The first Town Council Management Report (TCMR) has been released by the Ministry of National Development (MND). The report covers six indicators under four key areas – estate cleanliness, estate maintenance, lift performance and management of arrears in service & conservancy charges (S&CC). It is for the period  Oct 2009 to Mar 2010.

In this first assessment of town councils’ performance, Potong Pasir Town Council is judged to have performed worse than the other councils. It scored four “Level 5” in six categories. Level 5 is for the lowest score while Level 1 is for the highest.

Potong Pasir is run by Mr Chiam See Tong, secretary general of the opposition Singapore People’s Party.

Over at the other opposition-held ward of Hougang, helmed by Mr Low Thia Khiang, the results were slightly better. The town council scored two “Level 5” and one “Level 4”.

As for the People’s Action Party town councils, the lowest score attained was “Level 3” by several town councils in various categories.

The best performing town councils, according to the results, seem to be Tanjong Pagar Town Council, helmed by Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew and Ang Mo Kio-Yio Chu Kang Town Council, headed by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

The MND says the “TCMR results should not be simplistically compared across towns. The more appropriate use of the results is for monitoring of the performance of Towns over time.”

It also “encouraged [residents] to enter into discussions with their Town Councils on their desired level of upkeep and how to jointly achieve their objective while taking the cost of service delivery into consideration.”

Read also: Potong Pasir Town Council rebuts ST report (November 2009).

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You can view the TCMR report here.

Here’s a quick look at the results:


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74 Responses to “Potong Pasir TC judged to be worst in management”

  1. OnlineShmonline 10 June 2010

    I only wish we could review the actual data that’s been massaged into this pile of bull droppings.

    Reply
  2. alison 10 June 2010

    I live in Potong Pasir.

    Level 1 or 5 does not matter to me, as long as I have a reasonable comfortable roof over my head.

    Anyhow, I never ever again trust whatever survey results from the PAPaya, not with the recent spate of constant fiascos and the incompetent leaders still drawing $MILLIONS.

    What matters is my unwavering support for CST and hope for a truly democratic country one day.

    Reply
  3. MND have no better use for their manpower?

    Reply
  4. Lawrence 10 June 2010

    Arrears management is interesting. It means the opposition wards are kind to their residents and do not chase after S&CC during bad times.

    Reply
  5. TrueBlood Singaporean 10 June 2010

    It made no sense, tanjong pager has a lots of poor people as compare to hougang.

    Take a look for yourself when you visit Bukit Merah View.

    Reply
  6. busybody 10 June 2010

    I believe the report if it is done by an independent party chosen by the united nation.

    Level 5 for arrears simply means the town council takes pity on the burden of the people and do not wish to push them for money. Unlike PAP who will sue you to small claim tribunal if you are slack in paying your dues.

    As for maintenance level, the town council who are a little low on cash is natural to be a little slower.

    At the end of it all we love those who score level 5 than those who score level 1 because they are the truly the people TC.

    All this rubbish reporting is asking us not to vote for opposition party. As for me they have just put spur in my hide and I will display my rodeo show in the coming election. I will rammed through the gate and bring down the wall of PAP.

    Hope you folks can join me.

    Reply
  7. Watchman 10 June 2010

    really..? I never guess MND would stoop to soo low for political points. wow… so this pile of horseshit dished out by MND belongs to the junk.. do they really tink we are stupid..? too bad for them…

    Reply
  8. Sam Thomsa 10 June 2010

    The timing of this report means some thing is up coming? Election?

    Reply
  9. Paul Ananth 10 June 2010

    An outstanding report!

    Shows which town councils really care about their residents by allowing them to remain in arrears rather than simply losing billions and going after small time debtors.

    Well done PP and HG. Singaporeans know where to go when they are in economic difficulties

    Reply
  10. thehotairman 10 June 2010

    Do not read too much into it as it’s all timed to make some TCs look good and of course discredit PP and Hg. Now who is the minister in charge of MND? Ah, the “very marvellous” MBT, who lost to Mr CST in 1984……

    Reply
  11. wallace 10 June 2010

    The PAP and opposition could try swopping constituencies for a bit see if there’s any difference.

