Ong Ye Kung warns of fake photos showing him endorsing medical products
SINGAPORE — Pictures of Health Minister Ong Ye Kung endorsing medical products that have been circulating on Facebook are fake.
Ong said in a Facebook post on Tuesday (26 April) that many members of the public have alerted him and the Ministry of Health (MOH) of doctored pictures of him endorsing such products.
"As a practice, MOH officials and political appointees do not endorse any medical products. MOH is working with Facebook (Singapore) to remove the misleading and unauthorised posts," he added.
He cautioned the public against falling prey to such fake advertising.
Facebook user David Lay Hock Chua had earlier alerted about the fake advertisement. Such advertisements have become "too frequent and seem so authentic that gullible people may be convinced", Lay said.
In the advertisement, Ong can be seen posing with the late Dr Oon Chiew Seng who is holding a bottle of medication, which has been doctored into the photo.
The original photo, taken in 2019, shows Singapore's pioneer gynaecologist receiving the NUS Medicine Alumnus of the Year Award from Ong, who was then-education minister.
The fake advertisement by Killfh-US, which was listed as Dali Color Electronic Commerce Co on its Facebook page, claims that the medication was approved by MOH and can be used to treat various eye diseases.
"I can finally see the light again!...Thanks for OYK's recommendation, it only took 30 days to cure my presbyopia," the advertisement read.
Stay in the know on-the-go: Join Yahoo Singapore's Telegram channel at http://t.me/YahooSingapore
