Briton Bo Davis apologises to Singaporean trishaw man

Mr Bo Davis has publicly apologised to Mr Lee Shee Lam saying it was “disrespectful and insensitive” to make fun of an old man but Mr Bo Davis who was accused of being a bully, claimed they did pay the full fare of S$10, contrary to trishaw rider’s Mr Lee’s claim. AsiaOne reported the news as below:

Brit tourist who mocked S'pore trishaw man apologises on Net

We are sorry for what we did. So says one of the British tourists caught in the middle of an Internet controversy involving an elderly Singaporean trishaw rider. The three visitors were slammed on the Internet for mocking the 67-year-old rider during a trip here. They were also accused of not paying their fare after the ride.

One of them, Mr Bo Davis, has written a public apology for his. But he also said, contrary to trishaw rider Lee Shee Lam's claim, they did pay the full fare of $10.

A video posted by Mr Davis, 26, caused a furore on the Internet. The video showed the trio squeezed on board Mr Lee's trishaw as the elderly rider struggled to pedal under their weight. Mr Lee was later seen going from one passenger to the next to ask for his fare before they left in a taxi.

Mr Davis sent the apology to the Singaporean who re-posted the video on YouTube, a Netizen who identified himself only as Jimmy. In the note, Mr Davis said, in hindsight, the video "does look very bad". He wrote: "I offer my sincerest apologies to Mr Lee, his son and everyone that has been offended."

He added it was "disrespectful and insensitive" to make fun of an old man. Recalling the night of the incident, Mr Davis maintained his group later paid the full $10 fare. "I know I was laughing, but I wouldn't dream of not paying for the ride - that would be unforgivable," he wrote.

When told that Mr Davis claimed to have paid the full fare, Mr Sam Lee, the trishaw rider's son, said he stood by his father's account. However, he added: "But then again, the incident was three months ago, and old people may not have the best memory."

He said he has already let the matter rest, and he hopes Netizens will do the same.

British tourists bullied our aged trishaw driver

It was just a $15 fare for the trishaw ride but the 3 British tourists did not want to pay a single cent. The aged Mr Lee had to struggle with a total passenger weight of about 200kg, and being made fun of, yet not being paid part of the fare. Worse still, one of the three big bullies, Mr Bo Davis uploaded the video to Youtube. According to Asiaone news article below, he made the following comments:

"If it were three Asian guys and not three white guys. Would it have got the same reaction?"

I feel he did not even think what he had done was wrong. He probably thought it was his consumer right not to pay Mr Lee at all just because he was cycling too slowly. It was not a problem about nationality or race. It was a matter of compassion and respect for someone as elderly as Mr Lee. If they think we Singaporeans are targeting them because they are whites, I suggest they leave our shores forever. We do not need tourists who do not even show decent respect for our people.

Singapore Netizen fury over YouTube video

It all started with a British tourist posting online a video he took while on holiday in Singapore about three months ago. What the Englishman and two of his fellow tourists thought would make a funny video now have them labeled as bullies.

The original video posted up by tourist Mr Bo Davis, 26, was titled "The Slowest Taxi in Southeast Asia" has provoked fiery responses from Netizens.

In the 3 minutes 51 seconds video, the three medium-built guys are seen squeezing onto a trishaw ridden by an elderly man. Clearly struggling under their weight, the trishaw uncle pedals at a snail's pace, while his passengers taunt him for going so slowly.

According to The New Paper, the trishaw uncle is 67-year-old, Mr Lee Shee Lam, who has been riding for 15 years now. Mr Lee told The New Paper that the three tourists had originally agreed to pay him $15 for the ride, but after the ride they got off and left in a taxi. Leaving Mr Lee without paying a single cent.

The original video has been removed by Mr Bo, but someone else has since re-posted it on YouTube and retitled it: "B*****ds bullying Singapore senior citizen…" At last check, the video has been viewed over 31,000 times and commented on over one thousand times.

Mr Lee, who does not understand English, says that he was not aware that the three Englishmen were making fun of him or that they were filming the trip. He has since brushed the incident off as bad luck, saying this was the first time his passengers refused to pay, and that there was nothing he could have done about it.

The New Paper also managed to contact Mr Bo Davis, who said he did not feel they were being bullies at all. On comments that the three of them had bullied Mr Lee, he said: "Looking back, I think we were insensitive. But bullies, no." Mr Bo Davis also believes that the incident's magnitude has to do with nationality.

He said: "If it were three Asian guys and not three white guys. Would it have got the same reaction?"

Update: Further details of this bully case by Mr Bo Davis on Guardian Unlimited and The Daily Mail.

The Art of Avoiding Answering Questions or Non-Reply

Jeremy Paxman was awarded a broadcasting award for outstanding contribution to television by the Voice of the Listener and Viewer in 1994 and 1997 and was given the Richard Dimbleby Award, Bafta's most prestigious award for current affairs, in 1996 and 2000. The following Youtube video is very interesting as it highlighted how UK politicians tried to avoid answering questions when being grilled by him. I certainly have not seen any such regular grilling sessions on our national TV. Perhaps our politicians can learn a trick or two from them