WP chief Pritam Singh fined $7,000 for each charge of lying to Committee of Privileges

[UPDATE 3.40pm]

Workers' Party chief Pritam Singh has been handed a fine of $7,000 for each charge, after he was found guilty of two charges lying to a parliamentary committee.

Principal District Judge Luke Tan imposed the maximum fine, saying: "The court must send a message on the importance of giving truthful information when under oath and this can be done by imposing the maximum fine especially in a case such as this." 

After the sentencing, a media statement posted on Singh's Facebook page said that his lawyers will be appealing his conviction and sentence.

"I have instructed my legal team to file a notice of appeal and to look into the written judgment in closer detail," the WP chief said.

[UPDATE 12.20pm]

Workers' Party chief Pritam Singh has been found guilty of lying to the Committee of Privileges (COP) over former WP MP Raeesah Khan's lie in Parliament.

He has been convicted of two charges of falsely testifying during the COP hearings in December 2021.

Arguing for the maximum fine of $7,000 on each charge for Singh, the prosecution pointed out that he is the Leader of the Opposition, the Workers' Party's secretary-general as well as a lawyer.

Deputy Chief Prosecutor Wong Woon Kwong said that Singh lied to the COP to "protect his own political capital by throwing Khan and his own political cadres under the bus".

Singh doubled down on his lie in court and showed no remorse, DCP Wong added.

The prosecution also said that Singh's actions did not warrant a jail term as no "appreciable harm" was caused.

On the other hand, Singh's lawyer Jumabhoy argued against the maximum fine, saying that each charge deserves no more than a fine of $4,000.

"Singh had no involvement in the original lie or the fact that Khan chose to tell the lie at the first place. Pitching it at the top of the bracket, we say is unnecessary," Jumabhoy said.

The parties will return to court for sentencing at 3.15pm.

Workers' Party (WP) chief Pritam Singh arrived at the State Courts at about 9.08am on Monday (Feb 17) to await the verdict of his trial on allegedly lying to a parliamentary committee.

The 48-year-old, who was wearing WP blue, was accompanied by his legal team including defence lawyers Andre Jumabhoy and Aristotle Eng.

He appeared to be in high spirits, and smiled at the media as he walked towards the court.

When one reporter remarked that he looked like he was in high spirits, Singh said: "You think so?"

Some members of the public had turned up earlier in the morning, one just before 6am, to queue for tickets to enter the courtroom. Only 43 tickets will be issued.

Bank admin staff Darren Tan told AsiaOne he collected his tickets at 8.15am.

Some WP Members of Parliament Gerald Giam, Jamus Lim and Dennis Tan were seen arriving at the State Courts just before 9am.

Singh faces two charges under Section 31(q) of the Parliament (Privileges, Immunities and Powers) Act which makes it an offence to lie in response to questions posed by Parliament or its committee.

For each charge, Singh faces a maximum fine of $7,000, a jail term of up to three years, or both.

This is with regard to his testimony over former WP Member of Parliament Raeesah Khan's lies in Parliament in August 2021.

Khan, in Parliament, brought up a sexual assault case where she accused the police of mishandling the incident. She later apologised and revealed that this was a lie.

In November 2021, a Committee of Privileges found that Singh was "untruthful in their evidence under oath" when he was called as a witness.

Singh had purportedly lied to the Committee about his meetings with Khan, where he claimed he had tried to convince the latter to clarify her untruths in Parliament.

His trial began on Oct 14, 2024 with Raeesah Khan taking the stand.

Former WP cadres Loh Pei Ying and Yudhishthra Nathan, as well as former WP chief Low Thia Khiang also took the stand within the 13 days of trial that adjourned on Nov 8.

Singh's case is believed to be Singapore's first prosecution under Section 31(q) of the Parliament (Privileges, Immunities and Powers) Act.

The Attorney-General’s Chambers previously said that the prosecution will seek a fine for each charge.

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