A new four-member Sengkang GRC will be formed in the north-east of Singapore for the next general election.
It is the only completely new group representation constituency out of 17 recommended by the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee (EBRC) in a report released yesterday afternoon.
The new Sengkang GRC, which will have 117,546 voters, comprises parts of the existing Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC, as well as the single seat of Punggol East and parts of Sengkang West SMC.
Both single-member constituencies have traditionally been Workers' Party (WP) stomping grounds, and were contested by them in the last two general elections.
The move has been widely anticipated, given that the area's population has swelled in recent years.
Sengkang West, helmed by Senior Minister of State for Transport and Health Lam Pin Min, has grown to become the largest SMC by voter population. It now has 47,891 voters, which far exceeds the upper limit of 38,000 voters set for SMCs.
Nearby Punggol East, led by seven-term MP Charles Chong, has a similar profile. It is also edging closer to the maximum voter capacity with 35,477 voters.
The ward - seen as a tricky one for the ruling People's Action Party - was won by former WP MP Lee Li Lian after a 2013 by-election, but ceded in 2015.
At the time, Mr Chong had won by a thin margin, bagging 51.76 per cent of the votes.
The new Sengkang GRC is one of six four-member constituencies recommended by the EBRC in its report. The others are Chua Chu Kang, Holland-Bukit Timah, Jalan Besar, Marsiling-Yew Tee as well as Bishan-Toa Payoh, which currently has five members but will be downsized.
Dr Lam noted in a statement that the slate of candidates for the new Sengkang GRC has not yet been drawn up, but added: "I would be happy if asked to continue to serve my existing residents, many of whom I have known for many years since entering politics in 2006."
He also said a key priority for the new constituency would be to forge a common identity and integrate town-wide developments and programmes for residents.
"On that front, we have formed the Sengkang Town Development Committee in 2018, comprising the various MPs and grassroots leaders in Sengkang, to oversee and coordinate the programmes and infrastructural development of Sengkang town," he said.
Dr Lam added that he expects incumbents in the new GRC to face "fierce competition" from the opposition. "But whoever the opposition team may be, we will do our best and let Singaporeans decide based on our track record of service to our fellow citizens," he said.
In a Facebook post, Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean, who is an MP for Pasir-Ris Punggol GRC, said the constituency's boundaries have been redrawn because of a significant voter increase in the area. Its Sengkang Central ward is now part of the new Sengkang GRC, while Punggol West has also been carved out as a single-seat constituency.
"The boundaries may change, but our commitment to serve all our residents remains the same," Mr Teo added.
Asked about the significance of Sengkang West and Punggol East being merged into a new GRC, National University of Singapore sociologist Tan Ern Ser said opposition supporters would see this as diluting the proportion of likely voters for WP.
He added: "Notwithstanding the WP's managing to gain a GRC in 2011, and scraping through to keep it in 2015, it remains difficult, though not impossible, for the opposition to win a GRC."
