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Tag: People’s Action party

  • PAP New Face: Research scientist Dr Ismail Muhamad Hanif Seen With Halimah Yacob

    Dr Ismail Muhamad Hanif. Dr Ismail, 35, was seen mingling with Bukit Batok East residents on Sunday morning. — FILE PHOTO: NUS ALUMNI OFFICE

     

    BY NUR ASYIQIN MOHAMAD SALLEH

    Research scientist Dr Ismail Muhamad Hanif, 35, was seen mingling with Bukit Batok East residents on Sunday morning as Jurong GRC MP Madam Halimah Yacob took Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Lawrence Wong on a walkabout around shops in the area.

    Dr Ismail, who is married, has been a member of the Tampines West Citizens’ Consultative Committee (CCC) since 2009 and had helped out in the last general elections.

    Madam Halimah told reporters that she had met Dr Ismail at a community event and invited him to volunteer in her ward.

    She declined to say if he was a potential PAP candidate for the next polls, only that he was part of Bukit Batok East’s Volunteer Induction Programme, which was started in 2010.

    Source: The Straits Times

  • WP New Faces: Firuz Khan and Leon Perera

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    Credit: Firuz Khan Facebook

    SINGAPORE — A former civil servant who became a corporate high-flyer has reportedly joined the ranks of the Workers’ Party (WP).

    In what some analysts have described as a tit-for-tat response to the tactics of the People’s Action Party (PAP), Mr Leon Perera was out and about in WP colours under the full glare of the media last Sunday.

    Mr Perera, 44, who is chief executive of Spire Research and Consulting, was among party volunteers and members handing out food rations and daily necessities to elderly residents in the Paya Lebar division.

    Chinese daily Lianhe Zaobao identified Mr Perera and Mr Firuz Khan, 48, who works in the banking and retail industry, as the opposition party’s potential candidates for the next General Election due by January 2017.

    In recent weeks, the PAP has exposed to the public eye its potential candidates for the next GE — a move analysts felt was a significant departure from its practice of keeping its cards close to the chest as far as the identities of potential candidates were concerned. Analysts noted that the party had learnt from the 2011 GE that voters need time to familiarise themselves with new candidates.

    Unlike Mr Khan, who has been with the WP for several years and was on the council of its youth wing in 2007, Mr Perera is a new face in the WP’s ranks. When contacted, Mr Perera declined to comment. The WP was also tight-lipped about his involvement.

    A former assistant head of the Economic Development Board’s Enterprise Development Division, Mr Perera graduated from Oxford University with double first-class honours. He is also an adviser for The Independent news website and vice-president on the board of the Humanitarian Organization for Migration Economics. Last Sunday, Mr Perera was photographed by Lianhe Zaobao beside WP’s Aljunied GRC Member of Parliament (MP) Chen Show Mao.

    Political analysts previously noted that the PAP was taking a leaf out of the WP’s book by having potential candidates work the ground early. Singapore Management University law don Eugene Tan said the opposition party is now, in turn, responding to the PAP as well.

    “The WP realises that they need to also demonstrate a sense of urgency and informally introduce their potential candidates early,” said Associate Professor Tan, who is also a Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP). Agreeing, former NMP Siew Kum Hong said the WP was “following PAP’s playbook”.

    Assoc Prof Tan, who was Mr Perera’s classmate in junior college, said he was not surprised to learn of the latter’s political involvement. Adding that it was a natural transition for Mr Perera as an activist, he said: “Leon has always been politically conscious and has very strong ideas about government and politics in Singapore.”

    So far, five potential PAP candidates have been identified. Most recently, corporate lawyer Amrin Amin, 35, was described last Saturday to reporters by Senior Parliamentary Secretary (Education and Manpower) Hawazi Daipi — who is also an MP for Sembawang GRC — as “someone who has the potential to be a candidate”.

    Mr Perera is the latest in the line of former civil servants who have joined the opposition. Others include husband-and-wife pair Tony Tan and Hazel Poa, who are with the National Solidarity Party.

    Mr Siew said: “It’s just a natural state of things as politics in Singapore normalises. You are going to see good candidates going to both sides.”

     

    Source: TODAYOnline, Firuz Khan

     

     

  • Workers’ Party on Hijab Issue: Government Should Conduct Constructive Public Consultations

    Meet-the-People Sessions (MPS)
    Every Wednesday, 7.30pm – 9.30pm
    @ Blk 550 Bedok North Ave 1 | Map: http://bit.ly/xShedV
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    Office: Member of Parliament
    District: Aljunied GRC
    Party: The Workers’ Party

    By MP for Aljunied GRC, Muhamad Faisal Abdul Manap
    [Delivered in Committee of Supply on 12 March 2014]

    Since 2011 the government had set out to foster social cohesion and to build an inclusive society through the budget. While an ‘inclusive society’ means different things to different people, it is important to know that a fundamental tenet of an inclusive society is the tolerant and respectful embrace of the cultures and values that each community in Singapore holds dear.

