Marsiling

Marsiling
Name transcription(s)
 • Chinese马西岭 (Simplified)
馬西嶺 (Traditional)
Mǎxīlǐng (Pinyin)
Má-se-léng (Hokkien POJ)
 • MalayMarsiling
 • Tamilமார்சிலிங்
Mārciliṅ (Transliteration)
Woodlands Town Park East, looking north towards Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats in Marsiling
Woodlands Town Park East, looking north towards Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats in Marsiling
Marsiling is located in Singapore
Marsiling
Marsiling
Location of Marsiling within Singapore
Coordinates: 1°25′57.14″N 103°46′26.65″E / 1.4325389°N 103.7740694°E / 1.4325389; 103.7740694
CountrySingapore
Government
 • Ruling partiesPeople's Action Party

Marsiling is a suburb of Woodlands, Singapore, extends from the north of Woodlands Square to the Woodlands Checkpoint, bordering Malaysia. It presents the older living patterns of Singapore; it is a quieter and much denser estate, often offering a reasonable and larger alternative to other housing options, and houses a large number of elderly and heavy-duty industries.

History

In the late 1990s, a plan was introduced by the Government of Singapore to upgrade existing Housing and Development Board (HDB) apartment blocks by providing refurbished elevators serving every storey of each block, an additional room at the rear of each flat, and other modernising features. This led to a surge in housing prices. The community of foreigners living in Marsiling has also been increasing.

Etymology

"Marsiling" is derived from Maxi (马西) village, Lim's hometown in Chaozhou, Guangdong province, China.

Politics

In 2015, Marsiling was represented via Marsiling–Yew Tee Group Representation Constituency (GRC) with Alex Yam, Ong Teng Koon, Halimah Yacob and Lawrence Wong as their Members of Parliament. Halimah was the MP for the Marsiling division of the GRC.

On 7 August 2017, Halimah resigned the parliament and a member of the PAP in order to contest in the presidential election in the same year. The next day, Zaqy Mohamad, incumbent MP for Chua Chu Kang GRC, was appointed as the grassroots advisor for Halimah's Marsiling division. Halimah had been the sole minority MP for Marsiling–Yew Tee GRC prior to her resignation. When queried by Pritam Singh, Workers' Party (WP) MP for Aljunied GRC, on said status of Halimah, the government maintained that it was legal to forgo by-elections in GRCs.

During the 2020 general election, Zaqy became a PAP candidate for the GRC. The PAP team defeated the SDP team with 63.18% of the vote and was elected as the MPs. Zaqy was assigned to the Marsiling division.

During the 2025 general election, the unchanged PAP team was re-elected with 73.48% of the vote against the SDP, a swing in their favour of over 10% and the best PAP performance in the GRC since its creation. Zaqy remained assigned to the Marsiling division.

Notes

  1. ↑ An individual appointed for "grassroots engagement and outreach" in a GRC division or single-member constituency (SMC) who, according to the People's Association (PA), has to be aligned with the "Government of the day"; in practice, they are a member of the PAP. They do not need to be the elected MP for the area.
  2. ↑ Every team in a GRC is legally required to contain at least one minority (i.e. non-Chinese) candidate, either Malay or Indian/other (other being not Chinese, Malay or Indian). The mandatory minority category in a GRC is determined by the President. The number of GRCs requiring Malay candidates at a general election must be three-fifths of the total number of GRCs, or, if that is fractional, the next highest whole number.

References

  1. ↑ Roy Choudhury, Amit. "PAP retains 3 strongholds with larger margins". Business Times. Archived from the original on 16 September 2015. Retrieved 26 November 2015.
  2. ↑ Naidu Ratnala Thulaja; Nor-Afidah Abd Rahman; Jeremy, Goh. "Marsiling Road". Singapore Infopedia. Archived from the original on 3 April 2025. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
  3. ↑ "PM Lee accepts Halimah Yacob's resignation from the PAP". CNA. 7 August 2017. Archived from the original on 7 August 2017. Retrieved 7 August 2017.
  4. ↑ "Grassroots Advisers". www.pa.gov.sg. Archived from the original on 8 May 2025. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  5. ↑ "Grassroots leader Lee Hong Chuang unveiled as PAP's Hougang SMC candidate". Channel NewsAsia. Archived from the original on 20 November 2017. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  6. ↑ Chong, Zi Liang (22 May 2016). "Masagos: PAP team remains focused on delivering services to Aljunied residents". The Straits Times. Archived from the original on 29 June 2016. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  7. ↑ Nur Asyiqin Mohamad Salleh (9 August 2017). "Zaqy to take over Marsiling grassroots adviser role". The Straits Times. Archived from the original on 24 August 2018. Retrieved 10 August 2017.
  8. 1 2 Nur Asyiqin Mohamad Salleh (7 February 2017). "No by-election if minority MP leaves GRC, says Chun Sing". The Straits Times. Archived from the original on 22 July 2017. Retrieved 22 July 2017.
  9. ↑ Parliamentary Elections Act, ss. 8A(1)(b) and (3) Archived 14 July 2020 at the Wayback Machine.
  10. ↑ "GE2025: PM Wong's PAP team retains Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC with 73.46% of the votes". The Straits Times. 4 May 2025. ISSN 0585-3923. Archived from the original on 13 May 2025. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  11. ↑ "Singapore GE2020: Lawrence Wong continues to head PAP's Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC team, new face Hany Soh replaces Ong Teng Koon". The Straits Times. 28 June 2020. ISSN 0585-3923. Archived from the original on 24 February 2025. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  12. ↑ "GE2025: PM Wong's PAP team retains Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC with 73.46% of the votes". The Straits Times. 4 May 2025. ISSN 0585-3923. Archived from the original on 13 May 2025. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  13. ↑ "ELD | 2025 Parliamentary General Election Results". www.eld.gov.sg. Archived from the original on 5 July 2025. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  14. ↑ Ang, Angelica (4 May 2025). "GE2025: PM Wong and team greet residents in Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC after election victory". The Straits Times. ISSN 0585-3923. Archived from the original on 12 May 2025. Retrieved 9 May 2025.