    And there probably will be seeing as how Mr Chiam and Mr Low aren’t entitled to the ocean-sized funding PAP MPs get.

    Honestly are we that obsessed with such superficial measures of life? Sure its nicer to walk through spic and span corridors and not have debatable odours running up your nostrils but I think there are more pressing concerns. It can be a reflection of the effort and efficiency of schemes in the respective estates by the MP but there are so many other factors to take into the equation as well and none of them are listed here. Just the observations of some already-biased checker who strolls through the walkways and browses through records.

    Now no one says the PAP ever does a bad job or has done a bad job with managing Singapore. But if you have to force it down the throats of the residents then aren’t your intentions questionable already?

    With regard to whether the study was done by an independent body, lets just say even our electoral office is under the PM’s office. You do the math there.

    Reply
  12. SC & CC Increase Coming 10 June 2010

    First, we are to believe town councils work hard for residents. I wish all of you would go visit your TC website and find out if any amendments, i.e. increase in fees, is on your TC website. after GE it is residents’ turn to work hard to pay the increase in SC& CC.

    Reply
  13. MNDWuLiao 10 June 2010

    No points for not losing money on dodgy investments? Or minus points for wasting money on MP’s posters, lighting for posters, etc?

    Reply
  14. MNDWuLiao,

    My sentiments exactly. What do we do about those town councils losing money in investments!

    Reply
  15. Tracy Tan 10 June 2010

    The PAP intends that this report will make PP and Hougang look bad.

    But it will backfire because it can also mean that PP and HG TCs are more compassionate and caring.

    Anyway, we cant trust any SG govt data or findings.

    Reply
  16. Mr. E 10 June 2010

    oh wow, marine parade is so high? Wonder why our lifts keep breaking down and the garbage and pollution issue keeps going up. I really ought to visit the neighbor’s block of flats.

    Reply
  17. the lift in toa payoh is very slow too.

    what’s the big deal?

    also, I wonder how estate maintenance is defined.

    I think rat problem should be considered.

    The rat problem in toa payoh and orchard is incredibly bad.

    Reply
  18. the results are so biased, it’s ridiculous. worst TC belong to opposition, best belong to LKY and LHL?! yeah, right

    Reply
  19. I used to live in AMK ave 10 area. There is lots of litter below my block. Even spotted rats running around especially in the area of block of 570s series.

    Reply
  20. iamapinnaclehowlianresident 10 June 2010

    indeed..poton pasir is terrible..
    onced i was in maxwell road market havin lunch aroun 2pm…no cleaners was in sight to clean all the leftover dishes/plates….
    and who run maxwell market town council?over to you leekuanyew…

    Reply
  21. singaporean 10 June 2010

    it seems like biased report can we know who the persons involved in assessing

    Reply
  22. FengJia 10 June 2010

    What’s missing from the Town Council Management Report (TCMR): PAP scored Level 5 in the following categories: Honesty, Integrity, Democracy, Caring For The People, Protecting Taxpayers’ Monies, and the list goes on and on and on and on and on.

    Reply
  23. Kan_cheong spider 10 June 2010

    aiyoyo… PP and Hougang, tsk tsk. So poor results. No wonder the residents there give up on their MPs. Unlike other towns, they got so high expectation and hope, abit not happy wanna threaten, hoot and set fire on their MPs.

