Hospital sanctions Filipino nurse for anti-Singapore post

MANILA, Philippines — A Filipino nurse in Singapore was sanctioned by his employer for alleged "inflammatory online posts" against Singaporeans.

In a statement released earlier this week, the Tan Tock Seng Hospital said that the nurse has been prevented from interacting with patients and placed on administrative duties pending police investigation.

"This is a serious matter. We are a public healthcare institution and we expect our staff to be respectful and professional," hospital officials said.

"We do not condone behavior or comments that are irresponsible and offensive, we [we] will take appropriate disciplinary action where necessary," they added.

Reacting to the hospital's statement, Singaporean nationals on Facebook demanded that the nurse be sacked.

The unidentified nurse allegedly called Singaporeans "losers" and expressed hope that "disasters strike Singapore and more Singaporeans die."

"Now the Singaporeans are losers in their own country. We take their jobs, their women, their future and soon evict all SG losers out of their own country," the post reads.

The nurse, however, denied composing the Facebook post that subsequently went viral, saying he was hacked.

The Philippine Embassy in Singapore, meanwhile, reminded Filipinos on Facebook to be responsible when posting on the social network.

"[The posts] might be deemed offensive or hurtful to others. Use your good judgement at all times," the embassy said in a statement.