Daily Lesson from Life 28 May 2009

"MP apologises for oversight
He apologised for citing an e-mail from a writer whom he said he did not know, and for not verifying the substance of the contents. -Thu, May 28, 2009 The Straits Times

MP FOR Tampines GRC on Thursday apologised in Parliament for citing an e-mail from a writer whom he said he did not know, and for not verifying the substance of the contents.


Rising to speak when Parliament resumed its session after a short break on Thursday afternoon, Mr Sin Boon Ann said: 'On reflection I thought I should have sought some confirmation from the writer of the e-mail, or separately verify the contents of the e-mail since I believe the privilege of free speech in this House imposes the higher standards of diligence on the part of its members.
'But to that extent I have fallen short of these standards. I proffer my unreserved apology to those involved.' "

Good on the MP to apologize for his oversight though the citing of the email did not seemed to have posed too much issue. His honesty and courage should be commended nonetheless.

Lessons for me are:

1. we have plenty of sources of information these days. The credibility of them must be verified if we are to quote them. If we are not sure and we still want to quote them then if must be done with cautious consideration and not over-inflated!;

2. if we made a mistake, we must admit it quickly so that we do not have to tell another lie to cover the earlier mistake up. If we are not careful, we may end up as the authors of another hundred lies!!;

3. the honest apology by the MP, a man in position of authority and trust, must be made known to the public so that others may follow his behaviors in another similar situation. In this way, the values get passed along. That is how a good habit and culture developed!

Kudos to Mr. Sin.