SINGAPORE: The Select Committee tasked to look into combating the problem of deliberate online falsehoods has received a total of 162 written submissions from the public, chairman of the committee Charles Chong said on Wednesday (Mar 7).
Mr Chong, who is also Deputy Speaker of Parliament, said that submissions were received from a "broad spectrum of media companies, experts and individuals".
The committee is reviewing the submissions and will release a statement after it meets on Mar 9, he said.
Parliament appointed a Select Committee in January to look at the problem of misinformation online, amid a rising threat of fake news worldwide. It invited the public to submit written representations on the issue.
Submissions closed at 4.30pm on Wednesday after being extended from an initial deadline of Feb 28, and selected members of the public will be invited to speak at public hearings, which are set to take place in the second half of March.
The hearings will be held from Mar 14 to 16, Mar 22 to 23 and Mar 27 to 29, though the committee will decide as the hearings progress whether all the dates will be used.
AdvertisementAdvertisementOral evidence presented by experts, industry stakeholders and members of the public will be considered during the hearings, which will be held at Parliament's public hearing room.
The Select Committee is chaired by Deputy Speaker Charles Chong and comprises Home Affairs and Law Minister K Shanmugam, Social and Family Development Minister Desmond Lee, Senior Minister of State for Communications and Information and Education Dr Janil Puthucheary, and MPs Rahayu Mahzam, Seah Kian Peng, Sun Xueling and Edwin Tong from the People's Action Party. The other members are Workers' Party MP Pritam Singh and Nominated Member of Parliament Chia Yong Yong.
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