I AM writing on behalf of my father to highlight the following incident when he visited Admiralty Park on 5 Sep.
He had parked his car in the designated parking lot in the carpark, but the National Parks Board (NParks) had issued a fine to him for apparently failing to obey the following sign: 'This carpark is only for visitors to Admiralty Park. Parking of vehicles for any other purposes is not permitted.'
We live in Woodlands and my family and I visit Admiralty Park often.
As it was the school holidays, my father took my cousins to the park for a walk in the morning.
At about 11.30am, they decided to head back home for lunch but my father was dismayed when he found out that he was fined $30 by NParks.
My father is not English-educated, so when he asked me why he was fined, I drove to the scene and saw the signage displayed within the west entrance of the park. It clearly indicated that the carpark was for visitors.
I was not able to locate any other sign which may have stated that drivers need to display parking coupons.
My father had parked his vehicle in an orderly manner and did not obstruct the flow of traffic.
Was there a time limit for parking?
I am really puzzled by the reason for the fine.
I hope the relevant authority from NParks can conduct an investigation into this matter.
Seah Weixiang
This was first published in The New Paper on Sept 13, 2008.