Person who filmed video of man boarding almost empty train and removing face mask slammed by netizens

Singapore – A member of the public received criticism from netizens for sharing a video of a man boarding an almost-empty train and removing his mask. There was no need to shame the man because no one was near him and he probably needed a breather, said the online community.

On Saturday (June 6), Facebook page All Singapore Stuff shared a video contributed by reader Angel, of a man taking off his mask in a train. It could be seen that there were no passengers directly in front of and around the man. “Eh bro, no crowd means can board train then take out mask, issit?” read the caption.

The man was spotted looking around him before proceeding to remove his mask. He also removed his cap and used it to fan himself a bit. Members from the online community quickly took his side and criticized the person who recorded the incident, giving many reasons why the man in the video shouldn’t be publicly shamed.

Many said to give the man a break. “He might be an essential worker after duty and feeling breathless, tired or not well,” said Mohan S Dhillon. He called for compassion during these trying times and “not jump on the bandwagon of stompers.”

Others shared that they too could not properly breathe when wearing a mask for long periods and would often remove the cover to get some air, given that no one was nearby. “The person who took this video certainly (got) nothing to do,” said Jazmin Capati who agreed that there was no need to post such recording.

DynaArie EnaMorado confirmed from her doctor who allegedly said it was ok to remove one’s mask for some air when there is no one around. The man’s actions shouldn’t be a problem, she added.

A few left it to common sense when it comes to wearing a mask. “People blindly follow instructions without thinking logically,” said Sherman Goh. He explained that the reason behind wearing a mask is to prevent the spread of one’s droplets to others. “If there’s no one in close proximity, who can he spread it to?”

Meanwhile, a handful of netizens noticed that the 2-minute recording began with the person already focused on the man boarding the train, as if on the lookout for such incidents or aware that he would remove his mask.

Deimuria Schneider hoped for a law to be passed soon against people who take photos or videos and post on social media without justifiable cause or with the intent to stir unnecessary trouble.

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