Today-July 27
The People’s Action Party (PAP) has never adopted a zero-tolerance approach towards personal conduct and extramarital affairs among its members, instead handling them on a case-by-case basis with compassion and sensitivity where necessary, said Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. This is different from the party’s zero-tolerance approach towards corruption and criminal wrongdoing, he said. Mr Wong was responding to a question on whether the PAP now has a zero-tolerance policy towards extramarital affairs during an interview with British broadcaster BBC News on Wednesday (July 26). This came after Speaker of Parliament Tan Chuan-Jin and Member of Parliament (MP) Cheng Li Hui resigned on July 17 after continuing with an affair despite being told not to do so. Fielding questions on the controversy, Mr Wong said that when it comes to extramarital affairs, “every case is different — we have to look at the circumstances of the case, the individuals concerned, and we have to also consider the parties involved, including many innocent parties”. He was also asked why it took years for Mr Tan and Ms Cheng’s affair to come to light even though party leaders had known about it in 2020. To this, Mr Wong said that the party does not police the private lives of its Members of Parliament. On why Mr Tan was allowed to continue performing his duty despite PM Lee’s knowledge of the affair, Mr Wong said that this case is different from corruption. “With corruption and criminal wrongdoing, we have zero tolerance. When it comes to conduct, you have to exercise judgement,” he said. “To be clear, we set high standards for propriety and personal conduct, but in dealing with such cases — which are cases of human frailties — we are also very cognizant of the impact that our actions have on innocent parties, including families, especially the spouses and their children.” Mr Tan and Ms Cheng are not the only MPs who have resigned over an affair. Read more at: https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/lawrence-wong-pap-never-zero-tolerance-affairs-2220666
