Netizens question why POFMA directive was not issued to original source of ‘Singapore variant’ falsehood, but instead to social media platforms

General correction directions under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA) Office have been issued to Facebook, Twitter and SPH Magazines over falsehoods about an “unknown variant of COVID-19 originated in Singapore”.

In a statement on Thursday (20 May), the Ministry of Health (MOH) said it is aware of a false statement circulating online by multiple media outlets and social media platforms, which implies that “a new, previously unknown variant of COVID-19 originated in Singapore and/or risks spreading to India from Singapore”.

MOH noted that Health Minister Ong Ye Kung has instructed the POFMA Office to issue general correction directions to Facebook, Twitter, and SPH Magazines.

“Facebook, Twitter and SPH Magazines are required to carry the Correction Notice to all end-users in Singapore who use Facebook, Twitter and HardwareZone.com,” it said.

The Singapore-based internet portal HardwareZone forum is operated by Hardware Zone, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Singapore Press Holdings (SPH).

MOH also clarified that “there is no new Singapore variant of COVID-19” and “neither is there evidence of any COVID-19 variant that is ‘extremely dangerous for kids’”.

“The strain that is prevalent in many of the COVID-19 cases detected in Singapore in recent weeks is the B.1.617.2 variant, which originated from India.

“The existence and spread of the B.1.617.2 variant within India predates the detection of the variant in Singapore, and this has been publicly known and reported by various media sources from as early as 5 May 2021,” it added.

MOH has previously refuted claims made by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who posted on Twitter that a new COVID-19 variant was detected in Singapore and claimed that the variant is “extremely dangerous for children”.

Mr Kejriwal’s claims were reported in articles published by major Indian publications like Hindustan Times and NDTV.

“There is no truth whatsoever in the assertions found within the reports. There is no ‘Singapore variant’,” a spokesman from MOH said on Tuesday (18 May).

He continued, “The strain that is prevalent in many of the COVID-19 cases in recent weeks is the B16172 variant, which originated in India. Phylogenetic testing has shown this B16172 variant to be associated with several clusters in Singapore.”

However, this has led many netizens to question why a POFMA directive was not issued to the original source of the falsehood, and instead, it was issued to social media platforms that merely sharing the news.

Penning under the comment section of TODAY’s, Mothership’s, and ST’s Facebook posts, they pointed out that the POFMA order should be issued to Mr Kejriwal instead, considering that the “Singapore variant” falsehood came from him in the first place.

One Facebook user wrote: “As Delhi minister is an officer of the India Government, why no POFMA notice was issued to India Embassy requesting their concerned officer in office to correct his post?”Given that social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Hardware Zone may not be able to monitor all the posts being shared by users at all times, some netizens asked why these platforms were subject to the POFMA orders.Others described issuing a POFMA directive to local media and social media platforms as a form of bullying locals.