Statement by Function 8 on the actions by the police against Roy Ngerng and Teo Soh Lung’s alleged violation of the Parliamentary Election Act during the recent Bukit Batok By-election.
Function 8 deplores the intimidation of Roy Ngerng and Teo Soh Lung and the unnecessary seizure of their mobile phones and computers. This follows their interviews with the police pertaining to an investigation into facebook postings on cooling off day on 6 May 2016 at the Police Cantonment Complex. The police have clearly abused their power of investigation even though both Roy and Soh Lung had never denied, and indeed confirmed at the interview, that they had commented on, and shared postings on Facebook which had been made by others.
Function 8 deeply regrets the actions of the police in this unnecessary seizure which is an invasion of privacy and an act of intimidation against Roy and Soh Lung. In our view, it is part of a chain of recent incidents that encroach upon work of civil society which contribute to the legitimate exercise of good citizenship.
We, at Function 8, condemns the use of governmental powers against sincere individual citizens and civil society groups that are striving to make our nation a more inclusive, and a more caring one, accountable for the welfare of our fellow human beings. This is truly an act of legal opportunism.
