SINGAPORE: Leader of the Opposition and WP head Mr Pritam Singh did not appear personally at a pre-trial conference in the State Courts on Wednesday morning (Apr 17) but was represented by his newly-appointed lawyers, Mr Andre Darius Jumabhoy and Mr Aristotle Emmanuel Eng Zhen Yang.
Mr Jumabhoy worked for the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) for five years before being appointed Deputy Senior State Counsel in 2014. He is currently the Managing Director at Andre Jumabhoy LLC.
The Singapore Courts website said on April 15 that Mr Jumabhoy and his colleague Mr Eng would be representing Mr Singh.
The two lawyers attended the pre-trial conference, which is an administrative hearing to prepare the prosecution and the accused for trial in Mr Singh’s case. Another pre-trial conference has been set for May 31.
Mr Jumabhoy’s law firm website describes him as “a dedicated trial lawyer with considerable experience in complex criminal and civil disputes.
Mr Jumabhoy has expertise in white-collar crime, having acted for clients, both corporates and individuals, charged with insider trading, bribery, high-value frauds, money laundering, and breach of directors’ duties.”
He attended Trent College and then later obtained his Master of Arts in History and Politics at the University of Glasgow.
Afterwards, he took a Bar Vocational Course in Law at the Inns of Court School of Law before obtaining his Bachelor of Laws at King’s College London.
Mr Jumabhoy practiced law in London for several years before returning to Singapore to join the AGC as a Deputy Public Prosecutor.
The case against Mr Singh
On March 19, Mr Singh pleaded not guilty to two counts of lying to a parliamentary committee in connection to the case of former WP MP Raeesah Khan, who stepped down from the party and from Parliament on Nov 31, 2021.
Ms Khan resigned after having admitted to having lied more than once in Parliament about an incident of assault. The scandal, however, drew the WP leadership into it, and an investigation from a Committee of Privileges (COP) ensued.
Read also: Breaking: Pritam Singh pleads not guilty to lying charge in Raeesah Khan scandal, claims trial
The COP recommended that Ms Khan be fined S$35,000 for telling falsehoods in Parliament on Aug 3 and Oct 4, 2021.
It concluded that the WP leaders lied about the complaint against Ms Khan and found that she had acted under the direction of the party leadership.
It is also recommended that Mr Singh and WP vice chair Faisal Manap be referred to the public prosecutor regarding Mr Singh’s conduct before the committee and Mr Faisal’s possible contempt for Parliament for his refusal to answer “relevant” questions.
The Attorney-General’s Chambers and the police said last month that Mr Manap would not be charged.
He was given, and subsequently acknowledged, an advisory so that he could familiarize himself with the conduct expected of an MP under the Parliament Act and desist from action that may be in breach of it.
Party chair Sylvia Lim, who had been called as a witness for the COP, has not been charged either. /TISG