ET gives 4 lucky numbers to PS to buy 4D
Update 7 Jan 2022: Netizens slam Edwin Tong for Pope visit , praise WP’s Pritam for restarting home visits
The background has changed since these two men were last pictured publicly trading barbs in recent hearings of the Committee of Privileges but some find it irresistible to compare them
Juxtaposing photos of cabinet minister Edwin Tong and Opposition leader Pritam Singh, netizens could not resist contrasting the images to criticise Mr Tong for visiting the Vatican and lauding Mr Singh for restarting visits and in-person Meet-the-People sessions (MPS). If the two men had planned it on purpose, the contrast could not have been greater.
One shot showed Pope Francis with Mr Tong in a formal suit and tie. The Minister for Culture, Community and Youth, and Second Minister for Law had led a diplomatic delegation to the Vatican to re-affirm bilateral ties between the two city-states.
In the other shot was Workers’ Party leader Pritam Singh in a workaday short-sleeved shirt, resuming visits to constituents’ homes. Mr Singh has also restarted his regular face-to-face MPS rounds.
Pritam Singh Leaves Edwin Tong Speechless
Videos from the Committee of Privileges Hearing of Workers’ Party chief Pritam Singh from Friday (Dec 10) were released over the weekend, and netizens have commented on the way he was questioned by Culture, Community, and Youth Minister Edwin Tong.
And while the Workers’ Party has been criticised for not immediately coming forward upon finding out that former MP Raeesah Khan had lied in a speech she made in Parliament on Aug 3, some netizens have also expressed disapproval with the way Mr Tong questioned Mr Singh.
Wake Up, Singapore December 13 at 11.17 PM
"oh ok"
Listen to the agonising silence from Edwin.
View more videos of Pritam in action at Terry Xu's FB and Pritam Singh Fan Bot on Twitter.
Wake Up, Singapore December 13 at 11.17 PM
View more videos of Pritam in action at Terry Xu's FB and Pritam Singh Fan Bot on Twitter.
Wake Up, Singapore December 13 at 11.17 PM
Pritam Singh pulled no punches. Edwin knows how to give but Pritam knows how to give back.
“Why don’t you do the same when trace together happened in late October, why didn’t the government just come out to tell the truth straight away, don’t wait for parliamentary question
… I’m not questioning it, but this is a decision the government made, and this is the call I made”
Wake Up, Singapore December 13 at 11.17 PM
"Well, I am Leader of the Opposition" 🔥
Pritam Singh held his ground so well against Edwin Tong's incessant badgering. He performed excellently throughout 9 hours of questioning.
View more videos of Pritam in action at Terry Xu's FB and Pritam Singh Fan Bot on Twitter.
Wake Up, Singapore December 13 at 11.17 PM
As seen in Muhamad Faisal Abdul Manap's hearing, the committee members are not keen on hearing the explanation by the witness but seek to elicit the answers that conform to the set narrative. A reasonable answer has been provided but apparently, ET was not happy with the answer and seemingly wanted to force out a confession from PS based on the line of questioning that was thrown against him.
Kudos to PS for enduring nine hours of such questioning of this intensity.”
Wake Up, Singapore December 13 at 11.17 PM
We are ready.
Embarrassing: Edwin Tong stutters whilst questioning Pritam Singh during COP hearing
Pritam Singh: "No I'm not giving anything away, I'm only giving the truth away."
Edwin Tong: "I... I... Er... We will be the judge of that..."
Pritam Singh : "I'm sure you will."
Pritam singh vs Edwin Tong is a masterclass in dealing with PAP's antics
One needs only to watch the full COP video to appreciate how Edwin Tong strained and failed to put words into Pritam’s mouth, and how ST has completely failed to report the evidence that Pritam gave during the COP.
One will also see how consistent Pritam’s evidence was even though Edwin Tong tried different tricks repeatedly to misrepresent what Pritam said by selectively quoting his words, and contorting his testimony. Pritam had to repeatedly remind Edwin Tong about what he actually said and that it was on the record.
