Candidates often walk the grounds during their election campaign, in hopes of getting to know residents they wish to serve.
Oftentimes, they hear heartfelt and unfiltered stories from their constituents.
On 7 Jul, the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) shared a video of Bryan Lim interacting with an elderly woman called Madam Tan on their Facebook page.
Mr Lim is running for Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC and was on his walkabout when he met the 74-year-old resident.
When approached by Mr Lim, Madam Tan poured her troubles out to him.
She shared that she works 4 hours as a dishwasher, earning just $32 a day. After deduction for her Central Provident Fund (CPF), she is left with a measly sum of cash on hand.
On top of that, her body is deteriorating with age. Madam Tan’s knees are gradually getting weaker, and she has pre-existing medical conditions in her stomach.
As Madam Tan shared her story, she was choking back her tears.
The video elaborated that Madam Tan had previously applied for social welfare to ease her financial burden but was rejected. She was denied on the grounds that her 50-year-old son had an income of about $3,000 a month.
However, Madam Tan related that she didn’t want to “be a burden” to him.
When she tried seeking help, authorities told her that her son could submit a written appeal. Unfortunately, he couldn’t do it as he wasn’t proficient in English.
The video initially shows Mr Lim comforting Madam Tan as she shared her story.
However, as she continued to share her struggles, he broke down. He tried to brush his tears away as he listened on.
Mr Lim’s encounter with Madam Tan was perhaps, a timely encouragement for him amidst a gruelling campaign period.
These moments of vulnerability shared between politicians and constituents illustrate the importance of meeting on common ground.
Even surrounded by the hubbub of a polarising election, we are reminded of what matters in such an instance — the experience of true empathy between 2 individuals.
We wish Mr Lim all the best in his campaign.
Featured image adapted from YouTube.
Those who break the rules on group size can be fined S$150 each.
A netizen also questioned the need to body shame mothers, who sacrificed their waistlines to…
The young cast will go through familiar stressful childhood experiences like collecting exam results.
Fans took to the concert promoter’s comment section to voice their displeasure.
The most expensive resale flat in April was a S$1.438 million 5-room flat in Toa…
Maybe there's hope yet for the iconic newsstand.