    In the context of the ‘new normal’ in Singapore society, Singaporeans are increasingly more vocal and want their views to be heard. I believe that in fostering multiculturalism, public dialogue and constant consultations are the way forward. In the case of the recent hijab issue, to the best of my understanding, the dialogue that was conducted with representatives of the Malay community was more of a platform for the government to convey its stand, rather than a dialogue. This is because the government has already came to the decision of not allowing hijab to be worn prior to the dialogue session instead of making decision at or after the session. I am of the view that the government should enhance not only the manner in which it communicates but also its attitude when performing the communicating. At the same time, consultation with one community alone is inadequate as it may lead to hasty conclusions and unnecessary assumptions. A more constructive approach would be public consultations conducted with different stakeholders, and the different ethnic communities. The Singaporeans I meet from the different ethnic communities understand that the final policy outcomes may not go according to their preferences. Nonetheless, they hope that the government should also understand that the process is equally important to them.

    It is the responsibility of any government not to overtly impose its assumptions on any issue, particularly on sensitive and emotional issues. Rather it should base its understanding on scientific findings and in the event that such information is not available, commission a study on the matter. The government should also make available the information that it has. Public engagement and consultations that adopt a more transparent, forthright and comprehensive approach would allow us to better understand the issue at large and the context and the nuances behind each issue. I hope the Minister would agree with me that such an approach would bring us closer to a consensus that is workable, productive and acceptable by the various stakeholders involved. That should be the way forward towards an inclusive society and a multicultural Singapore.

    Source: Workers’ Party

  • Mantan Anggota Parlimen Ariff Suradi Meninggal Dunia

    AL-FATEHAH.

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    MANTAN anggota parlimen Parti Tindakan Raykat (PAP) Haji Mohamed Ariff Suradi meninggal dunia pagi tadi di Hospital Besar Singapura pada usia 84 tahun.

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    Beliau meninggalkan lima orang anak, 16 cucu dan dua cicit.

    Allahyarham Haji Mohamed Ariff merupakan generasi pertama pemimpin Melayu PAP yang mencipta sejarah dalam Pilihan Raya Umum 1963 apabila beliau memenangi kawasan undi Kampong Kembangan, ketika itu kubu kuat parti Umno Singapura.

    ariffsuradi3

    Haji Mohamed Ariff memenangi pilihan raya bagi kawasan undi Kampong Kembangan pada 1968 dan 1972. Allahyarham merupakan pemimpin kesatuan sekerja sebelum menceburi bidang politik.

    Beliau mendapat pendidikan Melayu di Sekolah Tanglin Tinggi dan Kota Raja; berpendidikan Inggeris di sekolah Inggeris di Monks’s Hill dan Victoria.

    Sumber: Berita Harian Singapura

  • BREAKING: People’s Association Gets Adverse Ratings from Auditors

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    Yesterday (19 Feb), Minister for National Development Khaw Boon Wan requested Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam to direct the Auditor-General to conduct an audit of the opposition-run Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council’s (AHPETC) financial accounts.

    AHPETC’s auditor, Foo Kon Tan Grant Thornton LLP, had earlier submitted a “disclaimer of opinion” on AHPETC’s FY2012-13 financial statements, raising 13 issues of concern over the town council’s accounts.

    Earlier, on 14 February 2014, the Ministry of National Development (MND) said that the auditor’s disclaimer of opinion “is more severe than a qualified opinion” [Link].

    In yesterday’s statement, the PAP government said that the observations in the auditor’s report “raise serious questions about the reliability and accuracy of AHPETC’s financial and accounting systems”.

    “This is the second year that the Auditor has submitted a disclaimer of opinion on AHPETC’sFinancial Statements. Moreover the Auditor has raised several more issues of pressing concern this year, compared to last year. AHPETC’s Auditor’s Report and Financial Statements are cause for serious concern.”

    As it turns out, auditors have been giving an “adverse opinion” on the financial reports from the People’s Association (PA) for several years now.

    PA oversees all the grassroots activities in Singapore. It is a statutory board under the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCCY). The Chairman of PA is none other than PM Lee Hsien Loong himself.

