The Aljunied Town Council was informed by the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) on Jan 7 that it had received feedback from Mr Tan on an unauthorised tentage with lots of furniture causing obstruction to the public/residents using the passageway. He was also concerned that a pole of the tentage in the middle of the passageway at Block 152A may cause the public to walk into it.

Upon receiving the feedback, the town council immediately investigated and verified that the tentage, which was erected by the merchants' association for festive sales during the Chinese New Year period, had been authorised.

However, it is true that the pole in the middle could impede pedestrian movement. Accordingly, the merchants' association had it removed.

The town council reminded the association to ensure that there are sufficient clear passageways for the public and that all displays of goods comply with the SCDF's guidelines.

The town council would like to assure Mr Tan that his contact number was not given to the tentage contractor or any contractor. The chairman of the merchants' association, who happens to be a community leader in the area, felt duty-bound and took the initiative to call Mr Tan to explain matters. This may have caused the misunderstanding.

On our part, we should have communicated directly with Mr Tan after we had acted on his feedback. We apologise for this lapse.

We thank Mr Tan for his feedback on how to make our neighbourhood a better and safer place to live in.

Jeffrey Chua
Secretary
Aljunied Town Council