Indian composer admits he has no claim to Count on Me song
He now does not lay claim to song nearly identical to Count On Me, Singapore
Following a probe by the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY), Indian composer Joseph Mendoza has admitted he does not have evidence to prove that he wrote We Can Achieve - a song that is near identical to the Republic's National Day tune, Count On Me, Singapore.
Mr Mendoza, who was accused of copying the song, has backtracked and now "does not lay any claim to the lyrics and tune of the song (Count On Me, Singapore)", the ministry said in a Facebook post yesterday.
The songs were at the centre of a plagiarism controversy that erupted last week.
Mr Mendoza had vehemently claimed that he wrote We Can Achieve in 1983, three years before Count On Me, Singapore, which was composed by Canadian Hugh Harrison and arranged by home-grown jazz stalwart Jeremy Monteiro.
MCCY, which holds the copyright to the song, cited the contemporaneous evidence of Mr Monteiro, as well as checks it conducted in India which surfaced "no evidence or records whatsoever of Mr Mendoza having any rights to We Can Achieve from 1983 or anytime thereafter".
Along with accepting that the Singapore Government holds the copyright to the music and lyrics of the song, Mr Mendoza, according to MCCY, has "unconditionally and irrevocably withdrawn any claims of whatsoever nature, directly or indirectly, with regard to the lyrics and tune of We Can Achieve, which is similar to the song".
"He has informed all of his associates and networks of the above, and instructed all social media platforms to remove We Can Achieve."
MCCY's statement added: "Mr Mendoza has apologised for the 'confusion caused' and states that he has no intention of attacking the integrity or professionalism of Mr Hugh Harrison."
APOLOGY ACCEPTED
The ministry accepted his apology and reiterated: "It is important that our rights to the song are protected and that there remains no doubt as to our origination and ownership of the Song. MCCY accepts Mr Mendoza's apology on the terms set out above, and will treat the matter as closed, on this basis."
"It's a good outcome for everyone concerned," said Mr Monteiro, adding: "There are a few different copyright and legal issues there, but having been involved, I think it's been handled well by everyone."
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