With the repeal of Section 377A, a law that isn’t enforced, we can now looking forward to the repeal of another rule that isn’t enforced: the rule of not allowing cats are pets in HDB flats.
Because the authorities have finally heard the cats.
S’pore Government Finally Considering Allowing Cats in HDB Flats
Lest you’re not aware, HDB has a rule: you cannot keep cats as pets in HDB flats.
According to HDB, cats “are generally difficult to contain within the flat. When allowed to roam indiscriminately, they tend to shed fur and defecate or urinate in public areas, and also make caterwauling sounds, which can inconvenience your neighbours.”
A blue cat has once said that all the reasons HDB give don’t make sense, which you can watch here:
His theory is that HDB actually means “Housing Dog Board”, but let’s leave bigotry out of this article.
Blue Cat: Then you tell me lah why private property can? Simi sai right?
Yesterday (3 September), Louis Ng, MP for Nee Soon GRC and a long-time activist who has been pushing for HDB to repeal the cat ban rule, shared this Facebook post:
Yes, finally: the authorities are looking to reconsider the HDB cat ban rule.
During the launch of the public consultation to improve the welfare and management of the cat population at the Pets’ Day Out event at East Coast Park yesterday, Dr Chang Siow Foong, group director of Animal & Veterinary Service (AVS), said that the goal was to implement measures aimed at rehoming cats and improving the traceability of pet cats.
And yes, of course we’re talking about rehoming them in HDB flats, since most of us live in HDB flats.
But it’s not going to be a decision made within seconds; according to Dr Chang, “Once we are able to achieve a balance of both animal and public welfare, then we can start exploring whether cats can be allowed in HDB flats.”
As this is a public consultation, it means your views could decide the fate of Lan Mao, Socky, Blacky and many other community cats. You can share your views through this link.
And because Lan Mao, Socky, Blacky and many other community cats are worried that you might anyhowly do the survey, here’s what our blue cat says about the ban (on a serious note, the script is really written by a cat owner who has adopted a community cat):
In the meantime, for us to live a world filled with cute little kittens, please share this article with your friends, and remember to remind them to watch the video first before doing the survey.
We, the cats of Goody Feed, look forward to living in HDB flats soon.
Featured Image: Winston Tjia / Unsplash