Former Workers’ Party Cadre Testifies in Pritam Singh Trial

SINGAPORE – In a significant legal proceeding, former Workers’ Party (WP) cadre Loh Pei Ying testified against WP chief Pritam Singh on Thursday, October 17, 2024. The trial centers around Singh’s alleged involvement in the lying scandal of former Sengkang GRC MP Raeesah Khan. Singh, 48, faces charges over his purported misleading conduct before a parliamentary committee.

During the trial, Loh admitted to redacting a key text message that suggested maintaining Khan’s fabricated story about accompanying a sexual assault victim to a police station. She initially claimed her redaction was due to unrelated comments about another MP. However, she later conceded the true concern was that the message reflected poorly on fellow WP member Yudhishthra Nathan, who had supported the falsehood in discussions.

Singh’s lawyer, Andre Jumabhoy, interrogated Loh about her motives. Jumabhoy argued that Loh aimed to protect her group’s integrity, knowing the revelation would tarnish Nathan’s image. Loh confessed she feared the contents becoming public and potentially leading to backlash against Nathan.

Loh served as Khan’s secretarial assistant and offered her testimony as the prosecution’s second witness. The trial delves into how Singh and other WP leaders handled the aftermath of Khan’s false statement in Parliament on August 3, 2021, where she claimed witnessing police mistreatment of a sexual assault victim.

Central to the trial are events leading up to Singh’s decision not to rectify Khan’s statement promptly. Loh admitted she suggested augmenting Ms Khan’s narrative with other victim stories to support her accusations, eyeing a “grey area” to maintain the primary substance of Khan’s statement without repeating the falsehood.

Loh recalled a crucial meeting on October 12, 2021, at Singh’s residence, discussing the lie’s potential exposure. The group recognized that retaining Khan’s lie was impossible due to persistent inquiries by Law and Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam. Loh noted Singh conveyed having consulted former WP leader Low Thia Khiang, who emphasized the necessity of clarifying the lie in Parliament to mitigate fallout.

She also criticized WP’s internal resolution processes, characterizing the disciplinary panel addressing Khan’s conduct as “performatory”—a move she felt aimed more at placating public outrage than ensuring accountability.

Loh expressed disappointment over Khan’s pressured resignation, which she contended allowed the WP to shift responsibility away from its leadership, particularly from Singh, who she believed had ample opportunity to address the falsehood proactively.