MP Denise Phua denies racist allegations by saying she has many “foreign cleaner” friends

Oh dear, it looks like Member of Parliament (MP) Denise Phua might have made a grave error in articulation when she made a highly controversial speech in Parliament on Wednesday. 

The MP for Jalan Besar GRC — a constituency covering a part of Little India — made folks more than a little displeased when she made a couple of suggestions to ensure against a repeat of the 2013 riot in the district. 

“It was obvious that the pre-riot crowds have returned to Little India,” she noted, relating to a recent visit to Little India. “Congregations of such high density are walking time-bombs and public disorder incidents waiting to happen.” 

Yes, she made it seem like the many transient workers — who work tirelessly in Singapore’s endless construction projects — residing in the area are “walking time-bombs”. 

Phua then puts forth a couple of suggestions:

• Form a multi-agency Task Force to manage security risks of congestion
• Ring-fencing communal residential areas, clearly demarcating which areas can’t be used by the transient workers
• Build more recreation centres outside Little India
• Engage foreign workers regularly

Fencing off immigrants? A group regularly policing the activities and freedom of immigrants? Very #Trump2016 we must say. 

Naturally, the backlash came swift, and it came hard. 

Her retort to the whole controversy? She throws down the Friend Argument — the thought that she can’t be prejudiced if she has friends of that demographic, like saying “I’m not racist, I have black friends…”

Well, at least she’s since acknowledged that she shouldn’t have used the phrase “walking time-bombs” in an apologetic post on her Facebook page.