Reform Party's Charles Yeo says he 'had not endorsed' allegations against lawyer Imran Rahim
SINGAPORE — Reform party chairman Charles Yeo and lawyer Imran Rahim on Tuesday (8 September) took to their social media accounts to announce that they have resolved their differences “amicably”.
Yeo had alleged in July that Imran had taken advantage of young debaters and “abused young interns or tried to hit on them inappropriately”, but did not elaborate or provide evidence to back up these claims. He had also challenged Imran, on Instagram, to serve him with a writ of defamation.
Yeo, who is also a lawyer, wrote in an Instagram story on Tuesday, “The matter with Mr Imran Rahim has been resolved amicably and we wish each other well. In particular, I wish to state that I had not endorsed the allegations (which have yet to be proven).”
He also posted a photo of the duo with fellow lawyers M Ravi and Abraham Vergis on the social media platform with the caption “Lunch with Imran Rahim”.
Imran separately had posted a screencap of Yeo’s Instagram story and thanked Yeo for “agreeing to amicably settle our disagreements”.
“I respect the work that he has done for the disadvantaged in our society and wish him all the best in his career as a lawyer and as the chairman of the Reform Party,” he wrote.
“I would also like to thank Mr M Ravi and Mr Abraham Vergis, both senior members of the bar, for helping to resolve the differences between Charles and I.”
In response to media queries, M Ravi said both he and Vergis decided to bring Yeo, his former trainee, and Imran together to resolve the matter.
“As senior lawyers, we both thought it is in the best interest of both young lawyers and in the best tradition of the legal profession that they resolve the matter and put this episode behind them and focus on the important work task before them that both of them passionately pursue for the betterment of society,” he said.
(On Yeo), I know that his heart is in the right place. I also learnt more about Imran Rahim during lunch and his commitment to help the Malay community which I said I’m happy to assist as well,” he added.
In response to Yeo’s statements in July, Imran had denied “the wide-ranging allegations made by Charles Yeo and will be taking the necessary steps to vindicate myself”.
He had also agreed to be put on leave of absence from Tan Kok Quan Partnership (TKQP), where he is a senior associate, while the firm investigates the allegations of sexual misconduct.
Yahoo News Singapore has reached out to TKQP for comments.
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