![Singapore Police biker [credit: Lee Joonmin Facebook].png](https://cdn.visordown.com/styles/v2_large/s3/field/image/Singapore%20Police%20biker%20%5Bcredit%3A%20Lee%20Joonmin%20Facebook%5D.png?itok=sNQWR5Qj)
It’s finally happened. This is confirmation we have slipped into a parallel universe.
After four years of Donald Trump had many questioning if up was down and right was, well, even more on the right, for us it is this curious occurrence to befall a motorcyclist in Singapore that has had us checking we didn’t ‘cross over’ in the night.
This tale starts in a familiar way; A motorcyclist is out riding, he’s taking care to stay at the speed limit, do his lifesaver checks and filter in a manner that he considers safe to himself and other motorists… but before you know it you’re being tailed by a siren-wailing, blue light flashing police car that would have you muttering in your helmet ‘typical, always target the bikers’.
The police officer approaches, the tempo of your heartbeat rising, sweat now a waterfall on your forehead… then they say:
“I saw that you are wearing full safety gear - safety jacket, armoured gloves, so I’d like to present you with this gift for being a safety role model to other bikers”
Wait, what?!
That’s right, if you’re on the road in Singapore there is a chance you will be pulled over not because you’re breaking the law but because you are upholding it in the finest way possible. Sounds like a Just For Laughs candid camera set up but this is seemingly very legit.
Lee Joonmin as he is named on Facebook posted the moment to the social networking site and, unsurprisingly, drew a lot of attention for his fortune, writing:
“So I was just riding home from work this evening when all of the sudden I saw blue and red flashing lights in my mirror. To my horror I saw that the TP officer was gesturing at me to pull over!
“I was wondering what mistake did I commit, did I overspeed? Did I ride dangerously? Or did I fail to signal or something? Then the TP officer came over to me and said something like this:
“Sir, the reason I pulled you over is this…” *super awkward and longest sentence pause of my entire life*
“I saw that you are wearing full safety gear - safety jacket, armoured gloves, so I’d like to present you with this gift for being a safety role model to other bikers”
“HOLY SHIT HAHAHAHA I WASN’T EXPECTING THAT!”
Well, neither were we!
As for why, well Singapore is famously a very strict police-state where moments like this are negated by some of the world’s most surprising regulations. These include a potential three-year jail sentence for being an annoying musical busker, a $500 fine for feeding pigeons, a $150 fine for smoking in public and up to two years in jail for….. selling chewing gum.
So while you may well be offered the smooth, there is quite a lot of rough to trip up on too… but being stopped to praise your riding is positive reinforcement in the most welcoming way!
