61-year-old businessman Mr Peng Hongmao arrived at Choa Chu Kang Columbarium on a Saturday afternoon, hoping to pay respects to his deceased mother by giving her offerings he prepared.
However, his offerings were completely cleared away after just twenty minutes, before the ceremony was completed.
Incensed by the matter, the man approached the cleaner to demand an apology, resulting in police arriving at the scene.
Offerings Cleared When He Left Briefly
On 15 April, Mr Peng visited Choa Chu Kang Columbarium with his two older brothers, intending to pay respects to his deceased mother during the Qing Ming period.
In an interview with Shin Min Daily News, the man revealed that this was the 13th year his family went there to pay respects. They brought a table around 1.2 m wide to the venue, where they placed cakes, fruits, alcohol, meats, and other offerings. After this, they headed to the burn barrel to burn joss paper.
However, when they returned in 20 minutes, Mr Peng found that the offerings and table had been cleared away, with the offerings dumped into garbage bags.
“I asked the cleaning staff there why this happened, but they said they did not know.”
Two staff members at the columbarium then came forward and repeatedly apologised to them, but could not provide them with an explanation.
“Afterward, a staff member called me and said they were simply worried the food would attract birds. However, there were only a few flies and mosquitoes there, so a bird flying in would be even rarer,” he expressed.
Originally, Mr Peng and his family had intended to offer a toast of tea and wine in front of the memorial tablet, but the ceremony could not be completed.
“This is disrespectful to our ancestors,” he said.
He added that according to customs, some of the offerings were to be brought home after the ceremony for the younger generations to consume, and the “rules” were broken on this aspect too.
Mr Peng revealed that he had been incredibly agitated then, and had grabbed the cleaner’s hand to demand he apologise to his deceased mother.
Reportedly, the police were called to the scene after the incident.
“This incident has caused us a great deal of sadness. We could not sleep that night after we returned home,” Mr Peng expressed.
Aftermath
Mr Peng hoped that the parties involved would offer him a satisfactory explanation, or conduct other replacement rites for his deceased mother.
According to him, the Qing Ming period only happens once a year, and family members must pay respects to their ancestors within ten days before and after the Qing Ming festival.
That period was already over, so they could not return and conduct a make-up ceremony.
“If the management can arrange for Taoist priests to hold a ceremony for my mother, it might be possible to make up for what happened,” he said.
He pointed out that staff and cleaners at the columbarium should understand traditional Chinese customs regarding paying respects and making offerings, to prevent them from unwittingly making these mistakes while working.
The National Environmental Agency (NEA) said in an interview that it was informed of the incident, and explained that leaving food unattended would attract birds there to eat it.
The cleaners were simply following the rules, and signs at the columbarium stated that any food left unattended would be cleared away.
The police were called in for assistance because of the dispute, and investigations are currently underway.
Visitors were also reminded to refrain from leaving food offerings unattended, and to pay attention to fire safety by ensuring all joss sticks are completely extinguished before they leave.
The NEA also stated that physical and verbal abuse towards government employees was unacceptable, and the police would be notified if needed.
