It’s not every day that Singapore gets noticed on the international stage.
But on Wednesday (8 Feb), our tiny island city got a mention on The Daily Show. Unfortunately, it was not for the most flattering of reasons.
In the headlines segment of the satirical news programme, American comedian Chelsea Handler made fun of the recent S$3 million lawsuit a Singaporean man filed after a woman rejected him.
“If rejecting losers becomes a crime, I’m looking a class-action lawsuit against myself,” she joked.
Handler brought up Singapore on The Daily Show after talking about American television host Tucker Carlson.
“Speaking of dissatisfied men, a man in Singapore is suing a woman for putting him in the friendzone,” she said.
He was suing her for S$3 million (US$2.3 million) because of the supposed “sustained trauma” her rejection caused him.
With a straight face, the comedian pointedly said, “And this is why I don’t date anyone from Singapore.”
Source: The Daily Show on YouTube
She went on to say, “Getting friendzoned caused him sustained trauma? How hard is this guy masturbating?”
Her remark was greeted by loud cheers and laughter by the audience.
Handler went on to say that this will never happen the other way around — a woman would never file a lawsuit if a man ghosted them.
“We would just spread a rumour that he’s got a small penis that’s riddled with STDs (sexually transmitted diseases) because we are adults,” she quipped.
Once again, her remarks drew cheers from viewers.
Before moving on to her next headline, Handler concluded, “I just hope this guy doesn’t win. Because if rejecting losers becomes a crime, I’m looking at a class action lawsuit against myself.”
The lawsuit Ms Handler was referring to was the one that K Kawshigan filed against Nora Tan after she rejected his romantic advances.
Claiming that he went through “trauma, depression, and impacts” to his life and sustained “damage to his stellar reputation”, Mr Kawshigan filed a S$3 million High Court claim.
Separately, he also filed a S$22,000 magistrate’s court claim, accusing Ms Tan of breaching an agreement to improve their relationship.
But the latter suit was struck out of the State Courts in January.
The judge said that he will not let the court be an accessory to Mr Kawshigan’s “calculated attempt to compel engagement” from Ms Tan.
At around the same time, Mr Kawshigan was also in the limelight for his role as director of D1 Racing, a drone racing company.
D1 Racing was the organiser of a Siloso Beach New Year’s Eve party that got cancelled and failed to grant refunds to guests.
On 28 Jan, Ms Tan countersued Mr Kawshigan for expenses she incurred protecting herself from his harassment.
According to Channel NewsAsia (CNA), this included a digital door viewer, an alarm sensor, and a smart video doorbell.
She sought S$480 for the equipment and another S$1,000 for counselling and “healing” sessions she took part in upon his request.
The High Court case is scheduled for a later date.
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Featured image adapted from The Daily Show on YouTube.
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