Mothership's press accreditation suspended until Aug 18 for breaking embargo during Budget
Mothership's logo. (Image: Mothership)
SINGAPORE: Local media outlet Mothership's press accreditation has been suspended for six months - until Aug 18 - after it broke an embargo on the details of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) increases during this year's Budget, said the Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI) on Friday (Mar 25).
On Feb 18, Mothership broke the embargo by publishing an infographic on its Facebook page with information on the staggered GST increases prior to their announcement.
MCI then suspended Mothership's press accreditation with immediate effect.
Responding to queries from the media, MCI noted that Mothership had subsequently submitted an appeal.
"Given the seriousness of the breach, which involved information that is highly market sensitive and prejudicial to national interest, MCI has reviewed the appeal and decided to suspend Mothership’s press accreditation for a total of six months, from Feb 18, 2022 to Aug 18, 2022,” said a ministry spokesperson.
The suspension of its accreditation means Mothership will not be able to attend briefings and press conferences held by government agencies during this period.
In February, Mothership managing editor Martino Tan described the breaking of the embargo as a "genuine mistake" made when the outlet prematurely published an infographic on its Facebook page.
He said then that the mistake was identified in under two minutes and the post was immediately deleted, with the staff involved issued a two-week suspension.
In a statement on Thursday, Mr Tan said the outlet accepted the temporary suspension of its press accreditation was "necessary given the nature of the egregious breach on Budget Day".
"We will use this period before the reinstatement to strengthen our internal processes and implement the necessary remedial actions," he said.
Mr Tan said the incident was an "important reminder to us of the standards required of a professional and credible media operation".
"Press accreditation is a serious and heavy responsibility, and our team will work hard to earn the right to this responsibility again come August," he said.
