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Tag: WP

  • AHPETC Paid Highest Rates To Managing Agent In Three Out Of Past Four Years

    AHPETC Paid Highest Rates To Managing Agent In Three Out Of Past Four Years

    Among all the town councils, the Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council (AHPETC) paid the highest rates to its managing agent (MA) — for both residential and commercial units — for three out of the past four years, figures from the Ministry of National Development (MND) showed.

    Ms Sylvia Lim, Workers’ Party (WP) chairman and Aljunied GRC Member of Parliament, had filed questions for written answers, asking the MND for the MA rates of each of the town council for residential and commercial units in 2011, 2012 and 2013. She also asked for the names of the firms that were appointed as the MA of each town council for those years.

    In response, the MND released figures for the rates between 2011 and last year. For residential units, AHPETC paid the highest rates to its MA, FM Solutions and Services (FMSS), for the four years, except in 2013 when its rates was behind what Potong Pasir Town Council paid its MA, EM Services.

    For commercial units, AHPETC’s MA rates were the highest in 2011, 2013 and last year, but its rates were topped by those paid by the East Coast and Pasir Ris-Punggol town councils in 2012.

    The ministry also highlighted that all MA contracts charge a “clean MA rate” for each property type, with the exception of the FMSS’ 2011 MA contract with the town council. Unlike other MA contracts, FMSS’ MA fee comprises three separate cost components: The MA rate, a fee to cover the costs of existing staff of the former Hougang Town Council, and a fee to cover the costs of new staff.

    During last month’s parliamentary debate on the Auditor-General’s audit report on AHPETC, which found several accounting and corporate governance lapses, Law and Foreign Affairs Minister K Shanmugam cited the MA rates of each town council last year to show that the fees paid by AHPETC to FMSS were significantly higher. Among other things, Mr Shanmugan charged that the town council made inflated payments to FMSS — whose directors were also key office holders in the town council — without transparency and accountability.

    Ms Lim questioned the figures cited by Mr Shanmugam, asserting that MA rates for commercial and residential units are usually different. In response, Mr Shanmugam said the figures were accurate.

    The ministry has since clarified that the MAs of all town councils, with the exception of FMSS, have done away with the practice of charging differentiated rates for residential and commercial units. The ministry also said Pasir Ris-Punggol Town Council had called for a fresh tender last year, which adjusted its rates for commercial units from S$11.50 to S$5.50.

    Ms Lim also tabled a question asking the ministry what were the rates charged by the MA for the former Aljunied Town Council — which was then run by People’s Action Party — for 2010, 2011 and 2012. The ministry noted that the contract which the former Aljunied Town Council signed with its MA, CPG Facilities Management, is in fact in AHPETC’s possession. CPG’s rate per commercial unit was S$12.80 in those three years. Its rate per residential unit during the period was between S$6.03 and S$6.73.

    Taking into account various components in FMSS’ MA fee, the town council’s payments to FMSS in 2011 were effectively 20 per cent higher than the amount paid to CPG Facilities Management in 2010. By last year, AHPETC was paying about S$1.6 million more to its MA than other town councils, the ministry reiterated.

    Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC MP Hri Kumar Nair questioned the additional fees that the town council paid to FMSS in 2011. “Since the work of running the enlarged Aljunied-Hougang Town Council fell on former Hougang staff — some of whom became owners of FMSS — as well as the new staff whose salaries were provided for, why were additional MA fees payable for that year to FMSS?”

     

    Source: www.todayonline.com

  • Faisal Manap Saran Agar Kemansuhan Yuran Peperiksaan Peringkat Nasional Diperluas Kepada Pelajar Sekolah Swasta, Privet Dan Pelajar Sambilan Politeknik, ITE

    Faisal Manap Saran Agar Kemansuhan Yuran Peperiksaan Peringkat Nasional Diperluas Kepada Pelajar Sekolah Swasta, Privet Dan Pelajar Sambilan Politeknik, ITE

    By MP for Aljunied GRC, Muhamad Faisal bin Abdul Manap
    [Delivered in Parliament on 4 Mar 2015]

    Puan,

    Belanjawan 2015, pada pandangan saya, membawa mesej perubahan pada pendekatan pemerintah dalam usaha untuk memperbaiki dan mendatangkan manfaat kepada rakyat Singapura. Dapat dihayati bahawa pendekatan pemerintah pada belanjawan kali ini lebih cenderung kepada pendekatan hala kiri atau pendekatan yang lebih memberatkan aspek-aspek keseimbangan sosial dengan memberi lebih fokus kepada pengagihan sumber-sumber negara kepada segenap lapisan masyarakat Singapura. Peralihan ini adalah sesuatu yang memberangsangkan. Seperti yang diucapkan oleh rakan saya Puan Sylvia Lim, Belanjawan kali ini lebih memberi penekanan kepada pelaburan sumber manusia serta jaringan keselamatan sosial. Penekanan yang sebegini amat diperlukan memandangkan keadaan jurang pendapatan dan pemilikan harta di Singapura yang membimbangkan.

