‘Which black and white you want?’: Queenstown resident gets monochrome form to vote on HDB block colours
A Queenstown resident was stumped after receiving a black-and-white feedback form asking residents to choose a colour scheme for their HDB block, prompting her to ask: “Which black and white you want?”
TikTok user @mai_chiato showed the form in a video posted on Aug 7.
“They asked us to choose which black and white you want,” she says, zooming in on each of the three options, which appear identical in colour.
“Omg why feel like exam? What if I choose wrong colour?” the resident asks in the caption.
Colour scheme shown in online form
The form also includes a QR code directing residents to the Tanjong Pagar Town Council’s online feedback form for blocks 165 to 171 Stirling Road.
Scheme 1 shows the blocks painted in a light cyan colour scheme, while scheme 2 features shades of periwinkle. The third colour scheme combines grey and light blue.
In the online form, the town council explains that the repainting is part of the Repairs & Redecoration (R&R) Programme for the precinct.
Colour scheme mock-ups are also displayed at void decks nearest to HDB lift lobbies alongside a polling box, the form added, and voting was closed on April 26.
In the comments section, one netizen suggested that she look for a sample of the colour schemes at void decks, while others joked that she should “paint (her) own colour on the paper and drop it back”.
Monochrome forms meant for door-to-door engagement: Town council
In response to Stomp’s queries, a spokesperson from Tanjong Pagar Town Council said that the visits for the colour scheme polling exercise involved Blocks 165, 166, and 167 Stirling Road.
The proposed colour schemes were displayed in full colour at void deck lift lobbies since March, the spokesperson explained, and coloured polling forms were distributed during the initial stages of the exercise.
As the response rate remained low, a team from the town council conducted another round of door-to-door visits on Aug 7 to personally engage residents and encourage them to cast their votes.
“For this latest round, the forms were printed in black and white as they were intended to facilitate the collection of residents’ votes during the door-to-door engagement, rather than to serve as the primary reference for the colour schemes,” the representative said.
“However, we acknowledge that leaving the black-and-white forms at units where residents were not home could have caused confusion, and this was an oversight on our part.”
The representative noted that such feedback will be taken into account for future polling exercises, thanking residents who shared their views and encouraging others to submit their preferred choice.
Stomp has reached out to mai_chiato for more information.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated with a statement from Tanjong Pagar Town Council.
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