Doctor charged over anti-Islam comments in Facebook post
Kho Kwang Po told the State Courts that he intends to plead guilty.
Kho Kwang Po left Singapore in January 2022 amid investigations and returned only in October 2024, said the police. (Photo: Facebook/Kho Kwang Po)
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SINGAPORE: A doctor was charged on Wednesday (Feb 26) for an online post that contained offensive remarks against Muslims.
Dr Kho Kwang Po, 85, was handed one charge for deliberately intending to wound the religious feelings of Muslims over the Facebook post, which was made on Apr 21, 2021.
In response to CNA's queries, the Singapore Medical Council (SMC) said that Dr Kho is registered as a medical practitioner but cannot practise as his practising certificate expired on Dec 31, 2020.
The council said it will look into taking disciplinary action against Dr Kho if he is convicted, and that it will obtain information from the court to determine the appropriate action.
According to his charge sheet, Dr Kho, a Singaporean, created and then uploaded the post which contained anti-Islam statements. The comments linked Muslims to violence and crime, and suggested that religious leaders were dishonest.
In a press release on Tuesday, the Singapore Police Force said that it received reports about the online posts on Dr Kho's Facebook account on Jun 29 and 30, 2021.
Investigations found that on Apr 21, 2021, Dr Kho had re-posted screenshots of his Facebook posts containing the offensive remarks from five years earlier, the police said.
Dr Kho left Singapore in January 2022 amid police investigations and returned only in October 2024, the police added.
The doctor appeared in court without a lawyer. Asked by the judge what he intended to do, Dr Kho said: "I think I will plead guilty."
The judge then asked if he would like to engage a lawyer for mitigation, but Dr Kho said no.
His case was then adjourned to Apr 9 for a plead guilty mention.
Dr Kho was previously in the news for co-authoring a letter calling for a stop to Singapore's COVID-19 vaccination programme.
For deliberately intending to wound the religious or racial feelings of a person, an offender could be jailed for up to three years, or fined, or both.
