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MP Louis Ng says he provided statement to police regarding sign in support of hawkers

Nee Soon MP Louis Ng holding up a sign in support of hawkers in June 2020. (PHOTO: Louis Ng/Facebook)
Nee Soon MP Louis Ng holding up a sign in support of hawkers in June 2020. (PHOTO: Louis Ng/Facebook)

SINGAPORE — Louis Ng, Member of Parliament for Nee Soon Group Representation Constituency (GRC), was asked by the police to give a statement in relation to holding up a sign in public support of hawkers.

In a statement posted on his Facebook on Wednesday (3 March), Ng said that he was at the Yishun Park Hawker Centre on a regular walkabout in June last year following the COVID-19 circuit breaker period.

"I was there to make sure our hawkers were doing okay. As we all know, they suffered badly during the circuit breaker," said Ng in his post.

"I also wanted to urge our residents to support our hawkers and held a sign indicating this and took photos together with the hawkers."

A photo taken of Ng holding a sign which read "support them" with a smiley face beside a female hawker was uploaded on his Facebook and picked up by socio-political website The Online Citizen in a 23 February article.

He said that he has since been asked by the Singapore Police Force to provide a statement on the matter and has done so.

"Separately, in January this year, I also held up a sign for the climate change video introducing the first-ever parliamentary motion on climate change. To clarify, that sign was an empty piece of cardboard. The words were superimposed into the video which I posted," he added.

Police told Yahoo News Singapore that they have been looking into "a possible offence of public assembly without permit" by Ng.

"We have already interviewed Mr Ng. Police investigations are ongoing," police added.

Taking part in a public assembly without a police permit is illegal and an offence under the Public Order Act.

In November last year, civil activist Jolovan Wham was handed two charges under the Public Order Act for holding a sign in support of Terry Xu and Daniel De Costa outside the State Courts, and for holding up a piece of cardboard with a smiley faced drawn on it at Toa Payoh.

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