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SINGAPORE: Senior Minister of State for National Development, Grace Fu, has refuted claims by some opposition MPs who say the Town Council Management Report (TCMR) is "unfair" and "subjective".
She said the six-month assessment was carried out objectively and data collected for half of the indicators (lift performance and S&CC arrears management) came from the town councils themselves.
Data on cleanliness and estate maintenance were collected during inspections carried out by HDB officers.
Ms Fu was speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a community event on Sunday.
In the inaugural TCMR report, the two opposition-held wards stood out for their less-than-stellar performances.
Hougang and Potong Pasir town councils were the only ones with level 4 and 5 scores, with 5 being the poorest.
Potong Pasir scored level 5 for four indicators while Hougang scored two level 5 and one level 4.
The People's Action Party wards received a level 3 or better on all indicators. Tanjong Pagar town council fared the best, scoring level 1 for all indicators except one.
Responding to claims by the opposition that they do not receive funding to improve the estate, Ms Fu said all town councils are provided funding based on the number and type of households in their wards.
"The operating funds, the grants, are exactly identical," she said.
She also noted that the opposition wards have been included in the Lift Upgrading Programme or LUP. "There will be flats which are eligible for LUP, including the opposition wards. So all the divisions who are eligible for LUP will get their LUP done.
"As for other upgrading, for example Neighbourhood Renewal Programme or Home Improvement Programme, that's actually depending on our available resources, and then the allocation will also depend on the needs of the local areas.
"So not all PAP divisions will have the same upgrading done as well. There are some who get more and some who get less. So it doesn't apply just to opposition towns...."
Ms Fu stressed that the TCMR is not meant to rank the town councils. Instead, it should act as talking points between residents and the management.
For example, if residents are happy with a level 3 for cleanliness, no further action is needed.
Should they wish for a better grade or a cleaner estate by having more frequent washings, residents may have to consider the trade-off of paying more in fees.
When asked about how some town councils gave longer grace period for residents to pay their S&CC arrears out of compassion and were hence graded poorly in the report, Ms Fu said town councils need to decide how best to manage their resources.
Ms Fu said the report's framework will be assessed to see if adjustments are needed, but the current criteria are likely to remain for the next four reports.
She said the National Development Ministry is looking at including financial indicators related to the use of sinking funds.
- CNA/ir
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