SINGAPORE: The Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA) has again deferred announcing whether it will contest Punggol GRC at the General Election on May 3.

During a party walkabout last week, SDA chairman Desmond Lim said a resolution on the Group Representation Constituency would be reached this week.

But on Sunday (Apr 20), he said the opposition party would reveal its decision on Tuesday, a day before Nomination Day.

Mr Lim said the party manifesto would be released the same day. He also declined to reveal any potential candidates. The media has repeatedly asked the SDA leader for updates on those two fronts. 

Since parliament was dissolved on Tuesday multiple parties, including the ruling People's Action Party (PAP) and opposition Workers' Party (WP), have published their manifestos and introduced new faces.

Mr Lim was speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a visit to Pulau Ubin on Sunday.

He was accompanied by around 10 other party members and volunteers, including SDA secretary-general Abu Mohamed and at least one new face, entrepreneur Muhammad Faizal Mohmad.

Asked about members who contested in previous elections but have not been present at recent events - such as Mr Kelvin Ong - Mr Lim said they were still with the party and that "when the time comes ... we will come together".

Pulau Ubin, an island in northeast Singapore, used to be part of East Coast GRC but has been redrawn into Pasir Ris-Changi GRC for the upcoming polls.

SDA has said it will focus on this newly formed constituency, which absorbed districts from the now-defunct Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC - which the opposition party had contested unsuccessfully since 2006.

The rest of the districts in Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC are part of a new four-member Punggol GRC, which has also subsumed Punggol West SMC.

At the last election in 2020, the single seat was won by PAP's Sun Xueling against WP's Tan Chen Chen. 

The WP has not confirmed if it will contest in Punggol, though its members - including new face Sufyan Mikhail Putra Mohd Kamil - have been seen walking the ground there.

Mr Lim was asked if SDA would avoid three-cornered fights. 

"We never go into other people's place ... and we are not the one that initiates," said Mr Lim.

"We have been very consistently - after every election - been present in that constituency Pasir Ris-Punggol, and now it's Pasir Ris-Changi."

SDA IN UBIN

The SDA on Sunday also said it had introduced a doctor to help the 30-odd residents of Pulau Ubin.

These residents previously cited wildlife issues and difficulties in accessing government support vouchers as challenges.

Mr Lim said SDA arranged a free medical checkup for Ubin's senior residents last week.

Asked about the doctor's background, Mr Lim would only say he was a surgeon with a chain of clinics, and that charity and politics should be kept separate. 

While the PAP has yet to confirm its potential candidates for Pasir Ris-Changi GRC, a team comprising Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean, Senior Ministers of State Desmond Tan and Janil Puthucheary, Mr Sharael Taha and new face Valerie Lee visited Ubin on Apr 11.

At GE2020, SDA's team for Pasir Ris-Punggol comprised Mr Lim, Singapore Malay National Organisation president Abu Mohamed, electrical engineer Kuswadi Atnawi, facilities management manager Kelvin Ong and business consultant Harminder Pal Singh.

SDA went up against the PAP and Peoples Voice, coming out second with 23.67 per cent of the votes.