Woman who failed O-level English twice tries to become pre-school principal, jailed for forgery

SINGAPORE - She took her O-level examinations twice as a teenager, but failed to obtain a passing grade for her English Language paper on both occasions.

Angela Zhong Anqi, 43, got a D7 grade for the subject both times after taking the exams in 1996 and 1997.

Despite this, she applied to be the principal of Al-Amin Pre-school (Tampines) Kindergarten and submitted documents that included a fake O-level certificate.

On Feb 13, 2019, Al-Amin submitted an online application to the Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA) to register her as a centre principal.

Zhong was caught after the agency conducted checks in 2019 and discovered that four of her documents could not be verified.

An ECDA manager alerted the police on June 7, 2019.

On Thursday, Zhong pleaded guilty to two forgery charges and was sentenced to two weeks’ jail.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Wong Shiau Yin said the ECDA serves as the regulatory and developmental agency for the early childhood education sector in Singapore.

It is an autonomous agency jointly overseen by the Ministry of Education (MOE) and the Ministry of Social and Family Development.

To qualify as a pre-school principal, applicants must have a document known as a Level 2 Letter of Notification of Categories of Teachers (LON).

To qualify for the Level 2 certification, one must have a Diploma in Early Childhood Care and Education – Teaching, as well as at least five O-level credits, including for English Language, the prosecutor said.

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Sometime between August 2018 and July 2019, Zhong obtained a copy of an LON online.

DPP Wong said: “The accused scanned a copy of the LON and used the Paint application on her laptop to amend (it) by inserting her name and amending the date on the document.

“The accused printed the forged document, which she later submitted to Al-Amin.”

The fake LON dated May 30, 2008 was purportedly issued by MOE to Pat’s Schoolhouse.

The prosecutor told the court: “Investigations revealed that Pat’s Schoolhouse does not have any employment records (of) the accused.

“ECDA also confirmed that the LON would be issued to kindergartens and not childcare centres such as Pat’s Schoolhouse.”

Zhong also submitted a fake O-level certificate to Al-Amin.

However, she could not recall if she had amended her original O-level certificate or if she had obtained a copy of the document online and doctored it.

For each count of forgery, an offender can be jailed for up to four years and fined.

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.