TikTok user issued another POFMA order, this time over claims about public housing policies
This is the third time user dr.ishhaq.jay has received a correction direction for his TikTok posts.
A screengrab of a TikTok post discussing public housing policies by user dr.ishhaq.jay.
SINGAPORE: A man who had received two correction directions this month was issued with another one on Thursday (Aug 24), this time for making false claims about public housing policies in two TikTok videos, said the Ministry of National Development and Ministry of Law in a press release.
The man, who goes by the username "dr.ishhaq.jay", falsely claimed in a TikTok post on Aug 17 that the Housing and Development Board (HDB) prices and sells BTO flats to make a profit.
He also falsely claimed in a TikTok post on Aug 18 that HDB makes a profit from selling BTO flats, and also falsely stated that the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) charges a premium when selling land used for HDB flats, and that SLA makes profits from land sold to HDB.
Minister for National Development Desmond Lee instructed the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA) Office to issue the correction direction to the man, and a targeted correction direction to TikTok over the two posts.
The man will be required to create a new TikTok post containing a correction notice which states that the TikTok posts contain false statements of fact, and provide a link to the government’s clarification.
TikTok, on the other hand, will be required to communicate a correction notice to all end-users in Singapore who had accessed the posts.
According to TikTok, the platform is taking action to comply with the directive by inserting a notice on the user’s videos, including a link to the Singapore government’s clarification, and sending inbox notifications to users who have seen the content.
TikTok user dr.ishhaq.jay was issued a correction direction on Aug 20 for making false claims over Central Provident Fund (CPF) policies, and on Aug 18 for falsely claiming that the government can trace votes and penalise voters based on their votes.
In their press release, the ministries also said that they were aware of another TikTok post by dr.ishhaq.jay on Aug 23, claiming he received POFMA directions simply for “asking questions”.
“This is incorrect. POFMA does not deal with opinions or questions, but aims to protect Singaporeans from false statements of fact,” said the Ministry of National Development and Ministry of Law.
“Expressing opinions and asking questions should be done responsibly. In the case of TikTok user 'dr.ishhaq.jay', he has gone beyond asking questions to make a number of serious falsehoods affecting public interest on multiple occasions.”
THE CLAIMS
An article published on the government's fact-checking website Factually elaborated on why dr.ishhaq.jay's claims were false.
"HDB does not price and sell BTO flats to make a profit", the article said in response to the video posted on Aug 17.
"Unlike private sector developers which are profit-driven, HDB prices new flats with the objective of keeping public housing affordable to help Singaporeans own their homes", it said.
“To determine housing affordability, HDB looks at the resident household incomes, and compares them with the range of flat types and selling prices on offer at every BTO launch."
“In pricing new BTO flats, HDB establishes the market value of the flats by considering the prices of comparable resale flats nearby, and then applies a significant market discount to the assessed market values, to ensure BTO flats are affordable for flat buyers. Tiered housing grants are offered by HDB, providing targeted help to those who need it the most,” it added.
In response to the video posted on Aug 18, the article said that HDB does not make a profit from selling BTO flats.
"The amount collected from the sale of HDB flats in every financial year is less than the total development cost, which includes land and construction costs, and CPF housing grants disbursed to eligible homebuyers.
“In the last three years (FY2020, FY2021 and FY2022), HDB incurred a deficit of about S$2.68 billion (US$1.98 billion) per year,” it said.
The article also clarified the false statements made about SLA.
State land is sold to HDB for the development of public housing at the fair market value assessed by the chief valuer, not SLA, who makes the professional assessment independently based on well-accepted and established valuation principles, it said.
It added that state land is part of the reserves and is not owned by SLA. As such, when state land is sold to HDB, the value paid by HDB accrues to the reserves and not to SLA.
“When state land is sold at fair market value to HDB, there is no increase in the value of the reserves. Neither are the reserves made worse-off or diminished. It is a conversion of one type of asset (land) to another (cash).”
According to the article, the Ministry of National Development is aware that the TikTok user dr.ishhaq.jay has published a number of videos on these topics and has issued additional clarifications.
For example, the man claimed in his videos that HDB has factored in land costs into BTO flats.
However, the article explained that HDB does not price flats to recover cost, including land cost and construction cost. BTO flats are priced for affordability, it said.
"Unlike private developers who adopt a profit-based pricing approach for private residential developments to cater for a profit margin on top of development costs, HDB’s flat pricing approach is totally separate and independent from the BTO projects’ development costs."
Instead, HDB prices new flats with affordability in mind, it added.
The TikTok user also claimed in his videos that HDB has not disclosed the cost of building flats.
The article on Factually explained that the cost of building HDB flats is publicly available and disclosed every year in HDB’s annual report and financial statements. Construction costs are also published on HDB’s website and GeBIZ when the tender results are announced.
The article also refuted another claim by dr.ishhaq.jay that the government does not give a solution for Singaporeans to afford housing, after their money get channelled for retirement purposes.
“The CPF system, especially CPF contribution rates, has evolved to take into account housing needs, namely to help Singaporeans own homes. CPF contributions that are channelled to a member’s CPF Ordinary Account can be used for housing,” the article read.
"As described above, HDB ensures that prices of new flats are affordable. 90 per cent of flat buyers who collected their keys from HDB in 1H2022 used 25 per cent or less of their monthly income to service their HDB loan instalment payments. This means that these flat buyers can service the loans using their CPF contributions, with little or no cash outlay.
“Even so, there are Singaporeans who may be stretched. For those who face difficulties paying the monthly instalments of their HDB housing loan, HDB has in place financial assistance measures, such as deferring or reducing the monthly loan instalments for six months.
"There are some older Singaporeans, especially those who bought a resale flat or bought a flat later in life, who still have to service housing loans. Members can continue to use their Ordinary Account monies for housing beyond the age of 55."
