Minister Moves From Bukit Timah To Upper Bukit Timah To Catch A Break From Colleagues

fter a lengthy and difficult process, Minister Khaw Ye Keat has decided to move his family from Bukit Timah to Upper Bukit Timah.

The reason for his abrupt departure?

“I am tired of hanging out with my colleagues all the time,” he told Rojak.

“Every time I go out, I bump into a cabinet member, a permanent secretary, or their spouse.”

For a self-confessed introvert like him, this has been nothing short of “a nightmare”.

“When my cat went missing last year, half the cabinet came to help put up ‘missing’ posters. It made my weekend feel like GE2022,” he complained.

“In the evenings, I can’t jog 400m without running into someone on the same ministerial committee. And then I’m forced to make small talk about parliamentary proceedings or whether I’m going for Monopoly Night at Swee Keat’s House.”

Since the move, Minister Khaw’s work-life balance and mental health have improved greatly.

Although there was a painful adjustment period at first, his family soon found a warm welcome from Upper Bukit Timah’s community of expats, CEOs, and lower-level civil servants. Getting away from work has proved much easier now that most people are too afraid to bring up the subject.

“Was it worth it? Absolutely,” he said, “My commute is longer, but at least I don’t have to see Chan Chun Sing running past me in his stupid OCS singlet every day.”