Neighbour keep smoking at corridor, when I complain they say “you also smoke before what” 🤡

So I live in a typical 4-room HDB block. For the past few months, my next-door neighbour (let’s call him Uncle Ah Beng) has been using the common corridor right outside my unit like his own personal outdoor smoking lounge. I’m talking 5 to 6 times a day, standing right next to the staircase or near my window, puffing away. The secondhand smoke directly blows into my living room, especially in the afternoon when there’s a breeze. My curtain now literally smells like an old kopi tiam ashtray, and my kid has sensitive nose, keep sneezing non-stop.

Now, full disclosure: I used to smoke. Key word is USED TO. I quit almost 3 years ago when my child was born. Cold turkey, hard struggle, but I did it. And even back when I was a smoker, I never smoked at the common corridor because I know HDB corridor is non-smoking zone and it’s damn inconsiderate to neighbours. I always went downstairs to the open space/void deck pavilion far away from people.

Yesterday evening, the smoke smell was super strong again. I opened my door and saw Uncle Ah Beng casually leaning against the railing, puffing away while scrolling TikTok on full volume.

I tried to be nice, okay? Walked up to him, smiled, and said:

“Uncle, sorry ah, can don’t smoke at the corridor? The smoke all go inside my house, my small kid keep coughing. Downstairs got designated area, can go down smoke?”

You know what this uncle replied me?

He looked at me, blew out a puff of smoke, and smirked:

“Wah bro, don’t act holy lah. You last time also smoke what! Now quit then suddenly become so high class ah? Last time you smoke I also never complain you!”

Genuinely stood there stunned for 5 seconds. What kind of logic is this???

1. First of all, like I said, I never smoked at the corridor when I was a smoker.
2. Second of all, even if I did (which I didn’t), what kind of logic is “you used to do something wrong, so now I am allowed to break the law and poison your air”?
3. Third, it’s literally illegal under NEA rules to smoke along HDB common corridors, stairwells, and covered walkways!

I tried to explain to him that it’s not about acting “high class”, it’s about basic HDB etiquette and my kid’s health. He just waved his hand at me, said “Suka hati you lah, don’t so many pattern”, walked back into his flat, and slammed the door.

This morning 7:30 AM, guess what? Fresh scent of Marlboro Red drifting through my master bedroom window again.

I know people will say “just report OneService app / NEA”. But we all know how OneService works for smoking cases—by the time NEA officers come down (if they even come), Uncle already finish his cigarette and back inside watching TV. Unless they catch him red-handed, nothing happens. Plus I don’t really want to turn this into an all-out neighbour war where he start doing petty revenge like throwing rubbish or scratching my door, but he is completely unreasonble.

Anyone successfully dealt with this kind of “you also what” Boomer logic before? Should I just buy a super strong standing fan and point it directly out my doorway to blow the smoke back into his unit every time he smokes? Or go straight to Town Council / MP meet-people session?

Tired of breathing in secondhand smoke in my own home man. Help a bro out. 😮‍💨