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Old 10-11-2016, 08:15 PM   #6
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MND 'deeply concerned' with auditor's report on improper payments made by AHTC
Posted 04 Nov 2016 18:00 Updated 05 Nov 2016 04:07
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SINGAPORE: The Ministry of National Development (MND) and the Housing and Development Board (HDB) have asked the Aljunied-Hougang Town Council (AHTC) to take steps to recover payments which were improperly made.

HDB sent a letter to the Workers' Party-run town council on Friday afternoon (Nov 4), saying that from the report of auditor KPMG, it is clear that town council funds "have been wrongfully paid, in substantial amounts that run into millions".

HDB wrote that immediate steps must be taken to "recover the improper payments, including, where necessary, the commencement of legal proceedings". It also gave AHTC seven days to appoint a suitable third party to recover the funds lost.





Screenshots of HDB's letter to AHTC on Friday.

In a statement on Friday, MND said that is "deeply concerned" with KPMG's findings, describing them as "serious" and noting the "significant loss of public monies". The independent auditor's report, released on Tuesday, noted "serious flaws" in the governance of AHTC. It also identified improper payments of about S$1.5 million from May 2011 to November 2015, of which S$608,911 ought to be recovered. The payments were made to managing agent FM Solutions and Services (FMSS) and contractor FM Solutions and Integrated Services (FMSI).

The auditor's report also said the town council was exposed to "serious conflicts of interest", as the direct owners of FMSS and FMSI also held key management and financial control positions in the town council.

Some of these improprieties, if committed deliberately, "could amount to criminal conduct", the auditor added.

President of the Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants, Gerard Ee, had said AHTC's checks and balances are "not working". "The report paints a serious overall picture that justifies a deeper investigation,” he told TODAY.

MND said "the Government is considering what other steps are necessary ... in relation to the way some of the town councillors have behaved in dealing with public funds".

"To protect residents’ interests, steps must be taken to recover the monies which have been lost, and to ensure that those who acted wrongfully are held to account," said the ministry.

BALL IS NOW IN AHTC'S COURT: LAWYER

Mr Shashi Nathan, who is a partner in the Criminal Litigation Practice in KhattarWong, told Channel NewsAsia: "When you have missing funds like this, (the town council) needs to try and do a tracing exercise to see how the funds have left the accounts."

Mr Nathan added that at this stage, while the KPMG report is "serious enough", the town council now has to see if the payments can be justified. "If they can't, then they have to explain why these funds were used in that manner," he said.

"The ball is in the town council's court to go through the figures, look at the numbers, look at the flow of funds in and out of the accounts (and see) if they were used for the correct reasons. If they feel there are irregularities, they should deal with it, and if necessary, contact the authorities - if there has been any conduct which has been dishonest," he said. "Ultimately, the town council has control over these funds. The town council must explain."

"It is premature to just look at the KPMG report and come to the conclusion that there is any criminal conduct," Mr Nathan added.

- CNA/gs/dl

Don't know why are they so childish politically.......

As if the > $400,000 consultation for bin center, the few hundreds of millions excess in Youth Olympic, the $2 company, the many ministries and agencies payment problems highlighted by AG, YEARS AFTER F**KING YEARS are all right and this small issue in AHTC is world ending......

This is the kind of government majority of Singaporeans loved!!! Despicable!
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