A Facebook post of the page of the Workers’ Party pointed out the absurdity of some of the existing electoral boundaries.
The party shared that they were doing walkabouts “yesterday at “Eunos” division of Aljunied GRC, which is geographically located at Bedok Reservoir Road”.
Ironically, they then went to Eunos Crescent, which is under Marine Parade GRC, they added.
Elections in Singapore are conducted based on electoral divisions. These division boundaries are updated to reflect population growth and population shifts.
Currently, the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee (EBRC) has been tasked to create more SMCs than the current 13, and further reduce the average size of GRCs, which were introduced in 1988 to ensure minority representation in Parliament.
Since 2009, the average size of GRCs has come down from 5.36 at that time to 4.75 in the 2015 GE.
At the same time, the number of SMCs have increased from nine as of 2006, to 13 in 2015.
The reason for redrawing boundaries – the EBRC typically decides on the minimum and maximum number of voters per Member of Parliament by dividing the total number of electors by the existing number of MPs, then allowing for a generous variation of up to 30 per cent.
Based on this formula, each MP in the next election should be taking care of approximately 20,000 to 38,000 voters.
On these grounds alone, two constituencies would need to be changed because they are bursting at the seams, a Straits Times article reported.
Similarly, a small SMC like Potong Pasir with only 16,739 voters below the lower limit of 20,000 set for SMCs may be absorbed into a larger constituency.
As a constituency held by opposition veteran Chiam See Tong from 1984 to 2011, its boundaries have remained untouched for more than 30 years, even as its population continued to shrink. This is likely because any changes to the boundaries of opposition-held areas would have gone down badly with the electorate, the article cites.
Now that the constituency has been back in PAP hands for two election cycles, the boundaries could be redrawn, either making it larger or removing it as an SMC altogether. /TISG