Grassroots leaders are more watchful nowadays for tell-tale signs of anyone behaving suspiciously at events attended by their Members of Parliament, according to MPs at various community activities on Saturday.

Yio Chu Kang MP Seng Han Thong was attacked last Sunday by a disgruntled former cabbie who has since been charged with voluntarily causing grievous hurt.

Mr Seng suffered 15 per cent burns to his upper body when 70-year-old Ong Kah Chua set him on fire at a community event. He has undergone two skin graft operations and is now in a stable condition at the Singapore General Hospital.

Undeterred by the attack, Aljunied GRC MP Cynthia Phua participated in a special sale of food items for needy residents at Paya Lebar on Saturday. While she was busy spreading Lunar New Year cheer to residents, grassroots leaders were busy on the lookout for suspicious characters.

Liew Soo Wah, secretary, Paya Lebar CC Welfare Fund, said: “I will protect her. I don’t think about myself. This is what we are here for and I know what my duty is –that’s why I am staying close to her.”

For the MP herself, the closest she came to an untoward incident was a drunkard who became aggressive during a Meet-the-People session.

“We see all kinds of residents coming forward to ask for help. It is part of the normal cohort of residents; I don’t see any increasing trend,” she said.

Over at Monfort Junior School, Foreign Affairs Minister George Yeo, who is also an Aljunied GRC MP, presented Edusave awards to students and Channel NewsAsia observed that security for him was normal.

“I don’t feel unsafe at all. People are very friendly and in fact, during this economic downturn, it is even more important that we show a sense of closeness to one another,” he said.

MPs have constantly emphasised that they have to remain accessible to their residents at all times, especially when more residents are coming forward to seek help during difficult economic times.

Mr Yeo has urged residents and grassroots leaders to look out for those who require assistance but are hesitating to come forward to ask for help.

“During this crisis, a breadwinner may suddenly be in trouble and a whole family may be in trouble. But there is always a certain pride and certain need to carry on with life as per normal and people may not tell others they are in difficulty when things are much worse. It is good that relatives and friends who know do something to help,” he said.

And help has been forthcoming from generous people like Joseph Chen and his friends who have been providing free food for the elderly and needy on a daily basis.

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