Darryl Lo and Soh Rui Yong respond to Tan Chuan-Jin’s claim that he ‘accidentally’ deleted Instagram
A LinkedIn post by former Speaker of Parliament Tan Chuan-Jin about “accidentally” deleting his public Instagram page has prompted pointed responses from Radin Mas independent candidate Darryl Lo and national runner Soh Rui Yong.
Source: NUS Medicine
Last Thursday (19 Feb), Tan wrote: “I accidentally deleted my public Instagram page. Just like that. Gone.”
He described the account as “almost 12 years of life” and said losing it felt “significant”.
Darryl Lo posts: ‘I accidentally ran for elections’
Four days later, on Monday (23 Feb), Mr Lo opened his own LinkedIn post in a strikingly similar fashion in what appeared to be a tongue-in-cheek riff on Mr Tan’s original post.
“I accidentally ran for elections. Just like that. Boom. Candidate,” he wrote.
Echoing Mr Tan’s tone and structure, Mr Lo said his political ambitions had been “dormant for a while” and that there was “no longer a need for a public platform”.
He added that his journey “wasn’t just a campaign” but “almost six months of life”.
Source: @darryl.sg on Instagram
Both posts referenced “wuliao, whimsical nonsense”, spoke of connections beyond function, and reflected on how “seasons change” and “roles end”.
Mr Lo also quipped: “Deposits may or may not come back,” in an apparent nod to election deposits.
He added that not everyone is meant to win, and that some are meant to “gain valuable experience”.
Similar themes and structure
Mr Tan had reflected in his original post that “much of what we build, even what we treasure, does not stay”.
Mr Lo’s version read: “Much of what we build, even what we accidentally build, does not stay.”
Both men ended their posts on a note of gratitude toward those who had crossed their paths.
Mr Tan concluded that “being a public leader was a privilege that I have never taken lightly”.
Mr Lo similarly wrote that running for office “was a privilege that I have never taken lightly — mostly because my legs were tired”.
Source: Darryl Lo on LinkedIn
He did not explicitly state that his post was directed at Mr Tan, and Mr Tan has not responded publicly to the comparisons.
Soh Rui Yong shares seven-step guide to deleting Instagram
Meanwhile, on Sunday (22 Feb), Mr Soh weighed in with a more direct approach.
Source: @runsohfast on Instagram
“To me this is a prime example of why I don’t believe 75% of what most people post on LinkedIn these days,” he wrote, referencing an article about Mr Tan’s purportedly accidental deletion.
Mr Soh then outlined what he described as step-by-step instructions, attributed to Google, on how to delete an Instagram account.
The process included navigating to “Account ownership and control”, re-entering a password, and confirming the deletion.
Source: Rui Yong Soh on LinkedIn
By detailing the multi-step process, Mr Soh appeared to suggest that such an action would be difficult to carry out inadvertently.
He also noted that Instagram provides a 30-day grace period after deletion is initiated, during which the account can be restored simply by logging back in, further fuelling debate over whether the disappearance was truly accidental.
Also read: ‘There is a sense of loss’: Tan Chuan-Jin says he ‘accidentally deleted’ Instagram account
‘There is a sense of loss’: Tan Chuan-Jin says he ‘accidentally deleted’ Instagram account
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Featured image adapted from NUS Medicine, @runsohfast on Instagram, and Rui Yong Soh on LinkedIn.
