charge of the ward.
Dr Chee wrote on Facebook on Sept 4: “It turns out that residents had written to the Jurong-Clementi Town Council about a year ago regarding the lack of a walkway in the vicinity of BB Blk 190…It was pointed out that the situation was dangerous as pedestrians had to walk on the road with traffic going back and forth. Lighting at night was also poor which added to the problem.”
The resident who wrote to JRTC received an email in October 2019 telling him that the matter “is receiving our attention” and that he would be kept informed. Revealing that the resident has not heard back from the town council since then, Dr Chee wrote:
“If they haven’t already done so, the least that the officials can do is to keep residents informed of plans (if any) to build a walkway.”
Dr Chee, who also asked why JRTC does not include ‘Bukit Batok’ in its name, said that he will be in the area on Sunday to look into this matter. Inviting residents to meet with him, he wrote: “In any event, I’ll be in the vicinity this Sunday morning at 10 to meet with residents and passers-by to see what can be done to facilitate the construction of a pavement. If you’re a resident there, come by.”
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Dr Chee has been walking the ground at Bukit Batok SMC since he first contested the ward in the 2016 by-election that was called after the ruling party MP for the ward resigned after an extramarital affair with a grassroots member came to light.
He went head to head with the People’s Action Party’s (PAP) Murali Pillai, who had been a member of the losing PAP team that ran in Aljunied GRC in the 2015 general election. Mr Pillai won Bukit Batok with 61.2 per cent of the vote.
Mr Pillai did not fare as well when he faced off with Dr Chee again in the 2020 General Election but was returned to Parliament with 54.8 per cent of the vote. Although he failed to clinch the ward, Dr Chee achieved his personal best score in his entire political career, with a vote share score of 45.2 per cent.
After the July election, Dr Chee said he intended to remain in Bukit Batok SMC and re-contest the ward in the next general election. He also launched a grassroots campaign to help Bukit Batok residents and began to raise funds for the initiative.
Meeting with residents in his regular walkabouts in the area, Dr Chee has highlighted several municipal issues to JRTC in recent months – some of which have even been resolved after he shone a spotlight on the issues on social media.
While Dr Chee plans to stay in Bukit Batok SMC for the long haul, there are fears that the hotly-contested ward will be absorbed into a larger multi-member ward — like Jurong GRC — ahead of the next general election.
Chee Soon Juan hopes Bukit Batok SMC will not disappear by the next polls