Jufrie Mahmood
{{Short description|Singaporean politician}}{{Malay name|Jufrie|Mahmood}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2025}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific_prefix =
| name = Mohamed Jufrie bin Mahmood
| native_name = محمد جفري بن محمود
| native_name_lang = ms
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| office = 4th Chairman of the Singapore Democratic Party
| term_start = 2011
| term_end = 2013
| predecessor = Gandhi Ambalam
| successor = Jeffrey George
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| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1950|02|04|df=y}}
| birth_place = Colony of Singapore
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| nationality = Singaporean
| party = Singapore Democratic Party (SDP)
| otherparty = Worker's Party (WP)
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| children = 3
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| residence = Singapore
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| profession = politics
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Mohamed Jufrie bin Mahmood (Jawi: محمد جفري بن محمود) is a Singaporean politician who was a prominent opposition political figure in the country in the 1980s and 1990s, when he stood in elections as a candidate for both the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) and the Workers' Party.[https://sg-elections.com/candidates/m.html Singapore Election Candidates (M)], singapore-elections.com, retrieved 11 April 2011. He served as the Chairman of the SDP from 2011 to 2013.
Political career
At the 1984 general election, Jufrie stood as a candidate for the Workers' Party in the constituency of Kampong Kembangan. He was defeated by Yatiman Yusof of the governing People's Action Party (PAP) by 8,210 votes (44.3%) to 10,326 (55.7%).
At the 1988 general election, Jufrie stood as a candidate for the SDP in the Aljuined GRC. Jufrie and fellow SDP members Ashleigh Seow and Neo Choon Aik were defeated by the PAP's team by 26,375 votes (43.7%) to 34,020 (56.3%).
At the 1991 general election, Jufrie stood as a candidate for the Workers' Party in the Eunos GRC. Jufrie came to national prominence during this election campaign after Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong accused him of being a Malay chauvinist because of comments Jufrie made about the role of Malay community in Singapore and his use of the phrase "Insha'Allah" ("God willing") in a campaign speech. Goh urged people not to vote for Jufrie in order to help protect inter-racial harmony in Singapore. Jufrie strongly denied that he was a Malay chauvinist and said that he was merely raising important issues which he felt needed to be addressed. In the end, Jufrie and his fellow Workers' Party members Lee Siew Choh, Neo Choon Aik and Wee Han Kim were narrowly defeated by the PAP's team in Eunos by 41,673 votes (47.6%) to 45,833 (52.4%).
At the 1997 general election, Jufrie stood as a candidate for the SDP in the Jalan Besar GRC. He and his fellow SDP members David Chew, Gandhi Ambalam and Low Yong Nguan were defeated by the PAP's team by 21,537 votes (32.4%) to 44,840 (67.6%).
Jufrie was among a group of SDP members charged with participating in an unlawful political assembly on the driveway leading to Parliament House in 2008. He was fined after being found guilty of this offence.[http://news.xin.msn.com/en/singapore/article.aspx?cp-documentid=4661568 Judge dismisses appeals by SDP members and supporters] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110225061406/http://news.xin.msn.com/en/singapore/article.aspx?cp-documentid=4661568 |date=25 February 2011 }}, Channel News Asia, 23 February 2011.
Jufrie was elected the party chairman of the SDP in 2011{{Cite web |last=Tan |first=Jeanette |date=2011-08-30 |title=Singapore Democratic Party reshuffles CEC |url=https://sg.news.yahoo.com/blogs/singaporescene/singapore-democratic-party-reshuffles-cec-054950889.html |access-date=2025-06-25 |website=Yahoo News |language=en-SG}} and served in this role until 2013.
On 12 March 2025, Minister for Law and Home Affairs, K. Shanmugam was confronted by two women from Monday of Palestine Solidarity group at his Meet-The-People session to address Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act.{{Cite news |date=2025-03-13 |title=Meet-the-People Session is not a protest venue, says Shanmugam after 2 women cause commotion |url=https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/meet-the-people-session-is-not-a-protest-venue-shanmugam-after-confrontation-with-two-women |access-date=2025-04-03 |work=The Straits Times |language=en |issn=0585-3923}} The confrontation was recorded on video and lasted seven minutes.{{Cite web |title=Minister Shanmugam Declines to Press Charges After Sisters Disrupt Meet-The-People Session_the_public_and |url=https://www.sohu.com/a/877329358_122342248 |access-date=2025-04-03 |website=www.sohu.com}} On 13 March, Calvin Cheng, a former NMP, in a facebook post, offered to send the activist group to Gaza, provided they do not return to Singapore and also told their Facebook followers to leave Singapore for Gaza.{{Cite news |last=Sun |first=David |date=2025-04-03 |title=Masagos says he disagrees with ex-NMP Calvin Cheng’s views on the Israel-Palestine conflict |url=https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/masagos-says-he-disagrees-with-ex-nmp-calvin-chengs-views-on-the-israel-palestine-conflict |access-date=2025-04-14 |work=The Straits Times |language=en |issn=0585-3923}}{{Cite web |last=Lim |first=Kimberly |date=2025-04-10 |title=‘Hot potato’: Singapore’s criticism of ex-NMP seen as bid to cool tensions |url=https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3306044/singapores-top-officials-pm-criticise-ex-nmp-calvin-cheng-over-gaza-post |access-date=2025-04-14 |website=South China Morning Post |language=en}} On 28 March, Jufrie filed a police report against Cheng for being an Islamophobe describing his actions as a “danger to our precious racial and religious harmony”.{{Cite news |date=2025-04-02 |title=‘I have a very sharply different view on Israel, Palestine from Mr Calvin Cheng’: Shanmugam |url=https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/i-have-a-very-sharply-different-view-on-israel-and-palestine-compared-to-mr-calvin-cheng-shanmugam |access-date=2025-04-14 |work=The Straits Times |language=en |issn=0585-3923}} On 2 April, Cheng posted on Facebook that he will take legal action over defamatory statements made against him, including Jufrie who had filed a police report against him, Reform Party secretary-general Kenneth Jeyaretnam who asked for a probe against Cheng, and sociopolitical platform The Online Citizen.{{Cite news |last=Hamzah |first=Aqil |date=2025-04-02 |title=Vivian says he did not ‘like’ FB post offering to relocate S’poreans to Gaza; Meta investigating |url=https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/vivian-says-he-did-not-like-fb-post-offering-to-relocate-sporeans-to-gaza-meta-investigating |access-date=2025-04-14 |work=The Straits Times |language=en |issn=0585-3923}}
On 10 April, Cheng posted on Facebook again that he had met with Ustaz Mohamad Hasbi Hassan and Ustaz Pasuni Maulan at Yusof Ishak Mosque in Woodlands on 9 April. He said that he told them he did not intend any attack and had spoken to the Malay/Muslim community over the previous week and had realised he should be more sensitive and not said to send people to a conflict zone.{{Cite news |last=Sun |first=David |date=2025-04-10 |title=Calvin Cheng ‘deeply remorseful’ for remarks on activists, says he should have been more sensitive |url=https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/calvin-cheng-deeply-remorseful-for-remarks-on-activists-says-he-should-have-been-more-sensitive |access-date=2025-04-14 |work=The Straits Times |language=en |issn=0585-3923}} Cheng also asserted that other had spoken untrue statements about him and he had to take legal actions.
Personal life
References
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Category:Singapore Democratic Party politicians
Category:Singaporean people of Malay descent
Category:Workers' Party (Singapore) politicians