IG Account Sgcickenrice Lawyered Up & Brought Back All the Posts

Before 8 Oct, Chicken Rice was just the name of one of Singapore’s most beloved dishes.

But now, mention the dish to a Singaporean and a saga involving an allegedly abusive boss will come to mind, not juicy chicken and fragrant rice.

On 8 Oct, Instagram page sgcickenrice shared leaked texts and audio which allegedly showed Night Owl Cinematics (NOC) co-founder Sylvia Chan being abusive to her employees.

The allegations created quite a stir online, with outraged netizens taking their anger out on the dislike bar on an NOC video that was published that day.

Image: YouTube

Colgate also terminated its collaboration with Chan, and the whole saga proved that not all publicity is good publicity.

In response to the online outcry, NOC released a statement calling the attacks a “massive crusade” against the image and reputation of NOC and its employees, and even sent a cease and desist letter to @sgcickenrice.

 

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A post shared by Sgcickenrice (@sgcickenrice)

The letter demanded that @sgcickenrice stop publishing all allegations or face legal action, and soon, all but one of the posts disappeared.

But if you thought that was the end of the NOC-Chicken Rice saga, this must be your first time on the interweb. Welcome. 

IG Account, Sgcickenrice, Lawyered Up & Brought Back All the Posts

To the surprise of many, all the posts concerning Chan’s treatment of her employees are back on @sgcickenrice.

Those looking for an explanation need only see the Instagram account’s latest post:

Image: Instagram (sgcickenrice)

Yes, it seems that @sgcickenrice has engaged law firm Eugene Thuraisingam LLP to act on their behalf.

The lawyer’s letter pointed out a few interesting things that we laypeople may have missed:

  • that NOC’s cease and desist letter has not alleged that the claims made by @sgcickenrice are untrue
  • that it wasn’t clear if NOC’s letter was a formal threat to institute criminal proceedings against @sgcickenrice (fun fact: this is a civil litigation so they can’t start any criminal proceedings towards anyone)

The letter also noted that NOC’s letter was sent after 6pm on 11 Oct, but asked @sgcickenrice to take action by 10am the next day.

According to Mothership, Eugene Thruraisingam LLP confirmed that it is representing @sgcickenrice on a pro bono basis – i.e. for free.

The firm said it’s in the midst of taking @sgcickenrice’s instructions and will respond substantively in due course.

Lest you’re not aware, this is a common response to any demand letter, as the first official response would usually be much, much longer.

Over 46k Followers; Instagram Account Owner Remains Anonymous 

When NOC sent its cease and desist letter on Monday (11 Oct), some followers of @sgcickenrice offered to set up a crowdfunding campaign for them to take legal action.

However, the owner of the Instagram account said it couldn’t do so because they were anonymous.

In any case, the latest development in the saga has certainly titillated netizens, as @sgcickenrice’s account has nearly 47,000 followers at the time of writing.

As for NOC, some commenters have said that they’re disappointed with the company’s response.

Image: Instagram (NOC)

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Featured Image: Instagram (@sgcickenrice)