SINGAPORE – The issuance of a certificate of eligibility to presidential hopeful Tan Kin Lian does not amount to an endorsement of his social media posts, the Presidential Elections Committee (PEC) said on Monday.
In a statement, the PEC said it does not go through every applicant’s past social media posts before issuing or declining a certificate of eligibility.
The matter of Mr Tan’s social media posts came to the fore on Monday after a TikTok video compiling several of his posts went viral over the weekend, having been viewed more than 225,000 times as at Monday evening.
The former NTUC Income chief executive has occasionally made references to “pretty girls”, “pretty joggers” and “pretty slim girls” on his public Facebook page. There have been at least 18 such posts since 2022, and five since the start of 2023.
The PEC said that where comments made by an applicant on social media or in other media are specifically brought to its attention before a certificate of eligibility is issued or declined, the PEC would consider them in its assessment of the applicant’s eligibility.
After a certificate has been issued, the PEC is not legally entitled to revisit its earlier decision to confirm or revoke the certificate it had previously issued, it added.
Any additional facts regarding a candidate which come to public attention after the candidate’s certificate has been issued would be for the electorate’s consideration and assessment before casting their votes, said the committee.
“The PEC was not aware of Mr Tan’s social media posts before Mr Tan’s certificate of eligibility was issued,” it said. “Hence, the issuing of the certificate could not have amounted to an endorsement of Mr Tan’s social media posts by the PEC.”
Earlier on Monday, Mr Tan dismissed criticisms of his Facebook posts, saying only a small minority are uncomfortable with them.
Most visitors to his page found such posts “quite light (and) quite enjoyable”, Mr Tan told reporters during a walkabout at West Coast Market Square.
“There will be a few people who feel uncomfortable, but that is a very small minority,” he said in response to a question about these posts.
“(The) majority actually find that to be quite okay – quite fun.”
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6QbIjnS5jk[/embed]
Mr Tan said such posts are how he builds his online audience, and that he has other posts, such as those about his meals “that bring in 100,000 people, half a million people... simple posts”.
An earlier thread on online forum Reddit about Mr Tan’s more colourful posts attracted over 1,600 upvotes since it was started last Friday. That was the day the PEC issued certificates of eligibility to three candidates, including Mr Tan.
Some commenters on both the TikTok video and the Reddit thread asked how the PEC decided that Mr Tan qualifies to run in the election.
In the certificates of eligibility issued to Mr Tan and the other eligible candidates, the PEC said it is “satisfied that you are a man of integrity, good character and reputation”.
On Monday, the Association of Women for Action and Research (Aware) said it shared the public’s concerns that a candidate who has a history of objectifying women has been cleared to participate in the presidential election.
The gender equality group said that consistently posting about “pretty girls”, recording videos of women in public without their consent or commenting about their appearance reduces them solely to their appearances for personal entertainment, and suggests that it is acceptable to trivialise women.
“Yet here’s a more systemic worry: The granting of a certificate of eligibility to such an individual doesn’t only reflect on him but suggests a systemic endorsement,” it said in a Facebook post that linked a news article about the TikTok video.
This signifies that such behaviour is not just acceptable, but perhaps even agreeable enough for a potential president to have, said Aware. It urged the PEC to consider the broader implications of such endorsements in the future.
“Our president should embody the values, ethics and principles that reflect the nation we want to be,” it added.
This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.