Social media influencer Xiaxue has claimed that municipal matters at Aljunied GRC were rectified only after she raised the issues on social media.
On Tuesday (6 Oct), Xiaxue – whose real name is Wendy Cheng – claimed that the Workers’ Party (WP) ran Aljunied GRC poorly and compared the estate unfavourably to wards held by the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP). Xiaxue, who is an Aljunied GRC resident, claimed that her housing area is in a “destitute state”, in her Instagram stories.
The vlogger, who is a self-described People’s Action Party (PAP) supporter, has criticised the WP in the past but claimed that her complaints have nothing to do with her political views.
She added that she did not want to raise this matter online but decided to do so when her MP, WP chairman Sylvia Lim, did not respond to repeated complaints about the poor condition her Housing Development Board (HDB) block is in.
In her stories, Xiaxue shared photos of a damaged void deck ceiling after a chunk of the concrete dislodged and fell onto the ground. She also shared that exposed wires were secured with cable ties and that the concrete floor of the corridor outside her unit is also damaged.
The vlogger took issue with the cracks on certain parts of the HDB facade and the fact that these cracks are painted over in a colour that does not match the rest of the building, as well. She also complained about peeling paint and claimed that she has spotted rats in the vicinity, aside from expressing concerns about a pipe that appears to be leaking some kind of dark green substance.
On Wednesday (7 Oct), the WP re-posted another resident’s story on its Instagram page. The resident, Instagram user @lilmissnuttz, thanked the Aljunied-Hougang Town Council (AHTC) for responding to issues they are alerted to within a week’s time.
Appreciating AHTC for its hard work, the resident said that her block was the first to receive painting and repair works which have just resumed after being temporarily suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic for some time.
Re-posting a screenshot of the WP’s story on her own Instagram, Xiaxue wondered whether the WP’s story was a “snarky response” to her complaints. She wrote:
“Today @wpsg posted this ig story. I don’t know if it’s in snarky response to mine, but here’s what I think: 1) the hole in my ceiling has been there since 2019. Didn’t have Covid then. Notified but not fixed.
“2) Next time, dear @wpsg, if you intend to tackle the issues I brought up but simply have no time to because “not everybody can be first”, then I’ll just appreciate if you JUST TELL ME SO. Instead of just completely ignoring my requests altogether. A simple “I hear you but we are overwhelmed right now and will get to it soonest” would be much appreciated.”
Xiaxue also revealed that the issues she flagged at her block were rectified that same afternoon. Both the damage to the concrete outside the unit and the hole in the void deck ceiling were patched up. Posting photos of the repairs, the influencer wrote in her stories:
“Today workers came to fix the broke concrete outside my unit. So I guess they can be efficient if they want to…Wasn’t so hard was it? Why take so long to do zzz…
Finally. Very fast suddenly after complaining it’s a miracle lol…Today the WP people must have been like “f!@#ing suay why she must stay at our estate” lol”
Claiming that her followers told her that she is living in the “ugliest” HDB flat they had ever seen, Xiaxue added: “I spent $530,000 buying my house ok and my block’s units are all either maisonette or executive units. End up our void deck look like an abandoned building with rats, with the added excitement of possible falling concrete hitting us on the head. Tragic. Let me go weep.”
She also lamented about how it is “unfortunate” such stories do not pop up during the election period and slammed the WP by saying,
“It’s the little things that count, and there is no point waxing lyrical in Parliament about things like asking for an “environmental tax” for SQ (when it’s on the verge of bankruptcy and just retrenched 4,300 staff) to virtue signal…when you cannot even take care of simple municipal issues.
“If you can’t handle the little things, then you most certainly cannot lead a country.”
When confronted with the possibility that the WP receives unequal funding to maintain its estate as compared with the funding PAP wards receive, Xiaxue said that while she is not the most informed “when it comes to financial stuff,” replying to emails and acknowledging problems have zero cost.
Asking how AHTC was able to rectify the issues a day after she made her complaints public if it really comes down to a disparity in funding, the influencer added that she was not asking for massive new upgrading but only for damaged cement to be patched up which would not be so costly.
Sharing screenshots of messages she was allegedly sent by residents of PAP wards praising the service their town councils provide, she said: “Call me a PAP dog if you want. Times have changed, in 2020 you rarely see anyone praising PAP anymore, online sentiment is 99% bashing them. Yet they quietly do all the sai kang for us everyday.
“But I believe just as people should call out the bad work PAP has done, good work they do should also be acknowledged. This will encourage public servants to work harder for citizens, after all nobody likes to feel invisible after working hard, right?”
The Independent has reached out to the WP for comment and will update this story with their response.
Xiaxue asks how she can be more “privileged” than Raeesah Khan