Minister for Social and Family Development Tan Chuan- Jin spent his Sunday visiting Serangoon to woo the voters in Aljunied GRC.

The MP for Serangoon in the Aljunied GRC is Workers' Party Chairperson Sylvia Lim.

What did we learn from Tan's visit? A trio of thoughts from Minister Tan's trip to unfriendly territory. 

1. The ruling party adopts a more inclusive strategy to woo the 54.72%.

Tan told the media that all Singaporeans are meant to benefit from the Government's work, regardless of who they voted for. This was what he said:

"Our work as the Government doesn't stop because here in Aljunied, every Singaporean matters. And for policies that we need to continue, we will tweak, adjust, change, or strengthen it - that work continues whether you have a General Election or not. And whether you're in an opposition ward or a PAP ward, we will continue working and I think that's something we are focused on."

This seems to be a shift from PAP's usual approach, especially if one was to juxtopose this with the Prime Minister's comments made four years ago about how PAP wards were favoured for HDB upgrading exercises.

In 2011, PM Lee Hsien Loong told the students at a Ministerial Forum organised by the National University of Singapore (NUS) Students' Political Association that there "has to be a distinction" between PAP wards and opposition wards because "the PAP wards supported the Government and the policies which delivered these good things".

PM was responding to a question from a university student living in the opposition ward who asked if he could pay less tax since the opposition-held ward does not enjoy upgrading programmes.

2. While Tan did not praise the opposition, he did not criticise them either.

After visiting the opposition ward in Serangoon, Tan told The Straits Times that "there are, of course, usual local issues, some are municipal issues, which I guess is something the town council needs to settle, but he said that these issues were "nothing peculiar".

In fact, he added that these were some issues that he faced in his own ward as well.

This remark almost sounds nice, if one compared Tan's comments with the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew's words during the last General Elections.

Lee said that Aljunied voters would regret choosing Workers' Party as he highlighted the example of opposition-held ward Hougang where, "If you have the wrong government, your property prices go right down. Ask why in Hougang the property is not as high as their neighbours."

3. Where is the rest of the PAP Aljunied team?

It was Tan's fourth visit to the Workers' Party-run Aljunied GRC.

He was flanked by a familiar face - former Minister Lim Boon Heng, who retired from politics in the last election.

Lim visited Aljunied GRC previously, and told the media last July that the PAP team for Aljunied GRC was "getting into place".

If that's the case, it is puzzling that Victor Lye, potential PAP candidate for Aljunied GRC, was visiting Hougang yesterday instead of accompanying Minister Tan at Aljunied.