Member of Parliament for Holland-Bukit Timah GRC Edward Chia Bing Hui recalled meeting an air steward on a house visit in July 2020. The man in his thirties was technically unemployed because international travel came to a near standstill due to the pandemic. Mr Chia remembered the man looking tired. He later found out the man’s wife and child had been hospitalised with Covid-19 while the man cared for his other children.
“Back then, the man self-taught himself how to make traditional Malay kuehs from online recipes,” Mr Chia told Petir. “He then listed his kuehs on Bukit Panjang Sedap! I asked him if the Facebook page helped his business, he said it did. He launched his brand through the page and received orders.”
Bukit Panjang Sedap! is a Facebook page where home bakers and cooks from Bukit Panjang list products for sale within the neighbourhood. To date, the Facebook book group has a strong following of close to 500 home bakers and cooks, and 15,000 members.
Mr Chia noted from his interaction with residents, some could not hold full-time jobs due to individual circumstances. For example, some were caregivers who had to look after children or elderly parents.
He said, the situation of these residents was made worse during the Covid-19 lockdown. His team observed several Bukit Panjang residents selling homemade baked goods and cooked food to earn side income to sustain their livelihood.
After understanding the challenges that these home-based bakers and cooks faced, Mr Chia and his grassroots team promptly set up a Facebook page Bukit Pajang Sedap! to help publicise the residents’ home-based businesses. His team also arranged for the residents to complete a basic Food and Hygiene course to ensure food safety.
“The whole idea behind Bukit Panjang Sedap! was that we wanted to create a hyperlocal marketplace where residents support one another through homemade items, creating a community that supports each other. They also get to know one another through what Singaporeans love most — food,” Mr Chia said.
As a social entrepreneur, Mr Chia views his role as an MP as someone who supports his residents by igniting their creativity, and getting them to implement initiatives that could benefit the community.
He said: ” How can we ignite the entrepreneurial spirit in the community? Not just for money. It’s also a way of connecting the community together. And not just us driving the care initiatives, but how can we inspire the community to care for one another? So, Bukit Panjang Sedap! is a good example of my approach. I always believe in empowering individuals to do their best and do good for society.”
Another project that Mr Chia and his grassroots team have recently implemented – a pre-loved items market held at the Senja Food Centre over a weekend in mid-June – is also the brainchild of Zhenghua residents. Eight stalls sold pre-owned items ranging from boxing gloves to toys. Mr Chia said that residents initially proposed having the stalls at the void deck of a housing block, but his team decided the food centre would have more foot traffic, he added.
The market for pre-owned items achieves several objectives, Mr. Chia said. For those selling, the families get some money back while the items get a new lease of life. For those buying, they buy at a cheaper price helping to alleviate the higher cost of living, and help the recycling movement.
“From an environmental standpoint, recycling and upcycling happen at the hyperlocal level. It reduces the carbon footprint from recycling these goods, ” he said. “The two initiatives demonstrate the uniqueness of how we do things in Zhenghua, supporting community initiatives, and creating that marketplace, ecosystem for residents to thrive.”
