After opposition party stepped in, Town Council quickly resolves water seepage issue that it asked resident to take care of

SINGAPORE: After initially asking a resident to pay out of pocket to rectify damage from water seepage within her home, Jalan Besar Town Council (JBTC) quickly resolved the persistent issue “out of goodwill,” as soon as opposition party Red Dot United (RDU) stepped in to speak up for the homeowner.

RDU secretary-general Ravi Philemon said on Monday (3 Apr) that a JBTC resident approached his party recently to report water seepage issues in her HDB flat, which began in December 2021. The resident promptly notified both HDB and JBTC, and the authorities rectified the damage due to the water seepage in the common area (external) after receiving her complaint.

They, however, asked the resident to fix the issues inside her flat by herself by paying out of pocket to rectify the damage to her ceiling and walls caused by the water seepage. The resident was left bereft. She told RDU that it is unfair for the government agencies to expect her to fix the internal damage to her flat using her own funds, as she did not cause the water seepage issues.

Revealing that her husband is the sole breadwinner of her household, as she has been unemployed for years, the resident appealed to RDU and asked if they could help her in any way, as no one else she approached came forward to help her.

Interestingly, the resident’s block is relatively new, having been built in 2016. The water seepage issue occurred just five years after the block was built.

Mr Philemon emailed Jalan Besar GRC Member of Parliament (MP) Dr Wan Rizal Bin Wan Zakariah, to ask how water seepage issues can occur in newer HDB flats and whether structural issues or design flaws are causing the problem.

He also shared the resident’s plight with the ruling party MP and asked him to “show compassion towards the resident’s situation and offer assistance from his town council’s welfare fund.”

“If they are unable to provide assistance, I asked Dr. Wan Rizal to inform us so we can explore crowdfunding options to help the resident and her family,” Mr Philemon added.

Soon after the opposition politician sent his email, JBTC replied that it would help the resident as a goodwill gesture.

Seeking the resident’s contact details, the town council replied: “Please be informed that Town Council only manages the common property. Nonetheless, we can still offer to help the resident to paint the affected paint peeling/watermarks areas inside the unit out of goodwill which is outside of Jalan Besar Town Council’s purview.”

The resident thanked RDU for helping bring awareness to her situation.

Mr Philemon said on Facebook: “This is but just one instance where an alternative political party has helped a fellow Singaporean’s voice to be better heard by those that are in power. We are pleased to have helped a fellow Singaporean who truly needed assistance.”

This is not the first time the RDU has spoken up for residents in need. The party has helped bridge the gap between residents and the authorities, as it continues walking the ground at Radin Mas SMC, Tanjong Pagar GRC, and Jurong GRC – the PAP’s most fortified stronghold, which the young party contested in its maiden run at the polls, to give voters a choice.

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