COME RAIN or shine, your neighbourhood PAP MP — and neighbourhood PAP activists — will be there for you. Meet-the-People Sessions (MPS) take place every week all across Singapore in PAP SMCs and GRCs, where we act and advocate for residents facing life’s challenges.
MPS is a long and proud PAP tradition. Learn about its beginnings in this September / October 1984 article.
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Sept / Oct 1984
IN NOVEMBER, the Party celebrates its 40th anniversary. When reflecting on what the PAP has done over the last four decades, one achievement would definitely be the Meet-the-People sessions (MPS).
MPS, formerly known as People’s Session, was introduced in December 1956 as an avenue where members and the public could bring their problems to the Party for advice and assistance.
Realising that the policies of the Labour Front Coalition Government were not improving the living conditions of the people, the Party leadership decided to establish the People’s Session so that the people could bring to light their social and economic problems. And in doing so, the PAP could seek redress for the people.
In the first year, MPS was conducted at seven branches. At each session, two PAP City councillors and a lawyer would be on hand to help.
After winning the May 1959 General Elections, the MPS was instituted in every branch and has since become a weekly affair.
Unlike present-day MPs who conduct their MPS in air-conditioned offices, many of the first-generation MPs had to meet their constituents in less pleasant surroundings.
When the Barisan Socialis was formed in 1961, the Party not only lost 35 Branches but also many members, including 13 Members of the Legislative Assembly. Though many activities were scaled down, the MPS were still conducted. In constituencies that were lost, representations were heard in make-shift offices.
While many conducted their MPS on five-foot ways, Mr Chua Sian Chin, former MP for MacPherson, who was assigned by the Party HQ to look after Jalan Kayu constituency, conducted his MPS in a rickety shelter next to chicken coops and pig-sties.
Over the last 40 years, whatever the circumstances, the Party has never shirked its responsibilities to the people or disregarded their interests. This is exemplified by the ubiquitous MPS.
Every weekday, there will be PAP MPs and activists, spread out all over Singapore, offering a listening ear and penning representations for their constituents. MPS has and will always be an avenue where constituents can have easy access to their MP.
