Seah Kian Peng apologises for nodding off during 11-hour parliamentary sitting: ‘I should have called for a break’
Speaker of Parliament Seah Kian Peng has apologised after he “nodded off” during a Parliament sitting on Sept 9.
About five hours into the 11-hour sitting, Workers’ Party MP Dennis Tan addressed the Health Sciences Authority (Amendment) Bill and called for enhanced food security efforts to reduce food waste.
Footage of the session, which was streamed on the Ministry of Digital Development and Information’s (MDDI) YouTube channel, showed Seah with his head bowed after Tan’s speech ended.
A parliamentary staff member approaches him, before Seah calls on the next MP, Yip Hon Weng, to speak.
Clips of the session later circulated on social media, with one Reddit post garnering hundreds of upvotes.
Apologises for incident
In a Facebook post on Sept 18, Seah, who has served as Speaker for the past three years, apologised for the incident.
“I am sorry that during the parliamentary sitting on Wednesday, 9 September, I nodded off while chairing proceedings,” the MP for Braddell Heights division wrote, saying that he takes “full responsibility” for the incident.
Seah explained that he was feeling unwell and had taken medication that day, though he said this “does not excuse what happened”.
“I should have called for a break earlier rather than continuing with proceedings. I normally do so after 4 to 6 hours, and this incident took place after the 4-hour mark,” he wrote.
The incident “fell short” of the standards he had upheld through the past three years in office, he said, adding that he will take steps to ensure it does not happen again.
Seah was elected Speaker in August 2023, following the resignation of his predecessor Tan Chuan Jin over an extramarital affair with fellow People’s Action Party MP Cheng Li Hui.
The Speaker presides over parliamentary sittings, ensuring that proceedings follow Parliament’s rules and maintaining order during debates.
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