SINGAPORE - The Straits Times looks at what politicians, and the politically related, are up to in this weekly series.
In this edition, we look at how a minister appeared to be in a galaxy far, far away, the lessons politicians gleaned from their interactions on the ground, and how an MP dealt with trolls and fake news.
Look out for the latest edition of the series every Friday, and check out past ones here.
Coming full circle
From time to time, Education Minister Chan Chun Sing invites his social media followers to #guesswhere he is, with an abstract photo of his location.
Last Saturday morning, Mr Chan's followers would have seen a photo of a round tunnel with grey walls that seemed to stretch on forever.
Several people, including Speaker of Parliament Tan Chuan-Jin, said it looked like Mr Chan was on board the Death Star, the space station and superweapon from the Star Wars series.
One quipped that it was an escape tunnel for the ministers "in case (Deputy Prime Minister) Lawrence Wong starts playing his guitar at a Cabinet meeting".
A few hours later, Mr Chan revealed the answer: he was visiting the worksite of the upcoming Cantonment MRT station, which lies underneath the iconic former Tanjong Pagar Railway Station.
This is part of the extension of the Circle Line, which Mr Chan said will let the line live up to its name and become a full circle.
"The Circle Line 6 extension will add three stations - Keppel, Cantonment and Prince Edward Road - 'closing the loop' for the Circle Line," he said.
"It will also link to existing train lines and shorten travel time to and fro the CBD/Marina Bay area."
When ready in 2026, the new station will be integrated with the former railway station, giving it a "distinctive identity", he added.
Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Sustainability and the Environment and Transport Baey Yam Keng, who was also there, said the new station ties together the past and future of Singapore rail.
"Different tracks, different trains; one served in the past, another for the future of our public transport system," he said.
Reflections on residents
Several MPs over the past week penned down their thoughts from the interactions they had with their constituents.
Mr Christopher de Souza (Holland-Bukit Timah GRC) shared last Friday about one Mr Foo, a long-time Farrer Gardens resident who died recently.
In a Facebook post titled The Sad Part About Being An MP, Mr de Souza said they had struck up a decade-long friendship, during which Mr Foo had imparted his wisdom and provided encouragement.
"During my quiet contemplation time last night, before going to sleep, I thought of Mr Foo and the precious moments we shared as friends," he said.
"The memories help with the sadness involved when losing a resident. But I have not really lost - for friendships remain forever."
Meanwhile, Mr Baey (Tampines GRC) wrote on Tuesday about the feedback he received over a case he handled at his latest Meet-the-People Session.
Mr Baey had a day earlier met with a resident of his Tampines North ward who wanted an awning built to shield his window from rainwater, as water had seeped in despite him having closed his window.
As this should not happen, he suggested that the resident get a window contractor to look at whether the sealant between his window frame and wall had been worn out, and this would get to "the root of the problem".
"The resident sort of accepted my assessment but he said that I should have shown greater empathy towards him," said Mr Baey.
"Indeed, sometimes I might come across as being more eager to offer a solution than to listen. I thanked him for sharing an honest feedback and I will be more mindful in future."
Dead lifts
In other rainwater-related news, downpours here have caused some lifts - and communications - to break down in Sengkang.
Workers' Party MP Louis Chua (Sengkang GRC) said his team had received feedback in recent months about recurrent lift breakdowns at a multi-storey carpark in the Rivervale Delta estate. He acknowledged residents' frustration that one of the lifts has not been working for a while.
He said the open nature of the roof garden and lift landing meant that rainwater would flow into the lift well during periods of heavy rain, causing the lift to stop working.
The lift has been back in service since Oct 5, and Sengkang Town Council (SKTC) has installed barriers to stop water from entering the lift well, said Mr Chua.
"We are working with the Housing Board and hope that they will be able to support SKTC with a longer-term solution to this issue, for greater cost effectiveness and prudence in our use of public funds, and more importantly, for the safety of all residents."
But the problem did not appear to be confined to one lift.
PAP Sengkang East branch chairman Ling Weihong said that residents had been sharing their own lift woes with him since he posted about getting stuck in one in September, and that they were not satisfied about SKTC's reasons for repair delays.
On Wednesday, Mr Ling said he was glad another malfunctioning lift in nearby Rivervale Crescent will be rectified by mid-November, following earlier notices that the lift would be fixed in September, then October.
He posted a picture on Facebook of SKTC's latest notice, which said the Building and Construction Authority gave their approval only in late September, and that this had resulted in a shipment delay for lift parts.
"While more questions are raised than answered, I'm glad to see that at least some action is being taken," said Mr Ling.
No free meals
Minister of State for Home Affairs and Social and Family Development Sun Xueling on Monday rebuffed falsehoods circulating online and said she neither gets free food nor preferential treatment at coffee shops.
"I pay for my Hokkien mee and I wait to collect my Hokkien mee like everyone else," she said in a Facebook post.
The clarification from Ms Sun, who is MP for Punggol West, came after she shared last Saturday that she finally got her "Hokkien mee fix" after catching up with families in her constituency.
In her post on Monday, Ms Sun attached a screenshot from netizen Ragavachari Chari, who alleged that she received a "free meal again". She denied this and added that she waits for her food like any other customer.
"In fact, it took some time yesterday, so much so that I waited at a table twice, then went to buy other stuff (pictures of my shopping included here), before going back to collect my mee," she said.
Some people had asserted that she gets her noodles earlier because she is an MP, which is untrue as well, said Ms Sun.
"And I know that because the stall owner scolded me (quite loudly, which was heard by quite a few tables around the store) when I went to collect my mee. I think she scolds most patrons," added Ms Sun, with a laughing emoji.
Those who wish to spread falsehoods and cause disharmony should use their time to see how they can instead spread joy and be constructive, she said.
"The world will be a better place if we use our energies productively and positively."
