SINGAPORE: Minister for Law and Home Affairs K Shanmugam said on Thursday (Mar 27) that he will not be filing a police report over the behaviour of two sisters who disrupted his Meet-The-People (MPS) session.
He also urged everyone to move on from the incident at a doorstop interview during a visit to a temporary prayer site at the Northview Secondary School.
The two women had confronted Mr Shanmugam at an MPS outside the Chong Pang branch office two weeks ago. The minister then posted a seven-minute video of his conversation with them on his Facebook page on Mar 13.
The sisters had approached Mr Shanmugam to talk about the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA). However, the interaction turned confrontational and they shouted “coward” at the minister after he tried to end the conversation with them.
When asked about the video on Thursday, Mr Shanmugam said that what happened is potentially a criminal offence but he will not take action against the sisters.
“I haven’t filed a police report and I’m not filing a police report. From what I understand, the two sisters, amongst others, are under investigations for other offences,” he said.
“They have been under investigations previously and those investigations are continuing. But as to what happened at my MPS in Chong Pang … I’m not intending to file any police report.”
When asked for more details about the offences the sisters were under investigation for, Mr Shanmugam said he was aware they are for some offences that took place before the incident at his MPS.
“That has nothing to do with what happened at MPS … what they have done elsewhere, it’s not within my hands, the law has got to take its course,” he said.
CNA has sent questions to the police about the alleged offences by the two women in the video.
Mr Shanmugam also said he wants to “move on” from the incident and focus on building community by having engagements to “discuss issues, including difficult ones”.
“We can do it (in a) constructive way. If you look at Singapore, all our cultures, that’s the approach,” said Mr Shanmugam.
“That message is even stronger in this month of Ramadan … so let’s focus on building a stronger, better community together.”
Mr Shanmugam added that the sisters are both young and he hopes they learn from this.
“I’m like their parents’ generation, and really I hope that they will have the space to learn and grow from this incident,” he said.
A reporter then asked Mr Shanmugam about online suggestions that the incident was staged, apparently because his voice was captured very clearly on the video he shared on social media.
Mr Shanmugam said: “Staged means the whole thing was planned, which means I made the sisters behave in the way they did and I got everybody to act and shout ‘coward’ and do everything else.
“I think the sisters will be the last to agree that they are part of a programme by the PAP.”
He explained that his voice was clear because he had been miked up for a community event before the MPS. His volunteers had been filming him at the event, as well as greeting the residents at the MPS when he encountered the sisters, he said.
“Certainly it wasn’t planned … I think to suggest that would be an extreme conspiracy theory.”
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He also urged everyone to move on from the incident at a doorstop interview during a visit to a temporary prayer site at the Northview Secondary School.
The two women had confronted Mr Shanmugam at an MPS outside the Chong Pang branch office two weeks ago. The minister then posted a seven-minute video of his conversation with them on his Facebook page on Mar 13.
The sisters had approached Mr Shanmugam to talk about the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA). However, the interaction turned confrontational and they shouted “coward” at the minister after he tried to end the conversation with them.
When asked about the video on Thursday, Mr Shanmugam said that what happened is potentially a criminal offence but he will not take action against the sisters.
“I haven’t filed a police report and I’m not filing a police report. From what I understand, the two sisters, amongst others, are under investigations for other offences,” he said.
“They have been under investigations previously and those investigations are continuing. But as to what happened at my MPS in Chong Pang … I’m not intending to file any police report.”
When asked for more details about the offences the sisters were under investigation for, Mr Shanmugam said he was aware they are for some offences that took place before the incident at his MPS.
“That has nothing to do with what happened at MPS … what they have done elsewhere, it’s not within my hands, the law has got to take its course,” he said.
CNA has sent questions to the police about the alleged offences by the two women in the video.
Mr Shanmugam also said he wants to “move on” from the incident and focus on building community by having engagements to “discuss issues, including difficult ones”.
“We can do it (in a) constructive way. If you look at Singapore, all our cultures, that’s the approach,” said Mr Shanmugam.
“That message is even stronger in this month of Ramadan … so let’s focus on building a stronger, better community together.”
Mr Shanmugam added that the sisters are both young and he hopes they learn from this.
“I’m like their parents’ generation, and really I hope that they will have the space to learn and grow from this incident,” he said.
A reporter then asked Mr Shanmugam about online suggestions that the incident was staged, apparently because his voice was captured very clearly on the video he shared on social media.
Mr Shanmugam said: “Staged means the whole thing was planned, which means I made the sisters behave in the way they did and I got everybody to act and shout ‘coward’ and do everything else.
“I think the sisters will be the last to agree that they are part of a programme by the PAP.”
He explained that his voice was clear because he had been miked up for a community event before the MPS. His volunteers had been filming him at the event, as well as greeting the residents at the MPS when he encountered the sisters, he said.
“Certainly it wasn’t planned … I think to suggest that would be an extreme conspiracy theory.”
Continue reading...