Muhamad Faisal bin Abdul Manap has succeeded Pritam Singh as the chairman of the Workers' Party-run Aljunied-Hougang Town Council on Sept. 15, Lianhe Zaobao reported on Sept. 24.

The Aljunied GRC MP's appointment comes three years after Singh took over the post from former Town Council chairman Sylvia Lim in 2015.

Faisal told Mothership.sg that taking over the Town Council chairmanship is to deepen leadership capacity and "job rotation":

"I have been assuming the role of Elected Councillor since GE 2011 and also has been the chairman for the Town Council's Estate and Community Liaison Committee (ECLC) since 2013.

Likewise, the decision for me to take over the TC chairman is to further deepen leadership capacity and also job rotation, an ongoing process".

Faisal said that his role as the chairman is to oversee the running of the Town Council, which mainly focuses on town and estate management.

He also hopes to work closely with the other elected MPs, as well as the management team led by a General Manager (GM) to ensure the Town Council is able to deliver efficient and effective services to the residents of Aljunied-Hougang Town.

He will be supported by Pritam and Lim as vice-chairs.

This means that Pritam is replacing Png Eng Huat, the MP for Hougang, as the new vice-chair.

Why Faisal?

Faisal's appointment comes at the back of a key development in the WP this year -- the election of Pritam as Secretary-General in April.

It is worth noting that it is a meteoric rise for the most low profile opposition MP at Aljunied GRC.

Pritam, for instance, was the vice-chair of the WP-run town council before he was appointed as the chairman.

Faisal, however, was immediately appointed as the chairman without having to understudy as the vice-chair.

In April, Faisal was also the joint top vote scorer together with former secretary-general Low Thia Khiang.

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If Faisal is destined for bigger things in WP, he has the best mentors to learn from.

After all, the WP leadership -- Sec-Gen Pritam and Chairperson Lim -- are his deputies at the town council.

Top image from Workers' Party Facebook