Ms Phua had helped Ng and family with vouchers and cash from her own pocket.
A RAG-AND-BONE man charged in court on Wednesday with threatening to hurt Jalan Besar GRC Member of Parliament Denise Phua was wrong in saying that he had not received any help for a year.
Setting the record straight, Ms Phua said that Ng Kim Ngweng, 49, had been receiving help from her and the Central Singapore Community Development Council (CDC) for some time.
He received help as recently as last month. Until June, every month, he would get $200 in cash from his CDC and a $35 voucher for service and conservancy charges. This was on top of a one-off cash grant by the CDC for his son last month.
Ms Phua said she knew Ng and his family and had helped them many times with vouchers, ComCare funds, from her own pocket and by appealing to the CDC and the Institute of Mental Health (IMH).
Ng has a history of receiving treatment at the IMH.
Ng was accused of making the threat against the MP in a telephone call to a Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports officer on Jan 12. The alleged threat came a day after another MP, Mr Seng Han Thong, was set ablaze by a resident at a community event.
Ms Phua said she had no negative feelings towards Ng and his family and would continue to help them if approached.
