“I annoyed Minister Ong with puns” — Video of Mr Ong being interviewed by host with lots of puns gets over 180,000 views

It’s not every day one hears a “You are very corny, leh,” from Singapore Minister for Health Ong Ye Kung. However, in a video made by an online local guide to Singapore, TheSmartLocal.com, and the community page of Sembawang GRC, a young host was seen “annoying” Mr Ong with different puns for five minutes straight.

“Right now, we are at Bukit Canberra. It’s going to be a chill day,” said the host. “Mr Ong is going to tour me around this new place, and I just hope that things turn out well. (It’s) my first time hosting a Minister.”

The producer’s voice was then heard in the background saying, “To celebrate your first time hosting a Minister, you have to annoy him with puns.”

Mr Ong then introduced himself as the Minster of Health as well as a Member of Parliament for Sembawang GRC. “Today is a special day. It’s the opening of Bukit Canberra, something that residents have been waiting for a long time,” he said.

Mr Ong and the host then went on a tour around the integrated hub. Upon their entry into the Butterfly Garden, Mr Ong said, “No butterflies yet, I think,” to which the host replied, “‘Cos the Ya Kun never open, is it? The butter not flying?”

When the two came by what would be a library in the future, the host continued with his pun mission “It’s a library right? And (it’s going to be a) bit tall right? A lot of…stories involved?”

Mr Ong responded calmly, saying “Yeah, I suppose so.”

When the two got to the Hawker Centre, the host made another play on words, saying, “I guess you really like to keep things under wraps.”

Mr Ong then replied saying “Not under wraps…it’s no secret that this will be a hawker centre, right? So it’s quite popular.” He then talked a bit about the centre. “I think it’s (44) stalls. 600 over hawkers have applied for the stalls, so it’s a major selection process. This is quite nice… I like the fact that the hawker centre is surrounded by so much greenery… I hope this will open hopefully by the end of the year.”

While the two walked, the host asked another question, continuing with his puns. “Is a building when it’s finished called a building? Or is it still building as a building?” he asked.

“Eh… it’s both a noun and a verb.”

At the end of the video, Mr Ong invited residents and non-residents alike to visit Bukit Canberra.