Ms Cheong proceeded to delete her comments before issuing apologies on several online platforms, including the NTUC Membership Facebook page.
When several Facebook users dismissed her apologies as "insincere" and continued flaming her, she tried to send each of them private apologies via their Facebook inbox.
She said the breaking point came when netizens brought her family into the picture.
An upset Ms Cheong told TNP: "When they were abusing me, that's fine. But when they started posting pictures of my family members and verbally abusing them too, I felt it was really uncalled for."
On Monday morning, she was summoned to the NTUC human resources department and was subsequently dismissed from her position.
Choking back her tears, Ms Cheong said the incident had been taken out of context.
She said that for the past few weeks, she had been faced with a noisy neighbourhood.
"It just never stopped. There were funerals, karaoke sessions, and weddings. Not to mention the fact that my neighbours' flats were undergoing renovation. There were loud drilling sounds as early as eight in the morning."
She also claimed to be a light sleeper, and that once she wakes up, she "can't go back to sleep".
SINGAPORE - In her own words, she went from having a bowl of instant noodles after venting on Facebook to losing her job.
Within 24 hours of her rant about noise from a Malay wedding at the void deck, Ms Amy Cheong was sacked from her position as National Trades Union Congress (NTUC)'s assistant director, Membership Department.
She had, on Sunday afternoon, hit out at Malays holding weddings at void decks, saying they should "pay for a real wedding" and that "maybe then the divorce rate won't be so high".
Within five minutes of the posting, a Malay friend warned her on her Facebook page that people would react and judge her harshly.
In just 24 hours, she went from a girl-next-door to a vilified woman, with netizens flaming her and government ministers criticising her.
The New Paper asked Ms Cheong in a 45-minute phone interview last evening: So are you Singapore's most hated woman?
She replied: "No, people don't know me enough to hate me. They hate my comments."
Comments that she claimed to regret making and which she clarified repeatedly throughout the interview were not meant to be racist.On Saturday, she said she was again subjected to loud noise from a celebration taking place nearby.
Ms Cheong said: "I wasn't sure exactly what it was, but I saw a lot of Malay people dressed-up, and they were heading to a void deck where banners had been set up.
"I knew it was some sort of celebration, so I assumed it was a wedding."
She added: "I was really cranky that day because all week long, I had been looking forward to the weekend to get some rest. There was someone screaming into a microphone and I tried closing all my windows and doors, but it was still very noisy."Ms Cheong claimed that she had previously made a Facebook posting questioning whether there were more appropriate places apart from void decks to hold events like weddings, funerals and karaoke sessions.
"I've always been very blunt and vocal, but what I said had nothing to do with race. It was about the situation. At that time, I didn't think carefully about what I was saying because I was venting my frustrations," she said.
It was only at 10.30pm on Sunday that she realised she was becoming the talk of the town after her friends flooded her with phone calls about the unfolding drama online.
Her post had gone viral, with more than 12,000 reactions from angry netizens, many of whom called her a racist and demanded her sacking.
Ms Cheong said: "I was just shocked. I totally didn't expect something like this to happen and when I saw the petition to get me fired, I was astonished at how far people would go to get back at somebody.
"I'm not very tech-savvy when it comes to Facebook, which is why my account wasn't private. I guess that's one of the reasons this happened."By noon, she was out of the office.
While she was disappointed at her dismissal, Ms Cheong maintained that "everyone handling the case at work was really nice".
She said: "They talked to me and explained to me what will happen next. Of course, I'm upset that I lost my job, but I understand where they're coming from."
Less than two hours after her sacking, a job ad was placed by NTUC to fill her position.
She also reiterated her claims on Facebook that her mistake should not be used against NTUC, saying: "I really hope that people don't use this to bring down NTUC's reputation.
"When I posted that comment on Facebook, I didn't think of myself as a representative of NTUC. I saw myself as someone who was home on the weekend complaining to her friends."
After her dismissal, she issued an open letter to the public through the media. She reiterated that she was "terribly sorry" and hoped for the public to "find it in their hearts to forgive her for her mistake".
At this point, Ms Cheong states that she is "unsure" of what she'll do next and that she's still in shock and "trying to take everything in".
However, she said that one thing she has learnt is the dangers of social media, saying that "while social media can help a lot of people, in this case, it's very damaging".
Meanwhile, netizens - many of whom are part of the Chinese community here - are continuing to flame her on social media sites.
By Monday evening, four government ministers had also commented on the postings.
Among them were Minister of Foreign Affairs and Law K. Shanmugam and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
Mr Shanmugam, describing Ms Cheong's actions as "shameful" and "unacceptable", said they confirmed what he had long suspected: "There are deep fault lines in our society, based on race/religion".
PM Lee said the incident "sharply reminds us how easily a few thoughtless words can cause grave offence to many", but called it "an isolated case".
The police mentioned on their Facebook page that reports had been made against Ms Cheong. When contacted, a police spokesman confirmed this and said they are looking into the matter.
TNP understands that Ms Cheong left Singapore last night for Perth, Australia, where she studied in a university.
