Singapore — Former Workers’ Party MP Raeesah Khan has stuck to her story that it was the party leadership who advised her to keep to the lie that she first told in Parliament on Aug 3.
Video footage of her second time testifying before the Committee of Privileges (COP) was released on Wednesday night. In the footage shown, she again insists that party chief Pritam Singh told her to “take the information to the grave”.
This was what Ms Khan had stated when she first testified before the COP, according to a special report that the committee had released on Dec 3.
This part of her initial testimony has been denied by WP secretary-general Pritam Singh, party chair Sylvia Lim, and vice-chairman Faisal Manap.
When the three party leaders testified to the COP in the days that followed, they all said that they never directed her to maintain her falsehood about accompanying a sexual assault survivor to a police station, where she also alleged that officers made inappropriate remarks to the woman.
She said again in her second testimony, “And the discussion that followed was that we would not pursue the matter further. And, like in my message, Mr Singh used the words ‘take it to the grave’.”
Ms Khan was asked by Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong, “Are you very clear about that? Is that your recollection?”
She answered, “Yes, I’m very clear… It is not a phrase that I would usually use. So it did not come from me.”
Furthermore, Ms Khan said, it was “extremely out of line” for WP leaders to portray her as mentally unstable in relation to the lie she told. She also denied other statements made by the WP leaders.
However, many netizens commenting on Ms Khan’s fresh testimonies have expressed disbelief over her version of what transpired.
Others wondered why public resources were still being spent on the matter since Ms Khan has already admitted uttering those falsehoods.
It appears that as the committee hearings drag on, public sentiment may be turning increasingly against Ms Khan.
There are indications that popular opinion may also be getting impatient with the committee hearings.
Mr Tong has also come under fire from netizens.
Many indicate that they think Ms Khan has lost credibility.
/TISG
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Pritam Singh says message to Raeesah Khan ‘proves’ he wanted her to come clean