Desmond Lim says SDA is not 'fly-by-night' party, urges Pasir Ris-Changi residents to 'give us an opportunity'

Desmond Lim, chairman of the Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA), has urged residents of Pasir Ris-Changi GRC to "give [them] an opportunity to serve".

"There are many that said we have only appeared during GE, or close to GE, but that's not true," he said.

He was speaking at a doorstop interview during a Mar. 30 SDA walkabout at Jalan Mariam.

Lim added that since the last election, the SDA has engaged residents by helping the elderly, organising activities for the community, and walking the ground.

The party has been contesting in Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC in every election since 2006, and now hopes to stand in the new Pasir Ris-Changi GRC.

"We are not a fly-by-night party," Lim said.

"I hope social media will be kind to us, will be fair to us.

It's not only the Worker's Party that is doing a good job, but we also want to do a good job...because we share a common goal for the betterment of Singapore."

He added that the party's slate of candidates has been confirmed, and that they will share it closer to Nomination Day.

The party will also release its manifesto closer to that date.

Punggol contest?

Lim also spoke on the topic of a potential contest in Punggol GRC — a likely target for the WP as part of their "eastern expansion" plan, but also one where the SDA has previously walked the ground.

Asked if SDA would collaborate with the WP to avoid a multi-cornered fight, Lim replied that discussions have not yet resulted in an outcome.

As such, "we are not going to speculate", he said.

"Of course, we always put national interest, the people's interest, and the party's interest above us."

"We will try to work [it] out. Anything that's good for Singapore, anything that's good for the residents of Punggol, we will give it our support."

Residents' response

Residents in the area told Mothership that they were mostly satisfied with matters of the estate, as well as being under the ruling People's Action Party.

But they also expressed openness to new ideas and representation.

One resident, who gave her name as Gan, said that the estate has been well-run under current anchor minister Maliki Osman.

"So it's a bit of a surprise to us that we've been carved out [of East Coast] to being under Pasir Ris-Changi," she said.

"I think they've successfully shaken things up."

Another resident, William Ng, said that while he has no complaints about the estate, he believes the government can still do more to help citizens — particularly the elderly.

He highlighted Medisave and CPF as areas which could use "some fine-tuning".

"To be fair, the PAP has done a good job...but I don't mind a bit more opposition," the 71-year-old said.

Top image by Mothership