SINGAPORE – The People’s Action Party (PAP) has appointed two new branch chairs in the Workers’ Party-controlled Aljunied GRC, refreshing its slate in a constituency which has been held by the WP since 2011.
Trade unionist Jagathishwaran Rajo, 37, has been appointed chair of Eunos ward, while Mr Kenny Sim, 55, chief executive of IT reseller and distributor Serial Achieva, will take over Paya Lebar, said the PAP in a statement on Aug 12.
Mr Jagathishwaran replaces bank executive Chua Eng Leong, while Mr Sim takes over from lawyer Alex Yeo, the PAP said.
The moves mean the two new branch chairs will likely be fielded as part of the PAP’s Aljunied GRC slate in the coming general election, which must be held by 2025.
Both Mr Chua and Mr Yeo had contested and lost to a WP team headed by Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh in the last general election (GE) in 2020.
The pair will assist the two new branch chairs during this period of transition, the PAP said.
In its statement, the party thanked them for their service and said it looks forward to their future contributions in other capacities.
Mr Jagathishwaran has been a PAP activist in Zhenghua in Holland-Bukit Timah GRC since 2009, where he also served as branch secretary for eight years, the PAP said.
He is currently executive secretary at the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore Staff Union and assistant director at NTUC’s Freelancers and Self-employed Unit.
He is also principal industrial relations officer for the Visual, Audio, Creative Content Professionals Association.
Meanwhile, Mr Sim has been a PAP activist in Woodlands and Bukit Timah since 2015, and he also served as vice-chair of the Bukit Timah branch for six years.
He is chairman of charity Cheng Hong Welfare Services Society, as well as honorary secretary and chairman of Chinese clan association Teochew Poit Ip Huay Kuan’s local and international affairs committee.
He is also executive director and CEO of Serial Achieva, which operates in Thailand and Malaysia.
Mr Sim also sits on the boards of several other companies, such as Global Invacom Group, Meta Health and USP Group.
In separate Facebook posts, the pair thanked their predecessors and said they were honoured to join their new branches.
Mr Jagathishwaran said: “I am looking forward to work alongside team Eunos to engage and serve our residents. Please feel free to approach me when you see me in the neighbourhood.”
The pair have been spotted at party walkabouts with other former candidates and their predecessors in Aljunied in recent months.
At the National Day weekend, Mr Jagathishwaran joined members of the PAP’s GE2020 Aljunied team at community celebrations in the heartland.
Mr Yeo and Mr Chua were also present.
When asked, the PAP did not say whether the two outgoing branch chairs would be moved to other GRCs.
Dr Gillian Koh, senior research fellow at the Institute of Policy Studies, said the appointment of the new branch chairs in the two wards is to be expected as the PAP is moving into election footing.
The party will probably see how well residents identify with both men before making a final decision on whether to field them as candidates, she added.
She pointed out that it was notable that the party had appointed Mr Jagathishwaran, a union leader, and Mr Sim, a Teochew entrepreneur, to a GRC that has a sizeable Teochew community and a wide range of working- and middle-class Singaporeans.
“They will now have time to walk the ground and demonstrate that they understand residents’ concerns and are willing to serve them,” she said.
“This is (the) WP’s heartland, and it will be interesting to hear what ambitions they have as new branch chairs for the PAP there in Eunos and Paya Lebar.”
The two new potential candidates appear to bring grassroots and social service experience to the Aljunied GRC slate, but are not particularly senior within the PAP, said Associate Professor Chong Ja Ian from the National University of Singapore.
“If the PAP were serious about challenging Aljunied, they should commit a senior party leader, such as a sitting 4G (fourth-generation) minister, to the constituency. That has not yet happened,” said Prof Chong.
The PAP has been steadily refreshing its branch chairs in opposition-controlled constituencies such as Sengkang and Hougang.
On Oct 17, 2023, the party said Mr Jackson Lam would take over as branch chairman in Hougang from Mr Lee Hong Chuang.
About a week later, it announced that Mr Marcus Loh would replace Mr Ling Weihong in Sengkang East from Nov 1.
Other new faces, including Ms Chua Wei-Shan, Dr Hamid Razak, Mr Edmund Twohill and Mr Kawal Pal Singh, have been seen at grassroots events, and pictured alongside sitting MPs on social media.