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SINGAPORE – A woman who sued the national water agency PUB after falling into a 6-foot-deep sewer five years ago added her diagnosis of schizophrenia in February this year to the list of injuries she allegedly suffered as a result of the accident.
Ms. Chan Hui Peng, 47, believes her husband was an evil spirit and laser beams were shining on their condo unit, her lawyer told the High Court on Monday (November 23).
Mr. L. Devadason also told the court that his client, a certified public accountant, is no longer pursuing his initial $ 20 million claim, which was based on a report from an accounting firm.
Madam Chan is now seeking around $ 5 million in damages.
He has submitted thousands of pages of medical reports and clinical notes in an attempt to show that, in addition to a broken ankle and scrapes, the accident also led to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and schizophrenia.
PUB accepted 70 percent of responsibility for the accident, but disputes its claims for items that include loss of future income and future medical expenses.
[[nid:450610]]Attorney K. Anparasan, representing PUB’s insurers, argued that Madam Chan “has a tendency to obtain and modify medical evidence to her satisfaction.”
He said the defendant’s psychiatry and psychology experts will testify that Madam Chan did not suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder and that “there could have been some beautification.”
“(Madam Chan) has made a mountain out of a molehill and has taken the opportunity to capitalize on the injuries she allegedly suffered from the accident,” he said.
Among other things, she claimed the loss of the opportunity to have a child.
She also claimed the costs of a future maid, even though surveillance by private investigators showed she was able to perform daily activities, including walking up to 3.5 km per day.
Mr. Anparasan also argued that Madam Chan was “dishonest” in making her claim and that she had “fabricated evidence in the hope of making a windfall”.
[[nid:449815]]But Devadason said Madam Chan was simply seeking “fair compensation” for her physical and psychological injuries so that “she can continue her diminished existence with at least some measure of dignity.”
The court heard that on the morning of December 1, 2015, Madam Chan left the Kovan MRT station and was walking towards a row of tents to collect some bird nests that she had ordered in advance.
He did not see an open sewer near Kovan Residences and landed on his feet first, landing on his buttocks. Devadason said a tree had cast a shadow over the culvert and there were no curbs or signs around it.