    Reply
  24. Boxed-In 10 June 2010

    The “Towns” are so big. Comprising Big GRCs. Going around to “observe” (I quote from the Report “Average number of cleanliness observations per block”) is a monstrous task.
    Need to go on a slow moving motorcycle or a 2-man bicycle with a report card & put down the marks. I think I would like to take up this really fun job.
    Ang Mo Kio-Yio Chu Kang Level 1 Cleanliness ah ? Come & see lah…
    Seriously, everywhere is the same.
    All these cleaning contractors with their foreign legions are of the same standard & i.e. below standards… tan chiak tan chiak eh. Only clean areas where it can be seen.
    I treat the cleaner well. I give him cakes, clothes,etc and a big ang pau during the Chinese New Year. I give because this chappy is very hard working. Without fail he sweeps my HDB corridor everyday & wish me a loud Good Morning Sir ! Try it, treat them well.
    Tell me, your cleaner sweeps your corridor everyday or not ?
    This Sunday got No 1 Very Big Gun coming to my place for an opening ceremony of a new hall & some kind of family day. No need to guest lah, you got it…. few months ago all the void decks surrounding the activity/ceremony area or where the Big Gun will trot on was painted. Yesterday & today I saw more cleaning.
    I love it when he comes. My area gets spruced up.
    So get real lah, closed one eye & move on. If your place is really dirty, pick up the phone & shout at the TC. They will surely send the contractor to do a better job at your place BECAUSE you shouted & demand standards for the fee you paid to TC.
    Sorry for this long fun post…

    Reply
  25. Shake head 10 June 2010

    Sunglasses should be selling well. We need shades, the results are too glaring.

    Reply
  26. red_dot 10 June 2010

    The bottom line is still Singapore needs a two-party system to ensure a fair and square treatment for all citizens!

    Singaporeans have to decide for their future
    and exercise your right of choice!

    Reply
  27. Kan_cheong spider 10 June 2010

    sorry to rebutt you but hor, the cleanliness of these towns should be attributed to our MIW than the cleaners. without MIW, the cleaners would hv no chance to come here to work. more than that, without MIW, all the poor folks would not hv been forced to pick cardboards, used cans to make a living.

    Thanks to these poor folks, the towns under MIW are cleaner then the more well to do places like PP and Hougang who are uninterested in recycling. Thanks to MIW, these poor folks have a chance to be cheaper, better and faster to compete with karang guni from china and help these FT cleaners to make their town better.

    Thank you MIW for making singapore clean. Please continue to make it cleaner.

    Reply
  28. singaporean 10 June 2010

    So how come the report card did not grade the town councils on public funds management?

    For example if the town council invest and lost the public’s money in super high risk investments like mini-bonds?

    Reply
  29. Sengkang resident 10 June 2010

    Sengkang in Punggol-Pasir Ris TC clean? Beg to differ! Giving a 3 for maintenance is being too kind. Maybe they are not allowed to go above 3 for those TCs under PAP. We have got one of the laziest MP in Michael Palmer here. You only see him as GOH in gatherings, festivals organised by the CCCs etc. Other than that, he is a total flop!

    Reply
  30. Gmale 10 June 2010

    What about the MP’s badmouthing of his
    constituents, shouldn’t it be included
    as a factor?

    MPs who call people daft, lesser mortals,
    dummies, digits, idiots and threaten to
    dig spurs in their backsides, don’t they
    deserve a “5″ or maybe even a “10″?!?!?!

    Reply
  31. HaiGong 10 June 2010

    Min std is ok to me. What matter most to me is low cost not number 1.

    Reply
  32. Incred 10 June 2010

    The report does not mean a thing.

    It only shows which Town Council has the money to employ better contractors to do the cleaning and maintenance works.

    Noticed Potong Pasir and Hougang had the lowest rating for S&C arrears and collection? It’s probably because they don’t employ the strong-arm and bully tactics used by the PAP controlled Town Councils.

    Reply
  33. I am a resident at AMK GRC and let me tell you that the evaluator of the survey has not been to Blk 323A, a multi storey carpark. There is a 24 hr coffeshop beside and there is a lot of vomit in the weekend in the staircase. The cleaners do not sweep the staircase and washing is merely making the floor wet and the dirt appears once the water dries.
    The walls are smeared with bodily fluids or unknown substance and if you are unlucku enough there is human feaces and urine on any one of the staircase or even the landings. Level 1 cleaniless yeah right

    Reply
  34. Money Matters 10 June 2010

    PAP benchmark for Good is “How many people owed, money and how much is owed” – what does that say about this so-called “Management Report”.

    So we have all these loansharks running around singapore doing paint-work, means that the PAP Government is “Level 5″ also.

    Joke.

    Vote PAP OUT.

