Ho Ching Criticizes Woman for Complaining About NTUC FairPrice Staff’s English Skills

SINGAPORE: Ho Ching, wife of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, strongly criticized the actions of a woman who complained about a supermarket employee’s inability to speak English. In a lengthy social media post, Ho defended the NTUC FairPrice worker and shared her own linguistic challenges, calling the customer’s actions a form of bullying.

Ho wrote, “Being Singaporean is more than just a birthright or a passport. It means carrying ourselves with discipline, respect, and humility. Brash bravado and boastful bullying have no place in the Singapore soul.” Her comments came after a video surfaced showing TikTok influencer Datin Amy Tashiana confronting a FairPrice staff member for not understanding her English instructions about a fish order at the City Square Mall outlet.

The video, which quickly went viral, showed Amy arguing with the employee, allegedly a Chinese national, who spoke Mandarin. Amy expressed her frustration that the staff couldn’t comprehend her request to descale and clean the fish, which led to an unsatisfactory result. She escalated the issue to the team leader, demanding better communication skills from staff working in customer-facing roles.

While the team leader resolved the situation by offering Amy a new fish at no extra charge, the influencer remained critical, mentioning Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh’s suggestion for mandatory English tests for new citizens in Parliament. Amy also proposed that she could perform the job better, offering to take the worker’s place.

The incident divided public opinion. Some supported Amy’s call for English-speaking staff in Singapore’s multicultural society, while others criticized her handling of the situation. FairPrice later responded by promising an investigation and offering additional training for the employee.

Ho Ching, however, did not hold back her disapproval, calling Amy’s behavior “disgraceful.” She stressed that Singapore’s strength lies in its diversity and openness to different cultures. Ho also responded to comments that questioned why native Singaporeans should struggle with language barriers in their own country. She empathized with the frustrations but urged kindness, understanding, and patience, drawing parallels to how customers interact with staff at cafes employing people with special needs.

Despite the heated debate, Ho emphasized that embracing diversity and being part of a broader global community are core values of being Singaporean.