Yaacob Ibrahim apologises for 'insensitive' Facebook comments about migrant community

A former cabinet minister has accumulated some flak over comments he made in a now-deleted Facebook post about migrant workers in a time when the spotlight has been shining on their less-than-ideal living conditions. 

Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, a People’s Action Party veteran and an MP for Jalan Besar, had pointed out on Sunday (April 5) that he no longer sees crowds gathered at the open spot of land next to Kallang MRT Station.

The space is known to be populated heavily every Sunday by foreign domestic workers and migrant labourers. Now, the area is empty due to heightened measures (and fears) in response to the deadly coronavirus outbreak. 

Netizens, however, found this portion of Dr Yaacob’s post problematic: 

“This has caused some inconvenience to my residents. We have developed a plan to tackle this challenge. But it takes a virus to empty the space.” 

In the post, commenters have accused him of being insensitive, tone-deaf and even xenophobic. 

Earlier today (April 7), the lawmaker responded to the criticism by editing the post, explaining that he was simply balancing the concerns of his residents and the needs of the migrant workers to socialise.

The post was eventually taken down, but not before screenshots of it were taken and shared on social media. 

[embed]https://www.facebook.com/qianxi.teng/posts/10105092266309292[/embed]

Dr Yaacob has since issued an apology in an interview with TODAY. 

“I apologise for that line, it was never intended in any way [to discriminate],” he said, explaining that he removed the post because he didn’t want to “create any further confusion” over his position on the matter. 

“My position has been how to find the right balance between those who use that space on Sunday and my residents, that’s all,” Dr Yaacob clarified with TODAY.

“We have never shooed them away… We have never asked them to leave but asked them, 'Please don’t litter the place and please lower your volume'.”

The concerns over migrant welfare have grown in the past few days in light of news that about 20,000 foreign workers have been quarantined in their dormitories as a result of Covid-19 cases there. Various migrant advocacy groups and community partners have pitched in to offer their assistance and raise funds via an initiative on Google Sheets. 

ilyas@asiaone.com