WP chief Pritam Singh to appeal against conviction, sentence on Nov 4

SINGAPORE — On Nov 4, Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh is set to appeal against the conviction and sentence meted out to him in February for lying to a parliamentary committee.

The Workers' Party (WP) chief was fined a total of $14,000 on Feb 17, when he was found guilty of giving false testimonies to the Committee of Privileges (COP), which was looking into a lie told by then WP MP Raeesah Khan.

He pleaded not guilty during the 13-day trial and announced to reporters outside the State Courts his intention to appeal against the decision after he received the maximum fine of $7,000 for each charge.

Singh was charged under the Parliament (Privileges, Immunities and Powers) Act in March 2024, more than two years after the COP's report said he had not been truthful in his testimony while under oath.

The committee had been looking into Khan, who in August 2021 lied about accompanying a sexual assault victim to a police station, and in October repeated the false claim before the House.

She eventually apologised to Parliament on Nov 1, 2021, confessing that her rape victim anecdote was false. Singh was among the WP leaders called in by the committee.

Singh is the first sitting opposition MP to be convicted of a criminal charge in almost 40 years. His appeal on Nov 4 will be heard by Justice Steven Chong at the Supreme Court.

In his judgment in February, Deputy Principal District Judge Luke Tan ruled that Singh wilfully lied to the COP about how he dealt with the untruth, with evidence showing that Singh "never wanted Khan to clarify (her) lie" and had "direct and intimate involvement" in nudging Khan to continue to lie.

There were several key flashpoints during the high-profile trial, with charged cross-examinations and pithy catchphrases, which drew much public interest.

Singh and Khan took the witness stand, along with former WP cadres, Khan's former assistants Loh Pei Ying and Yudhishthra Nathan, and former party chief Low Thia Khiang.

Singh's lawyers — Andre Jumabhoy and Aristotle Eng — sought to paint Khan as a habitual liar during her cross-examination on Oct 15.

The prosecution, including then Deputy Attorney-General Ang Cheng Hock, argued that Singh tried to cover up his involvement in Khan's lie to Parliament. Ang was appointed a judge of the High Court in May and a justice of the Court of Appeal in October.

The prosecution sought the maximum fine of $7,000 for Singh on each charge, while the defence asked for $4,000 per charge.

In the judgment on Feb 17, which lasted more than two hours, Judge Tan said he agreed with the prosecution that the court must "send a message on the importance of giving truthful information when under oath" and that imposing the maximum fine was necessary, particularly since Singh "never recanted the lie" even after claiming trial.

Questions swirled around Singh's political future after the trial concluded.

Asked by reporters after the verdict whether his conviction might force him to consider stepping down, Singh replied: "Well, I think the need of the hour is for me to step up, not step down."

The authorities also confirmed then that the sentence imposed did not reach the threshold to disqualify him as an MP or from standing in the election.

At the general election in May, Singh successfully retained his parliamentary seat in Aljunied GRC. He led the five-member team to victory with 59.68 per cent of the vote share.

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This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.