Tag Archives: Judiciary

The Court's judgment that Section 377A is "unenforceable" is a partial achievement for the LGBT community. But the fact that it remains show that gay men are still seen as criminals - that is unacceptable.

The recent saga on the acquittal of a maid, Parti Liyani, has sent shockwaves throughout the Nation on the severe state of our Justice system which is in need of urgent reforms. We have always pride ourselves, as MP Jamus Lim puts it, on efficiency and not compassion or the quest for truth. Hence, the situation we are facing now is dire and fast slipping into a scenario similar to Najib Razak’s Malaysia. I wish these issues had surfaced before the elections! Is it too late now, only the PSP and WP MPs will know?

What politicians fail to or do not wish to understand is the ramifications this will have on maintaining trust in State Institutions. The Courts and police exist for the sole purpose of keeping us safe and apprehending criminals and syndicates, not civil activists, bloggers or other politicians.

Singapore activist Jolovan Wham has expressed gratitude towards Lee Hsien Yang for offering $20,000. Wham is appealing against the High Court which found him guilty of scandalising the judiciary. He previously insinuated that Malaysia's judges were more independent than Singapore's. What will LHL have to say to this now that his brother is helping an activist he is so against? How will this feud unfold?

In claims and counter claims similar to the one that saw PM Lee and his siblings engage each party in their Oxley Road dispute, AGC had said that they offered to drop all charges in Li Shengwu apologised and withdraw his statements, but Li Shengwu had countered that the AGC had misunderstood his post, which he since ammended but did not take down.

Li Shengwu has responded to the AGC after it said it will look into his FB post for contempt of court. In a recent post, Li said the AGC had sent him a threatening letter without bothering to clarify with him what he meant. He explained that his post was not intended to attack the Singapore judiciary and has since amended it.

Opposition politician Jeannette Chong-Aruldoss thinks it will be interesting to see what the AGC will do to Li Shengwu for being critical of the court. "If the AGC does not take LSW to take him to task for his statement, then we know that if it is OK for LSW to say "the Singapore government is very litigious and has a pliant court system", it is OK for us to say that too".

Senior minister of State for Health and Communications and Information, Mr Chee Hong Tat, has slammed Mr Li Shengwu, the son of Lee Hsien Yang and the nephew of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who had made remarks in a "Friends Only" Facebook post in which he criticized the judiciary system in Singapore for being unfair.

PMO has announced that Mr Hri Kumar, former PAP MP, will be appointed Deputy Attorney-General with effect from March 2017. I was asked by a local paper whether I had any concerns about partisanship, given that Mr Kumar was such a strong critic of AHPETC, our WP-run Town Council.

The AGC’s discretionary prosecutorial decisions should be given greater scrutiny and questioning. Whatever it is, a government which applies the law inconsistently, and seemingly in a bias fashion, will create distrust in the legal and judicial system ultimately. Amos Yee should never have been charged at all. The charges against him are tenuous and ridiculous.