SMU Associate Professor of Law Eugene Tan shared his thoughts on the Public Prosecutor’s decision last month to certify that drug courier Cheong Chun Yin had substantively assisted in disrupting drug trafficking activities. He agreed that Cheong Chun Yin’s case raises reasons for the need for clearer guidelines in the issuance of certificates, “even if concerns about convicted persons ‘gaming’ the system persist”. Noting that the threshold of substantive assistance may also be dependent on the conduct of foreign law enforcement agencies – acting with reasonable speed and care, and providing information to the Central Narcotics Bureau on the usefulness of data given by the convicted courier – Associate Prof Tan said Cheong’s case suggests how the threshold is “dicey”. However, SMU Assistant Professor of Law Chen Siyuan noted that the amendments’ purpose was to enhance the effectiveness of the Misuse of Drugs Act in a “non-capricious and fair way without affecting our underlying fight against drugs”, as Law Minister K Shanmugam put it during the parliamentary debate on the amendments.