[email protected]
When several Facebook users dismissed her apologies as "insincere" and continued flaming her, she tried to send each of them private apologies via their Facebook inbox.
She said the breaking point came when netizens brought her family into the picture.
An upset Ms Cheong told TNP: "When they were abusing me, that's fine. But when they started posting pictures of my family members and verbally abusing them too, I felt it was really uncalled for."
On Monday morning, she was summoned to the NTUC human resources department and was subsequently dismissed from her position.
Choking back her tears, Ms Cheong said the incident had been taken out of context.
She said that for the past few weeks, she had been faced with a noisy neighbourhood.
"It just never stopped. There were funerals, karaoke sessions, and weddings. Not to mention the fact that my neighbours' flats were undergoing renovation. There were loud drilling sounds as early as eight in the morning."
She also claimed to be a light sleeper, and that once she wakes up, she "can't go back to sleep".
SINGAPORE - In her own words, she went from having a bowl of instant noodles after venting on Facebook to losing her job.
Within 24 hours of her rant about noise from a Malay wedding at the void deck, Ms Amy Cheong was sacked from her position as National Trades Union Congress (NTUC)'s assistant director, Membership Department.
She had, on Sunday afternoon, hit out at Malays holding weddings at void decks, saying they should "pay for a real wedding" and that "maybe then the divorce rate won't be so high".
Within five minutes of the posting, a Malay friend warned her on her Facebook page that people would react and judge her harshly.
In just 24 hours, she went from a girl-next-door to a vilified woman, with netizens flaming her and government ministers criticising her.
The New Paper asked Ms Cheong in a 45-minute phone interview last evening: So are you Singapore's most hated woman?
She replied: "No, people don't know me enough to hate me. They hate my comments."
Comments that she claimed to regret making and which she clarified repeatedly throughout the interview were not meant to be racist.On Saturday, she said she was again subjected to loud noise from a celebration taking place nearby.
Ms Cheong said: "I wasn't sure exactly what it was, but I saw a lot of Malay people dressed-up, and they were heading to a void deck where banners had been set up.
"I knew it was some sort of celebration, so I assumed it was a wedding."
She added: "I was really cranky that day because all week long, I had been looking forward to the weekend to get some rest. There was someone screaming into a microphone and I tried closing all my windows and doors, but it was still very noisy."Ms Cheong claimed that she had previously made a Facebook posting questioning whether there were more appropriate places apart from void decks to hold events like weddings, funerals and karaoke sessions.
"I've always been very blunt and vocal, but what I said had nothing to do with race. It was about the situation. At that time, I didn't think carefully about what I was saying because I was venting my frustrations," she said.
It was only at 10.30pm on Sunday that she realised she was becoming the talk of the town after her friends flooded her with phone calls about the unfolding drama online.
Her post had gone viral, with more than 12,000 reactions from angry netizens, many of whom called her a racist and demanded her sacking.
Ms Cheong said: "I was just shocked. I totally didn't expect something like this to happen and when I saw the petition to get me fired, I was astonished at how far people would go to get back at somebody.
"I'm not very tech-savvy when it comes to Facebook, which is why my account wasn't private. I guess that's one of the reasons this happened."By noon, she was out of the office.
While she was disappointed at her dismissal, Ms Cheong maintained that "everyone handling the case at work was really nice".
She said: "They talked to me and explained to me what will happen next. Of course, I'm upset that I lost my job, but I understand where they're coming from."
Less than two hours after her sacking, a job ad was placed by NTUC to fill her position.
She also reiterated her claims on Facebook that her mistake should not be used against NTUC, saying: "I really hope that people don't use this to bring down NTUC's reputation.
"When I posted that comment on Facebook, I didn't think of myself as a representative of NTUC. I saw myself as someone who was home on the weekend complaining to her friends."
After her dismissal, she issued an open letter to the public through the media. She reiterated that she was "terribly sorry" and hoped for the public to "find it in their hearts to forgive her for her mistake".
At this point, Ms Cheong states that she is "unsure" of what she'll do next and that she's still in shock and "trying to take everything in".
However, she said that one thing she has learnt is the dangers of social media, saying that "while social media can help a lot of people, in this case, it's very damaging".
Meanwhile, netizens - many of whom are part of the Chinese community here - are continuing to flame her on social media sites.
By Monday evening, four government ministers had also commented on the postings.
Among them were Minister of Foreign Affairs and Law K. Shanmugam and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
Mr Shanmugam, describing Ms Cheong's actions as "shameful" and "unacceptable", said they confirmed what he had long suspected: "There are deep fault lines in our society, based on race/religion".
PM Lee said the incident "sharply reminds us how easily a few thoughtless words can cause grave offence to many", but called it "an isolated case".
The police mentioned on their Facebook page that reports had been made against Ms Cheong. When contacted, a police spokesman confirmed this and said they are looking into the matter.
TNP understands that Ms Cheong left Singapore last night for Perth, Australia, where she studied in a university.
[email protected]
