Staying grounded: Halimah and Mohamed Abdullah leaving their Yishun flat for NTUC Centre. — The Straits Times/Asia News Network
SINGAPORE: Halimah Yacob’s fondness for her Yishun home is well documented – and she will be Singapore’s first head of state to live in public housing while in office.
The 63-year-old, who was declared president-elect on Wednesday after a walkover, confirmed that she will not be moving out of her family home despite her elevated status.
“It is a very nice, comfortable place, and I have been living there for many years,” she told reporters.
Jumbo flat
Halimah and her husband, Mohamed Abdullah Alhabshee, bought the jumbo flat – comprising two adjacent five and four-room flats with the dividing wall between them knocked down – at Yishun Avenue 4 more than 20 years ago on the resale market as she wanted to live near her mother.
She had jumped at the chance to buy both units when she heard the two sisters living there wanted to sell.
According to Mohamed, the flat, which is in a 12-storey block built in 1987, is “as huge as a penthouse”.
It’s good enough for her
In a Straits Times interview shortly before she became Speaker of Parliament in 2013, Halimah was asked if she would still live in her HDB flat.
Her reply? “More than 80% of our population live in HDB flats and if it is good enough for them, it is good enough for me.”
Living in public housing, according to Halimah, has also given her a keen sense of the problems most Singaporeans face on a daily basis, such as when the lift breaks down or the estate is dirty.
With Yishun evolving into the mature and bustling estate it is today, her home is accessible to shops, the family doctor’s clinic is nearby, public transport is convenient and Khoo Teck Puat Hospital is a short distance away.
Ample exercise
Another advantage for Halimah to continue living in an HDB flat – it ensures she gets enough daily exercise, simply by walking up the six floors to her home after coming back from work.
If time permits, she will also use the stairs instead of the lift to walk down.
Connecting with neighbours
A humble person with no airs, Halimah is a familiar and popular figure among her block’s residents.
Lee Swee Seng, who runs the nearby provision shop, said Halimah and her family have been his loyal customers for the past 17 years.
She is also a “friendly face in the lift”, said newspaper vendor G. Dabamani, and would often ask her neighbours how they were doing.
“She is very friendly, humble and down to earth. She doesn’t behave like a VIP,” said long-time neighbour Henry Lim.
Lifetime of memories
To Halimah, the concept of home is not merely a piece of property to be flipped for profit, but a “priceless repository of a lifetime of memories”.
It is the only home for three of her five children, aged 26 to 36, and where several of them got married.
She also wanted to reinforce to them the importance of communal living and taking care of elders, with members of her family (including herself) doing their own chores.
Security stepped up
Given Halimah’s more important status, police have intensified security measures in the area, with experts saying that more officers and equipment – such as surveillance cameras – are likely to be deployed.
On the evening before Nomination Day, policemen in plain clothes were seen stationed at the foot of her block and patrolling the area.
Asked about security, Halimah said: “I will leave it to the security department. I think they know how to secure the area.” — The Straits Times/Asia News Network
Read more at http://www.thestar.com.my/news/regional/2017/09/15/halimah-to-stay-on-in-flat-six-things-to-know-about-the-home-of-singapores-presidentelect/#R6PysbmXMLZcewHm.99
