The sad thing about Pritam Singh’s court case, is how much of it was self-inflicted.
All Pritam needed to do was to instruct Raeesah directly to “Tell the truth in Parliament immediately.”
Instead he kept dodging and double-speaking. By saying to her “it’s your call” and “I will not judge you”, he failed to give her clear, direct instructions, putting himself in this position that he is now facing. And The Lie lingered on for over 4 months.
If he had said at the start “Raeesah, tell the truth immediately”, all he would be guilty of, is poor judgment in choosing a bad MP.
Instead, questions are now being asked about his honesty and integrity. At the very worst, if he did instruct Raeesah to lie, then his position as Leader of the Opposition is untenable, because he would have inflicted serious damage on the reputation of the Opposition.
After all, if an LO tells a lie on such a small issue, what about great matters affecting Singapore? Can this person be trusted to lead Singapore? This is a question that must be asked, because the LO is also a potential Prime Minister of Singapore.
It is a bitter pill to swallow, but lessons can be learned from the previous political scandal.
The Iswaran’s case is far more serious, and the political fallout is much greater than a simple lie. But Parliament was informed immediately, and the CPIB was allowed to investigate freely from the beginning.
It was a massive blow, and an embarrassment for the government, but it would have hurt them even more if they had covered up the case.
In fact, it is Loh Pei Ying, a 10-year long Workers Party member, who said it best.
“It pains me greatly. But to me, beyond anything else, it’s important to be truthful to my country.”
There is real meaning and real cost behind these words, and a real lesson in honesty. Too bad her leader didn’t follow it.
