Published on Nov 19, 2011
By Feng Zengkun
http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking...ry_735673.html
The MP in charge of Rochor Centre on Friday said she will try to seek higher compensation for those evicted to make way for the North-South Expressway.
Ms Denise Phua said this after a tense hour during which more than 200 residents aired their grievances at the launch of an exhibition of the new flats they are being offered in Kallang.
'I will speak to (the Housing Board) and see if it's possible to increase the compensation to the residents,' said Ms Phua, an MP for Moulmein-Kallang GRC.
'I understand that there are residents who are very angry at having to move... It's difficult but we have to accept the Government's decision.
var subrenderfile="/Subscription/Breaking+News/Singapore/Story/STIStory_735673.html"; 'My advice is for residents to gather the details and look at the package being offered to them.'
The Government is to acquire 567 flats in four blocks at Rochor Centre for the new road - the highest number of flats affected by a land development project to date. It will build 810 new units next to the Kallang River as replacement housing, to be ready in 2016.
Although older residents who showed up on Friday were mostly resigned to the move, most of the middle-aged ones said they were angry and did not think the new flats were fair compensation.
Secretary Mabel Woo, 40, who lives in a three-room flat with her husband, said: 'Right now we have shops and grocery stores right below our flats. There's even a temple nearby. This is a great convenience to the many residents here who are elderly, especially when it rains. In the new place they will have to walk farther.'
Others said the move disrupted their personal lives. Mr Arun Kumar, 47, a businessman who lives in a three-room flat with his family, said: 'I work at Sim Lim Tower and can walk to work from my flat now. Many of us will have to get up earlier and pay more in transport and to the ERP (Electronic Road Pricing) gantries.'
Almost all the 20 residents The Straits Times spoke to said they would move to Kallang, but only because they had little choice.
'At the very least, the HDB should have offered us several locations to choose from,' said sales executive Lim Siow Khee, 41, who bought a three-room flat at the centre two years ago.
Retiree Yang Chan Nan, 66, who has lived in a three-room unit there for 35 years, was worried about the Kallang flats' proximity to the Geylang red-light district, about 500m away.
One of the few residents optimistic about the move was Ms Joanna Lim, 65, a housewife who lives in a three-room flat with her grandson.
She intends to bid for a five-room unit in the Kallang block. 'We've been meaning to upgrade to a bigger flat for some time, so this guaranteed housing is a bonus for us,' she said.
The 21.5km expressway will link towns in the north to the city. Advance work will start from 2013, and major roadworks will begin from 2015. The project is expected to be finished by 2020.
Elsewhere, Minister for Transport Lui Tuck Yew met stakeholders of the Nanyang Pho Leng association on Monday to explain why they too, were being asked to make way for the expressway.
Mr Lui, whose ward in Moulmein-Kallang GRC includes the clan building, said the association asked whether it could move back to the site after construction on the new road is completed. 'I will speak to the relevant agencies to see if that's possible,' said Mr Lui.
Both Ms Phua and Mr Lui sought their constituents' understanding. 'I hope they understand that their sacrifice is for the greater good,' said Ms Phua.
[email protected]
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by DC33_2008
Yee ha! Did I tickle your funny bone?