Edwin Tong’s frustrations at his own failed attempts began to show very early in the video when he failed to corner Pritam. He had concocted a story and he tried to lead Pritam into that narrative step by step but Pritam foiled his attempt at every juncture. When Pritam asked Edwin Tong to check the evidence on record (the proceedings were transcribed on the fly), it was quite funny because when Edwin Tong read out Pritam’s testimony, one can see the dazed look on Edwin Tong’s face as he read to himself Pritam’s words which clearly contradicted the words he tried to put into Pritam’s mouth. Edwin Tong also got so lost with his own concocted fairytale that he started to fumble over the dates: 8 Oct when it should be 8 Aug; 3 Aug mixed up with 3 Oct. He was getting really hot under the collar while Pritam was steadfast in his answers.
How Did Edwin Tong and Pritam Singh Perform at the COP Hearing?
Apart from Edwin Tong, other committee members for this inquiry include its chairperson Tan Chuan-Jin, Ministers Grace Fu, Desmond Lee, MPs Zaqy Mohamad, Rahayu Mahzam, Don Wee, and the sole WP MP Dennis Tan. At the start of the entire preceding, while questioning Raeesah Khan, Low Pei Ying, and Yudhishthra Nathan, Edwin Tong’s line of questioning was incisive and respectful. Subsequently, however, some, such as visual artist Sonny Liew, felt that Tong was trying to press Singh to fit into a politically convenient narrative—his own—rather than to embark on the “fact-finding mission” Tong termed it to be.
Similarly, Singh also made some compelling arguments although there were assertions he put forth which raised more questions than answers. Others, I found illogical and went against what the WP usually espouses.
Netizens: Edwin Tong’s manner of questioning Pritam Singh reflects badly on himself
Videos from the Committee of Privileges Hearing of Workers’ Party chief Pritam Singh from Friday (Dec 10) were released over the weekend, and netizens have commented on the way he was questioned by Culture, Community, and Youth Minister Edwin Tong. And while the Workers’ Party has been criticised for not immediately coming forward upon finding out that former MP Raeesah Khan had lied in a speech she made in Parliament on Aug 3, some netizens have also expressed disapproval with the way Mr Tong questioned Mr Singh.
Mr Tong asked the WP leader questions concerning a number of topics ranging from the impact of Ms Khan’s falsehoods on the police, whether he had approved a statement she made, and why he did not direct the former MP to respond to the police. The exchanges between Messrs Tong and Singh grew tense at times within the nearly nine hours that the WP head was questioned. Mr Singh disagreed with a number of key assertions that Mr Tong was making.
In one part of the questioning, Mr Singh disagreed that allowing a lie to remain on record when one is aware that it is a lie possibly being a criminal offence. He said, “It is for Parliament to address… the Parliament Act, Section 5, I believe covers freedom of speech. Whatever a Member of Parliament says in Parliament is for Parliament to take action. It cannot be questioned in a Committee of Inquiry… or any other place outside of Parliament. So I disagree with that point.” Mr Tong then told him, “You appear to know your positions very well.” “Well, I am Leader of the Opposition,” Mr Singh answered.
'You're a good lawyer... I'm a good listener': 6 instances Pritam Singh, Edwin Tong clashed in committee hearing
Workers' Party chief Pritam Singh on Friday (Dec 10) testified before a committee investigating a lie made in Parliament by his former party member Raeesah Khan, in a nine-hour hearing that saw several testy exchanges between the Leader of the Opposition and Minister for Culture, Community and Youth and Second Minister for Law Edwin Tong.
Among other statements, Mr Singh denied directing Ms Khan to lie, and said he told her to take ownership and responsibility of the issue. Mr Singh also said WP leaders knew about the lie on Aug 8 but took no steps until Oct 3 to get her to correct her falsehood, and that he saw no need to tell others in the party or the public that they knew about the matter early on as he felt it was not important to do so. Footage released by the Committee of Privileges on Sunday (Dec 12) showed Mr Singh and Mr Tong - both lawyers - verbally sparring and things getting heated at various points over the chain of events around Ms Khan's untruth that led to her resignation from the party and as an MP for Sengkang GRC.
