Tin Pei Ling did the right things to win
PAP’s Tin Pei Ling dominates in three-way fight
Some stallholders at the Block 79 Circuit Road wet market proudly display a picture of Ms Tin Pei Ling, of the People’s Action Party (PAP).
This is to show their support for her, said MacPherson resident Louisa Soh, 52.
Those contesting the ward may have thought the 27-year-old giggly girl of 2011 would be a pushover.
Instead they were confronted by a confident 31-year-old woman and mother.
In just four years after winning her MacPherson seat as part of the Marine Parade GRC team, Ms Tin became a hit with residents.
Yesterday, Ms Tin won the three-cornered fight at the new MacPherson SMC with 65.58 per cent against the Workers’ Party (33.6 per cent) and National Solidarity Party (0.82 per cent).
NSP’s Cheo Chai Chen’s slip with his “too-busy-as-a-mother’’ statement hit him hard. He got only 215 votes.
The so-called three-way fight in the ward also never really materialised, with Mr Cheo scoring the worst among non-independent candidates.
But Mr Cheo’s slip is not the reason why Ms Tin won. Sheer grit did, said Iseas-Yusof Ishak’s research fellow Mustafa Izzuddin.
“She has a strong presence in the ward. She’s done the right things, walked the ground and related to the residents, in particular the elderly, who have also taken to her quite fondly,” he said.
Undeterred by the online flak she got, the former senior associate at Ernst & Young Advisory quit her day job a month after the 2011 General Election to be a full-time Member of Parliament of one of the oldest wards.
She told The New Paper last night: “For anyone, there would be challenges at the beginning. Because I was a new face, a rookie, it took a while for people to know me better, to warm up.
“But really, at the end of the day, it’s about just working very hard and trying my very best to solve problems that residents face.
“Along the way, we have had some successful cases and they’ve also seen positive results of some of the programmes rolled out.”
She introduced initiatives like the MacPherson Care Fund to help needy elderly residents with their healthcare expenses, and the MacPherson Children Chapter, which provides English lessons to children from less privileged backgrounds.
“Our work will not stop here, and we’ll continue to build on it,” she said.
Miss Soh, who has lived in MacPherson since 1980, highlighted the facelift the estate has seen since Ms Tin took over. The improvements include estate upgrading, a new childcare centre and lifts at overhead bridges.
“Her youth may not be a bad thing. She’s like a breath of fresh air in an old constituency like MacPherson.
“The estate has become very vibrant over the years,” said Miss Soh.
Now that Polling Day is over, Ms Tin says she is looking forward to spending time with her month-old son Kee Hau.
“I missed out on quite a few moments in his first month. Hopefully I can catch up a little bit more (after Polling Day).
“I’m quite sure we will soon be back to work on the ground again, but I think it will be a bit more balanced than the nine days’ campaigning period,” she said.
What about Number 2? “We’ll see how it goes first! Now, it’s been just past one month for Number 1,” Ms Tin said with a laugh.
Her youth may not be a bad thing. She’s like a breath of fresh air in an old constituency like MacPherson.
— Miss Soh, a MacPherson resident
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