Pritam Singh, the Leader of the Opposition in Singapore and Secretary-General of the Workers’ Party (WP), faced two charges under the Parliament (Privileges, Immunities, and Powers) Act. These charges stem from his alleged involvement in the handling of former WP MP Raeesah Khan’s lie in Parliament.
First Charge: Singh is accused of lying to the COP during its investigation into Raeesah Khan’s false statement.
Second Charge: He is alleged to have engaged in conduct that was “less than candid” and “not truthful” in his interactions with the COP.
Deputy Principal District Judge Luke Tan agreed with both the prosecution and the defence that a jail term was not warranted in Singh’s case. However, he imposed the maximum fine of $7000 on each of Pritam’s charges.
If Pritam is disqualified, PAP will lose more votes
Under Singapore’s Constitution, a fine of $10k or more would disqualify an individual from serving as an MP. However what is not clear is whether the fines can be stacked.
If it can be stacked, they are just making it extra clear that the fine is politically motivated. That is definitely not a good look on PAP.
Either way, a $14k penalty is in my opinion excessive for what was a difference in judgment.
The case was already unfair to begin with.
The COP was dominated by members of the ruling party. They also seem to forget that there is no evidence that Singh benefited from lying, unlike cases involving corruption or personal gain.
This GE will be Singaporean’s time to show the PAP that we do not stand for such dirty politics.
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