An online post surfaced after Murali Pillai was confirmed to be People’s Action Party (PAP) candidate for Bukit Batok SMC yesterday (30 Jun).
Apparently, the post mentioned that Murali’s son has committed certain criminal offence and has already been jailed by the court.
The angry Murali hit out at the person who made the online post, saying that it is a “scurrilous attack” on his family.
Murali, a partner at Rajah & Tann law firm, did not want to reveal the details of his son’s crime except to say, “My son was a victim of a scandal. He also committed offences. The court has dealt with all these matters.”
“He himself has been dealt with and is serving sentence,” he added, confirming the jail sentence of his son.
In an online post, SDP candidate Dr Chee Soon Juan said that while he has not seen the post in question, he has watched Murali’s “anguished response to it”.
“I stand with Mr Murali on this and call on whoever who did this video to stop it and for others not to circulate it,” wrote Dr Chee.
“I may disagree with Mr Murali on his political views and we can have a healthy and professional debate on them. But our differences must not be allowed to degenerate into unseemly smears against the candidates and their families.”
Murali told reporters that he would not let “personal attacks” distract him from the issues that Bukit Batok residents care about. He said, “I am determined to continue helping Bukit Batok families to overcome the challenges that we collectively face in this present crisis.”
Murali also acknowledged that he is not a perfect father, but these issues should be separate from politics.
“Yes, I am not a perfect father. Yes, families have issues. But no, these things should not be brought into politics. I am terribly affected by this, but I will not be deterred. I will fight on,” he said.
Murali may not be a perfect father but certainly he doesn’t lack any rhetoric to “fight on” in the upcoming General Election.
