SINGAPORE, May 27 — A Hong Kong secondary school principal has been suspended pending an investigation after a video showing him swearing at security guards during a parking dispute in Singapore triggered widespread backlash online.
According to Singapore-based media organisation AsiaOne, Lee Cheuk-hing, principal of San Wui Commercial Society Secondary School in Hong Kong’s Tuen Mun district, was filmed confronting two security personnel at Safra Jurong on May 22.
The video, which quickly spread on social media, allegedly showed Lee telling the guards to “shut up” while also pulling faces and using profanities during the altercation.
The incident reportedly stemmed from a dispute involving a bus that had stopped near the entrance of the clubhouse, blocking other vehicles from entering the premises.
A spokesman for Safra told Chinese-language daily Shin Min Daily News that the appointed security company later lodged a police report over the incident.
Singapore police confirmed to AsiaOne that a report had been made and that investigations are ongoing.
The fallout has now spread back to Hong Kong, where the school board moved to suspend Lee after statements were collected from him and other teachers who had been on the overseas study trip.
“I think the board as a whole feels that the principal’s words and actions did not meet public expectations,” independent board member Edmund Wong told Hong Kong media outlet HK01.
The school also issued a public apology on Tuesday, saying the incident had caused “public concern and unease”.
In its statement, the school said it was working with the travel agency involved in the trip to better understand what had happened and pledged to conduct a thorough investigation.
Hong Kong’s Education Bureau earlier said it would take appropriate action against any educator found to have breached professional conduct standards, depending on the seriousness of the case.
