PM Lee's And Singapore Institutions Social Media Accounts Are Flooded With Criticism From Abdul Somad's Supporters

Photo by Jisun Han on Unsplash

JAKARTA - Supporters of Ustaz Abdul Somad still do not accept their ulema being flatly rejected from entering Singapore. As a form of protest, social media accounts belonging to Singaporean officials and government agencies were attacked by Ustaz Somad's supporters.

Channel News Asia, Wednesday 18 May, reported that many social media accounts of political figures and Singapore government agencies were spammed by Ustaz Somad's supporters who were denied entry to Singapore on Monday 16 May. This was said by a spokesman for the Ministry of Communications and Information Singapore.

The news of the refusal to enter Singapore was conveyed by Abdul Somad through his YouTube channel, Hai Guys, on Tuesday, May 17. He said he was refused entry by the Singapore Immigration Officer through Tanah Merah Port on Monday, May 16.

"I left for Singapore on Monday afternoon from Batam on May 16, 2022, and arrived at Tanah Merah Port (Singapore, ed) at around 1.30 (noon) Indonesian time. In order to have a holiday, my friend happened to be near his house from Singapore," said Abdul Somad on his YouTube show.

UAS admitted that at that time the files were complete. However, he suffered a different fate from his entourage because he could not enter the country.

"All the files are complete. Travel cards, cards to come in and out are complete, nothing is lacking. When the immigration stamp arrived, he didn't have a stamp because he just scanned the passport, it was a thumbprint," he said.

A spokesperson for the Singapore Ministry of Communication and Information has warned of a cyberattack on the Singapore Government's social media accounts.

Who gets 'attacked'? Channel News Asia reported that the Instagram accounts of President Halimah Yacob, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean, and Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan were among them. So does Lee's Twitter account.

Instagram accounts of the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority and the Singapore Tourism Board were also spammed.

"Organizations are advised to take active steps to strengthen their cybersecurity posture, increase vigilance, and strengthen their online defenses to protect their organizations from possible cyberattacks, such as web tampering and distributed denial of service," the spokesperson added.

The following is a full explanation from MHA Singapore published on 17 May 2022:

1. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) confirmed that Indonesian ulama Abdul Somad Batubara (Somad) arrived at Singapore's Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal on May 16, 2022, from Batam with six traveling companions. Somad was interviewed, after which the group was denied entry to Singapore and placed on a ferry back to Batam the same day.

2. Somad is known for spreading extremist teachings and segregation, which is unacceptable in Singapore's multi-racial and multi-religious society. For example, Somad has preached that suicide bombings are legal in the context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and are considered "martyrdom" operations. He also made derogatory comments about members of other religious communities, such as Christians, by describing the Christian cross as the abode of "pagan jinn". In addition, Somad openly refers to non-Muslims as “kafir”.

3. Entry of visitors to Singapore is not automatic or entitlement. Each case is judged on its own merits. While Somad attempted to enter Singapore under the guise of a social visit, the Singapore Government took seriously anyone advocating violence and/or supporting extremist teachings and segregation. Somad and his traveling companions were denied entry to Singapore.