Mr Singh said more than a few times that he disagreed "vehemently" with positions put forth by Mr Tong, who in turn repeatedly told the opposition leader to not "play with words", "paraphrase" his questions or speak over him.
TR Emeritus Yesterday at 3:34 PM
TOC co-founder Andrew Loh commented:
"Oops. Edwin Tong got caught by Pritam for not having the facts! Oh dear...
'You don't have it!' Pritam said to him, as Edwin Tong desperately searches his computer."
The Straits Times December 13 at 11:00 PM
The 9-hour hearing saw many testy exchanges between the 2 lawyers. WP chief Pritam Singh was testifying before a committee investigating a lie made in Parliament by Ms Raeesah Khan.
Min Zheng Yesterday at 12:51 AM
The fiesty exchange between Pritam Singh and Edwin Tong is showing Pritam's mettle as a leader under pressure IMO. He is handling the inquisition by ET well. ET on the other hand is grasping at straws with his insinuatons and leading questions in trying to paint PS into a corner. And don't be beguiled by the seemingly cordial tone ET uses when he shoots questions at PS. He reminds me of a patronising boss who would speak calmly and even kindly when he wants to sabo an employee. So much hubris and such a bloody farce. No agenda claims ET? Ya right and the PAP is saintlier than saints.
Can Singapore’s opposition Workers’ Party ride out scandal of its lying lawmaker Raeesah Khan?
Saga surrounding Raeesah has not stopped with her resignation as an MP, but snowballed. Now it is threatening to drag down Workers’ Party leader Pritam Singh too
A snowballing controversy involving a lawmaker who resigned after lying in parliament is threatening the Singaporean opposition leader, Pritam Singh, less than 18 months after his party made historic electoral gains with the backing of the city state’s younger generation.
The saga initially seemed to only involve Raeesah Khan – a darling among Gen Z and millennial voters – but an ongoing parliamentary inquiry into the case has dragged Singh and other high-ranking leaders of the Workers’ Party (WP) into the picture.
In a nine-hour testimony last Friday before the parliamentary Committee of Privileges, Singh repeatedly denied suggestions that he acted improperly by failing to take Raeesah to task even though he and two other top party leaders knew within days that her August 3 speech about the police mishandling a sexual assault case contained falsehoods.
Committee of Privileges Hearing with Pritam Singh on 10 Dec 2021
Workers' Party (WP) chief and Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh last Friday (Dec 10) told the Committee of Privileges that he had not directed former MP Raeesah Khan to lie, but took no steps for nearly two months to get her to correct her false statement.
According to a special report released on Sunday (Dec 12), the third so far, Mr Singh told her to take ownership of the issue if it came up, and left it to her as it was her responsibility to do so.
Here is a timeline of key events, according to Mr Singh's testimony before the committee.
Pritam Singh Is Most Admired Politician, According To 3,800 S’poreans In This Poll
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has been revealed to be the 2nd-most admired man in Singapore, according to a recently released YouGov survey.
Given that in 1st place was ex-United States president Barack Obama, that might mean that PM Lee is our most admired local politician. However, it seems the leader of our Government faces strong competition from the Leader of the Opposition.
That’s because Mr Pritam Singh has come in tops in an informal MS News poll of about 3,800 people.
Special reports on Raeesah Khan saga
Former Sengkang GRC MP Raeesah Khan at a Committee of Privileges hearing on Dec 2, 2021. PHOTO: GOV.SG
Relevance, reasonable supposition, level of culpability, state of mind. These are terms which, to most Singaporeans, are incomprehensible legalese.
But the Committee of Privileges (COP) exchanges with Workers' Party (WP) vice-chairman Faisal Manap last Thursday (Dec 9) and WP chief Pritam Singh on Friday were precisely about what logical conclusions and next steps they should have drawn from Ms Raeesah Khan's lies in Parliament; the apportionment of responsibility to each of the leaders; their state of mind when deciding how to engage her; and what relevant information to divulge to their party members and the larger public.
Early on in Part A of the video recordings released on Sunday as part of the third special report on the COP's ongoing proceedings, Mr Singh was asked about the untruth that Ms Khan spoke in Parliament on Aug 3 in relation to the police.
