Women accost Shanmugam during Nee Soon Meet-The-People session, accuse him of lying

At a recent Meet-The-People session (MPS) in Nee Soon, two women accosted Law and Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam, asking to discuss the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA).

The minister posted a video of what transpired on Facebook on Thursday (13 March) night, describing it as “deliberate rowdyism, rudeness”.

Women told that Meet-The-People session is for residents, accuse Shanmugam of lying

Mr Shanmugam, who is an MP for Nee Soon GRC, said the two sisters came to see him on Wednesday (12 March) night, asking to talk about POFMA.

At the time, he was greeting residents waiting for the MPS.

They were not his residents, with one of them saying they were from Punggol.

When he said MPS was for residents, he was accused of lying because other MPs had seen non-residents.

The Branch, which runs the MPS, can decide that it will only see residents, though “the MP can exercise some discretion in seeing non-residents”, he explained.

Women make gestures at camera while Shanmugam is talking to them

While Mr Shanmugam was talking to them, the women noticed that a female volunteer was recording them.

They then gestured towards the camera.

One of them even made a vulgar gesture with her finger.

The minister noted that they were being recorded, but they asked the volunteer to delete the video as it was taken without their consent.

He said his volunteers would follow him and take videos and photos, adding that the location was a public place.

Women shout at minister, calling him a ‘coward’

Mr Shanmugam then proceeded to leave as he was busy and had to join Malay community leaders to launch a Hari Raya light-up.

But the women, who were joined by a man, then shouted after him, calling him a “coward”.

This prompted the minister to return to tell them off for their behaviour, saying they were disrupting the MPS.

He pointed out that residents had come for the MPS as they had real issues, adding:

They can’t, as non-residents, come to MPS and insist that their political discussion take priority over the needs of the waiting residents.

As for the recording, he said people are entitled to record them in a p...