PothePanda declared “sane” by IMH

PothePanda declared “sane” by IMH

In a stunning development of the ongoing PothePanda (Gary Tan) case, Gary’s medical report from IMH in 2006 confirmed that he has “no mental illness.” (read Chia Ti Lik’s account here)

On 3rd June, DPP John Loo had instructions to apply for Gary to be remanded in the IMH for 3 weeks on the basis that he is delusional in his blog postings and that he had been allegedly remanded in IMH before in 2006. (read article here)

Gary would have been thrown into IMH if not from strong objections from his lawyer Chia Ti Lik who was representing him.

Nevertheless, this does not dissuade the DPP again from attempting to apply for Gary to be thrown into IMH for his “own good”.

According to a post on pothepanda’s blog:

“DJ Soh rejected the application and stated that since IMH medical report found me NO MENTAL ILLNESS, he does not see any reason for me to be thrown into IMH.

However, DJ Soh apparently advised Mr Chia to get me to self-admit into IMH or be an outpatient there,to cover myself. DJ Soh then made a very strange offer to Mr Chia. According to Mr Chia, DJ Soh told Mr Chia,”Mr Chia, if your client has no money, he can apply for me to put him into IMH for free.”

[Source: PothePanda]

The arbitariness and readiness displayed by non medical professionals to commit a suspect to IMH on very flimsy grounds is a travesty of his rights as a citizen of the state.

What if Gary was really sent to IMH back in June then? Will he be compensated by the state now that it is revealed that there are no medical grounds for his admission in the first place?

IMH has a strict set of criteria for admission. The few instances when admission is seriously considered are:

1. Patient is at high risk of suicide or deliberate self-harm if not admitted.

2. Acute psychosis where the patient is deemed to be a threat to the lives of himself and others.

3. Severe depression in which the patient refuses any food or drinks.

Since Gary has been diagnosed as not having mental illness at all by the IMH psychiatrist in 2006 and he was never on follow up with any psychiatrists, any aspersions cast deliberately on his mental capacity to stand for trial can be considered defamatory in nature.

Gary’s case bears uncanny similarities to the pending Anwar Sodomy II case in Malaysia. Medical reports obtained from two hospitals show that Anwar’s accuser Saiful was not sodomized at all and yet the state still proceed to prosecute Anwar for sodomy.

The strong presence of the alternative media in Malaysia has ensured a certain degree of transparency and accountability in Anwar’s trial. PothePanda’s case was not even warranted a mention in the local newspapers.

The truth behind the PothePanda saga may never be out because it is not in the “interest” of the public to know more about the “modus operandi” of the Singapore’s legal service.

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