    Reply
  35. leesjuanpat 10 June 2010

    hahaha ! Best TCs are Tanjong Pagar GRC, Ang Mo Kio GRC and Marine Parade GRC under LKY, LHL and GCK. with Hougang and Potong Pasir the bottom two. What a joke!
    Why show it so obvious lah! So many cronies and running dogs being balls carriers.

    Reply
  36. Clean Pig 10 June 2010

    Maybe tomorrow the pigs will start to say that it is because they lost so much money that is why their estates are the cleanest.

    Reply
  37. Dead Poet 10 June 2010

    Well the government thinks that people are dumb enough to believe this report. As someone pointed out, what started as a call for transparency and accountability in the management of TC funds has transformed into another opposition bashing excercise. Walk around for yourself and see. Did he report indicate how much the TC are receiving in grants. The manpower cost of each TC or the ratio of cost to resident. Another pathetic attempt. Its like claiming that a Singaporean working for the Japanese during the occupation was not a traitor but a hero..joke

    Reply
  38. this survey is like who is good in collect arrears or keeping arrears low.

    pigs town sue people to collect monthly payments.

    Reply
  39. Human Being 10 June 2010

    Hmmm, the report should have another section, which MPs in TCs have lodged police reports, send the residents to IMH and have residents threaten their MPs. In that section PP and Hougang would score very low. Does that mean they are worse that the other TCs? I was working in the Tanjong Pagar area, the car park smell of piss, and the lifts are not well kept. The condition of the flats are far worse than most. You even have an old lady living in Tanjong Pagar keeping rice which is 2 weeks old in order not to waste food. Where is the assistance that Dr V. If Singaporeans are that dumb to fall for this report, than we deserve to be treated like 2nd class citizens.

    Reply
  40. Clement 10 June 2010

    There is no honour in defeating your competitors if the level playing field is unfair from the beginning.

    Well maybe sometimes people need to ‘feel good’.

    Reply
  41. tiredman 11 June 2010

    The result cannot be believed… It is bias in nature.

    Reply
  42. busybody 11 June 2010

    Maybe those who don’t pay the conservancy fees are PAP supporters. They intentionally do so to discredit the opposition parties. How evil?

    Reply
  43. Aljunied GRC 11 June 2010

    So obvious is a biased report.

    Reply
  44. Corrupted P@P 11 June 2010

    Election is definitely near. The media propaganda is out again to help boost their rating.

    Reply
  45. preston loon 11 June 2010

    Does the PAP really believe that by publishing this report would have an impact on the coming election results?Why not the ruling government publish which TCs have loss the most investments.

    Reply
  46. This is a report to support MBT’s desperate attempt to remain voted and collect millions doing nothing.

    Reply
  47. Isn’t Ministry of National Development headed by Mr Mah Bow Tan who is also the MP for Tampines TC? Wouldn’t there be a conflict of interest?

    I will only trust a report done by an independent 3rd party.

    Reply
  48. Atobe 11 June 2010

    Stupidty knows no limits.

    Intelligence takes a little effort with common sense.

    One needs to be circumspect with the purpose and intent of such a report – and the following has to be answered: WHO conducted it, WHAT was the purpose, WHEN was it done – simultaneously or different times for different wards, and HOW was it conducted ?

    Can Town Councils managing super-size larger constituencies be more efficient then the smaller constituencies as those managed by the two Alternative Parties ?

    It will not be any surprise if the PAP controlled Ministry provided extra services and resources to their own constituencies, while being extra tight fisted in the usual ways with the constituencies that voted for the Alternative Parties.

    Reply
  49. Level 1 arrears => OWE MONEY PAY MONEY OR GET OUT!!! I DUN F**K CARE IF YOU POOR OR JOBLESS!!! government loanshark.

    Level 2 arrears => Can’t pay, go to court

    Level 3 arrears => Can’t pay, warning letter

    Level 4 arrears => Can’t pay, come I lend you money to pay

    Level 5 arrears => Can’t pay, nevermind, I don’t collect from you.

    Reply
  50. individualism 11 June 2010

    I believe singaporeans are more intelligent now to ask themselves this assessment is coming from whose mouth.
    it looks like an attempt by one to subjugate another inorder to elevate oneself.

    Reply