    According to ACRA, there are a few types of audit opinions. A “disclaimer of opinion” means the auditor is unable to express an opinion on the financial statements but an “adverse opinion” means qualification of the financial report is not adequate to disclose the misleading or incomplete nature of the financial statements [Link]:

    Types of Audit Opinion Explanation
    Unqualified Opinion The auditor “concludes that the financial statements give a true and fair view or are presented fairly, in all material respects, in accordance with the applicable financial reporting framework.”
    Emphasis of matter (EOM) This is to “highlight a matter affecting the financial statements which is included in a note to the financial statements that more extensively discusses the matter. The addition of such an emphasis of matter paragraph does not affect the auditor’s opinion.”
    Qualified Opinion* This is expressed when the “auditor concludes that an unqualified opinion cannot be expressed but that the effect of any disagreement with management, or limitation on scope is not so material and pervasive as to require an adverse opinion or a disclaimer of opinion.”
    Disclaimer of Opinion* It is expressed when the “possible effect of a limitation on scope is so material and pervasive that the auditor has not been able to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence and accordingly is unable to express an opinion on the financial statements.”
    Adverse Opinion* It is expressed when the “effect of a disagreement is so material and pervasive to the financial statements that the auditor concludes that a qualification of the report is not adequate to disclose the misleading or incomplete nature of the financial statements.”

    TRE has gone through PA’s financial reports on its website and found the following:

    FY2007 (07/08) [Link]

    For FY2007, PA did not include the financial statements of grassroots organizations (GROs) operating under itself. The auditor could not “assess the financial impact to the financial statements of the Association arising from the non-inclusion of the financial statements of theGROs”. As such, the auditor gave an “adverse opinion” against PA because its financial statements “[did] not present fairly” the state of affairs of the Association:

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    (published by PricewaterhouseCoopers, 15 Sep 2009)

    FY2009 (09/10) [Link]

    In FY2009, a new auditor, KPMG LLP, took over the audit of PA. The new auditor said, “We do not have sufficient information to assess the financial impact to the financial statements of the Association arising from the non-inclusion of the financial statements of the GROs.” As such, the new auditor also gave an “adverse opinion”:

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    (published by KPMG LLP, 15 Jul 2010)

    Then, the format for the online version of PA’s financial reports for the next 3 years (FY2010 – 2012) changed [a href=”http://www.pa.gov.sg/about-us/annual-reports.html”>Link].

    The public could no longer see the detailed opinions of the auditors. PA only published the “financial highlights” in these 3 reports. In other words, the financial reports became just financial summaries:

    TRE then went down to the National Library to attempt to get printed copies of PA’s financial reports but the librarian was not able to find printed copies for the last 3 FYs (FY2010 – 2012). The library only has printed copies up to FY2009. The librarian told TRE to refer to the online versions instead.

    Not giving up, TRE did a further extensive online search and managed to find an online version of PA’s FY2010 financial report. This copy was found on the Parliament website:

    FY2010 (10/11) [Link]

    Comparing this with the online version on PA’s website [Link], they are essentially the sameexcept that the one found on the Parliament website discloses the detailed opinion of the auditor at the end:

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    (published by KPMG LLP, 15 Jul 2011)

    Again, the auditor could only give an “adverse opinion” for PA’s FY2010 financial report because the auditor “[did] not have sufficient information to assess the financial impact to the financial statements of the Association arising from the non-inclusion of the financial statements of the GROs.”

    The relationship of PA and PAP is very close. Mr Lee Kuan Yew once proudly said that the Chinese have been sending teams of officials to learn from Singapore for years:

    They discover that the People’s Action Party has only a small office in Bedok. But everywhere they go, they see the PAP – in the RCs (residents’ committees),CCCs (citizens’ consultative committees), and the CCs (community clubs).

    The operating expenditure of PA is huge. According to its latest financial report (FY2012), PA’s operating expenditure for the year increased by $46 million to $483 million. Government grants which are taxpayers’ money given to PA amounted to $434 million in FY2012:

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    Dr Ernest Kan, President of the Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants (ISCA) and Pasir RisPunggol grassroots leader, had earlier agreed with MND that the audit findings on AHPETC are “serious” (‘President of ISCA: AHPETC’s audit report ‘serious’‘). It is not known what Dr Kan has to say about PA’s audit findings which have garnered “adverse opinions” from auditors.

    It is also not known if the Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY), Lawrence Wong, will request Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam to direct the Auditor-General to conduct an audit of PA’s financial accounts, since PA comes under MCCY.

    Source: http://www.tremeritus.com/2014/02/20/breaking-auditors-give-adverse-ratings-to-pas-financial-reports/