A petition is quickly gaining traction to pressure media title Lianhe Zaobao to take disciplinary action against a senior reporter who allegedly harassed Jayley Woo, the girlfriend of the late actor Aloysius Pang.
Pang passed away on Wednesday after succumbing to injuries caused by an accident when a howitzer barrel hit him while he was serving military service in a New Zealand exercise.
The petition, titled “Disciplinary action for Zaobao reporter (who harassed Jayley Woo) & his editor” was addressed to Lianhe Zaobao by a change.org user named “Ethical SG Journalism” who accused the reporter of “straight up harassment”.
The journalist in the center of the whole saga, senior entertainment correspondent Hong Ming Hua, allegedly pestered Woo to give him quotes for an article, saying things like “You sure you are suited to be a celebrity with this mindset?” (Ouch.)
“Saying (such things) is emotional blackmail, pure and simple,” wrote the user. “It shows the absolute lack of empathy this reporter has – traits that reporters, of all people, should demonstrate when covering sensitive stories such as these.”
Despite starting the petition only on Friday, the petition has garnered more than 1,700 signatories as of press time.
Hong posted an apology on his Instagram page in Chinese in response to the allegations.
“While communicating with her, the process was too rushed and some things were left unsaid, and so it’s particularly easy to result in a misunderstanding”, he said, according to a translation by Mothership.
“I will personally apologize to her.”
Hong also asked for commenters not to go after his family or colleagues, and not to accuse him of things he did not do.
“I only take responsibility for the things that I did before,” he added.
The situation was called out by social media influencer (and legendary shit-stirrer) Xiaxue who accused the reporter of wanting the scoop and forgoing Woo’s emotions, according to a report by 8 Days.
Members of the public can pay their last respects to Pang from Saturday 12 pm to Sunday 12 pm at 82A Macpherson Lane. A military funeral will be accorded for Pang and he will be cremated at the Mandai Crematorium on Sunday, said the Ministry of Defence.
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