The Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) reported today that a person who vandalised a couple of banners of the opposition party’s candidate at the last election was let off with a police warning.
SDP made a police report when they discovered their candidate, Jaslyn Go’s banners had been cut.
Five months after the report was lodged, the police have replied to them saying, “after careful considerations of the facts and circumstances of the cases and in consultation with the Attorney-General’s Chambers, it has been decided that a warning be administered to the accused in lieu of prosecution.”
The People’s Action Party posters were also defaced by vandals during the last General Election. The police at that time said that three persons were being questioned regarding the act of vandalism.
Election posters of both PAP and opposition candidates were defaced in the run up to the 2011 General Election as well. The police then apprehended three vandals responsible for defacing the election posters. The culprits were fined between S$200 and S$400 each.
In another case, the Court ruled that police warnings had no legal effect on the recipients of such warnings, and so was non-binding.