WP veteran was not aware leaders knew of Khan's lie since Aug 2021

Former Workers' Party (WP) chief Low Thia Khiang revealed in court that it was in August 2023 when he found out WP's leaders had known about Ms Raeesah Khan's untruth since Aug 8, 2021.

- Wong Pei Ting Correspondent and Wong Shiying

Asked how he reacted to this belated realisation, the 68-year-old party veteran told the court on Oct 23 that he wondered why the party leaders – his successor Pritam Singh, WP chair Sylvia Lim, and vice-chair Faisal Manap – had taken so long to reveal the matter.

Mr Low was testifying at the trial of Singh, who is contesting two charges over allegedly lying to a parliamentary committee that he had, on Aug 8 and Oct 3, 2021, wanted Ms Khan to clarify her untruth in Parliament.

Ms Khan is the former Sengkang GRC MP who told Parliament on Aug 3, 2021, about how she had accompanied a sexual assault victim to a police station, where the victim was treated insensitively.

She repeated the claim before the House on Oct 4 the same year, before admitting to her lie on Nov 1, 2021.

Mr Low, who remains a member of WP's central executive committee, told the court he met Singh and Ms Lim at his house on Oct 11, 2021, where they broke the news to him that Ms Khan had lied in Parliament.

He recounted that Ms Lim said she was considering holding a press conference for Ms Khan to apologise, and that they planned to expel her from the party.

Mr Low said he told them that just holding a press conference or issuing a statement would not work.

"Because Raeesah Khan lied in Parliament, the correct forum is Parliament, and she should apologise and clarify in Parliament," he said of his advice.

The prosecution followed up by asking if Mr Low had asked Ms Lim who else had known about Ms Khan's lie at that time.

Mr Low said he asked if the Government knew, and Ms Lim's response then was that the Government did not know and that it was not easy for it to know, as there are many police stations in Singapore.