A group of residents affected by the recent SERS arrangements at Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3 forced upon by the Government contacted me over the last weekend. We had a discussion on the issue, and they requested that I help to submit a petition to Parliament regarding the issue.
The SERS announcement had caused many residents living in the affected blocks much anxiety and brought about major concerns over their living arrangements.
I submitted the petition on Monday but it was not accepted by Parliament due to procedural issues.
I also sought clarification with the Deputy Speaker why the SERS-related Parliamentary Questions were relegated to the end of the 4th July Order Paper, because I felt that Parliament would then not be able to debate the SERS issue fully.
Mr Christopher de Souza only responded by saying the petition that I had earlier submitted “had issues” and that we could still have a discussion around Ms Nadia Ahmad Samdin’s adjournment motion at the end of the day. He did not answer me about why the PQs were relegated to the end.
An adjournment motion is time-limited and no questions can be raised after the time limit. In the end, none of the 8 oral PQs filed were discussed in the 2-day sitting.
Furthermore, the written answer given to my SERS-related PQ was unsatisfactory, seeing as I was given a boilerplate answer that only repeated information in the HDB press release and identical answers were given to fellow MPs Ms Hazel Poa, Ms Nadia Ahmad Samdin, Mr Louis Chua and Ms Hany Soh.
However, just because the PAP Government wants to brush the SERS issue under the carpet does not mean that it is over. Hazel and I will continue to question the SERS scheme and find a fair and just solution for all HDB residents.
Singaporeans deserve better!
