Baey Yam Keng to helm new Tampines Boulevard division; internal boundaries for East Coast changed
PAP newcomer and former army chief David Neo will take over Mr Baey's original ward – Tampines North.
Announcing this in a Facebook post on May 15 , Mr Baey said: 'Yesterday, I showed David around Tampines North and introduced him to residents.
'I hope you will welcome him like how you have allowed me to join the Tampines North family, and extend the same patience to him, just like when I first came to Tampines North in 2011.'
The new Tampines Boulevard comprises new flats north of Tampines Avenue 9 with block numbers running from 601 to 666, and will be carved out of Tampines North, East and Central in changes that will take effect from June 1.
The decision was made after discussion between the GRC's MPs, said Mr Baey, who is going into his fifth term as an MP.
He told The Straits Times that it is 'natural and easier for him to continue serving these residents' as he has already been doing so.
The Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Transport and Sustainability and Environment added that his priority will be to help residents with teething issues as they move into the new flats.
He will also be looking to address these across the constituency as the new chairman of Tampines Town Council, he said.
During the hustings, Mr Baey had promised that he would chair the town council if elected.
Some possible teething issues include maintenance issues as residents move in and renovate, orientating them to estates and waste management, he said.
'One area we are looking at is how we can structure our council so that we can be more responsive to residents' feedback and suggestions on the ground,' he added.
He is taking over as town council chair from Tampines Changkat MP Desmond Choo, who contested and won his constituency after it was carved out as a single seat.
Tampines GRC was the site of the second-narrowest win for the ruling party at the polls on May 3. The PAP came away with 52.02 per cent of the vote against the WP.
Following the polls, the constituency's anchor minister Masagos Zulkifli said the team intends to go back to the ground to better understand issues that residents face, including those that run 'really deep'.
East Coast GRC has also reorganised its internal boundaries following the election.
Deputy Speaker Jessica Tan will be re-appointed as chair of East Coast Town Council, said Minister of Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong in a Facebook post on May 15.
New faces Dinesh Vasu Dash and Hazlina Abdul Halim are vice-chairs, he added.
Mr Tong, who anchors the constituency, said: 'The regular maintenance of our common spaces and the continual improvement of local facilities will remain key priorities for our town council.'
On the revised internal boundaries, Mr Tong said the main changes are that the Bedok division will take over Limau and Eastwood estates, and Fengshan will take on more private estates which used to be under Siglap.
Bedok, previously represented by Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat, will be taken by Mr Dinesh, while Fengshan will be under Madam Hazlina, who is taking over from Ms Cheryl Chan.
Both Mr Heng and Ms Chan have retired from politics.
The Changi-Simei division will include Seagull estate, and Kampong Chai Chee will take in the Chai Chee precinct, which was previously under Marine Parade GRC.
Changi-Simei is under Ms Tan, who has represented the division since 2006, while Kampong Chai Chee is under Senior Minister of State for National Development and Digital Development and Information Tan Kiat How.
Explaining the changes, Mr Tong said the constituency's population has increased from about 120,000 in 2020 to about 150,000 in 2025.
'Coupled with expected further population growth and town development in the coming years, we therefore have to make some adjustments to allow us to serve our residents better and more optimally,' he said.
Mr Tong added that among considerations the team took into account is to have roughly comparable size in each division in terms of households and population, and to have community clubs to serve residents.
'As far as possible, our approach was to keep changes to a minimum and to keep grassroots volunteers teams intact,' he said.
The team also took into account that there are new flats being built across East Coast, in varying degrees of development, he added.
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