'I apologise for the lapse': Medication no excuse for nodding off in Parliament, says Speaker Seah Kian Peng

Speaker of Parliament Seah Kian Peng has apologised for "nodding off" during a Parliament sitting on Sept 9.

"This should not have happened, and I take full responsibility," he said in a Facebook post on Friday (Sept 18).

Seah had fallen asleep about four hours into the day's session, during the Second Reading of the Health Sciences Authority (Amendment) and Other Matters Bill.

In his Friday post, Seah said he felt slightly unwell and had medicines before parliamentary proceedings.

"But that does not excuse what happened. I should have called for a break earlier rather than continuing with proceedings. I normally do so after four to six hours and this incident took place after the four-hour mark," he wrote.

Seah stated that the incident has fallen short of standards expected of the office.

"I apologise for the lapse. I will learn from it and take steps to ensure it does not happen again," he said.

"I remain fully committed to serving Parliament and Singaporeans to the best of my ability."

lim.kewei@asiaone.com