The Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) applied for the cancellation of the Corrections Directions (CDs) against it that was issued by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM).
According to Dr Chee Soon Juan, the Secretary-General for SDP, the application was unsuccessul. No satisfactory response was provided by MOM apart from stating that SDP's application "does not provide sufficient grounds for the cancellation of the CDs".
Apparently, the response from MOM also did not address SDP's reasons for the statements that it posted.
Dr Chee called out Josephine Teo, MOM Minister, for her lack of leadership on the matter, hiding behind the Ministry and called for POFMA to be held to higher standards.
Replying that the “Minister has therefore decided to refuse your Application” is not an answer, it is a cop-out.
The PAP hurls accusations against its opponents but refuses to substantiate its arguments with official data when rebutted. This is hardly the kind of leadership Singaporeans should expect or deserve. It is an unfortunate but very real comment about the calibre of the PAP’s 4G leaders.
Using the law to allege the SDP as posting “false statements of fact” and then refusing to back-up its allegation with data when challenged is clear demonstration of how far Singapore’s political standards have deteriorated.
POFMA, like this Government, should be held to higher standards.
The MOM’s non-answer leaves the SDP no choice but to pursue the matter in court. We will keep readers updated on developments.
#SDPNOW #TheWayForward
The Ministry must step-up.
POFMA allows for the right of appeal. At the very least, should the appeal fail, as was the case with the SDP, then it is in the interest of the public to know and understand why the appeal was rejected.
We are talking about fake news and false statements of fact.
If there was an error in conveying a fact, then the public has the right to be educated on the matter. The Ministry has the data, the statistics, and the facts. Surely it can do better than in detailing the resasons why that SDP's appeal did not merit a cancellation of the CDs.