    Puan,

    Dalam ucapan ini, saya ingin menyentuh 3 aspek atau perkara yang telah disampaikan oleh Menteri Kewangan Encik Tharman semasa ucapan belanjawan beliau, iaitu (i) Tabung Simpanan Pekerja atau CPF, (ii) Skim Ihsan Senja dan (iii) Kemansuhan Yuran Peperiksaan Nasional dan yuran peperiksaan Politeknik dan ITE.

    (i) Tabung Simpanan Pekerja atau CPF

    Parti pekerja ingin mengutarakan dua usulan bagi skim CPF.  Usulan yang pertama adalah menurunkan usia kelayakkan bagi pengeluaran wang dari akaun persaraan atau Payout Eligibilty Age, dulu yang dikenali sebagai Draw-Down Age. Buat masa sekarang, para pesara akan menerima pembayaran bulanan dari akaun persaraan CPF apabila mencapai usia 65 tahun, bermula dari 2018. Kami ingin mencadangkan agar had usia pengeluaran ini dikurangkan daripada usia 65 kepada 60 tahun. Kami percaya ini akan memberi keringanan kepada para pencarum jika mereka memilih untuk membuat pengeluaran bulanan lebih awal dari akaun persaraan mereka atas sebab-sebab yang tertentu.

    Usulan kedua Parti Pekerja bagi skim CPF adalah sesuatu yang pernah disuarakan sebelum ini iaitu untuk memisahkan Usia Kelayakan bagi pengeluaran wang dari akaun persaraan atau Payout Eligibility Age daripada usia persaraan. Ini adalah supaya usia yang membolehkan pengeluaran wang dari akaun persaraan akan terus kekal dan tidak terjejas walaupun usia persaraan meningkat. Kami mencadangkan sedemikian kerana sebahagian besar masyarakat Singapura merasa kurang senang pada perubahan had usia kelayakan bagi pengeluaran wang dari akaun persaraan yang sentiasa berubah dan meningkat. Dengan mengekalkan had usia kelayakan ini, ia akan memberi para pencarum lebih jaminan bila mereka boleh mengeluarkan wang dari CPF justeru dapat membuat perancangan yang sepatutnya.

    (ii) Skim Ihsan Senja

    Puan, perkara kedua yang saya ingin sentuh adalah tentang Skim Ihsan Senja. Skim ini adalah satu initiatif yang baik dan memang amat diperlukan. Skim ini membolehkan golongan warga Singapura yang berusia 65 tahun ke atas yang berpendapatan 20 hingga 30 peratus paling bawah menikmati sokongan kewangan seumur hidup.

    Puan, keprihatian saya tentang skim ini adalah tentang proses implementasinya. Proses implementasi adalah satu aspek penting yang akan menentukan betapa efektifnya sesebuah skim dalam mencapai tujuan utamanya. Menerusi pengamatan dan juga pengalaman saya dalam bidang kerja sosial, kriteria dan proses penilian yang terlalu ketat ada masanya boleh menyebabkan kes-kes yang tulen dan memerlukan terlepas peluang untuk mendapatkan bantuan.

    Seperti yang diketahui, tujuan utama skim ini adalah untuk meringankan bebanan kewangan yang dihadapi oleh warga emas yang telah banyak menyumbang kepada pembangunan Singapura serta untuk mencerminkan nilai kita sebagai sebuah masyarakat yang inklusif. Oleh itu saya harap pemerintah dapat melaksanakan skim Ihsan Senja ini dengan hati dan minda yang terbuka, fleksible dan penuh keihsanan agar skim ini dapat memberi kemanfaatan yang terbaik kepada warga emas kita.

    Puan, sepekara lagi tentang Skim ini adalah mengenai cara pembayarannya. Seperti yang dikatakan oleh Menteri Kewangan, pembayaran kepada warga emas yang layak akan dilakukan tiga bulan sekali. Saya berpendapat agar pembayaran dapat dilakukan sebulan sekali agar lebih mudah bagi penerima untuk mengurus bil-bil dan perbelanjaan bulanan mereka.

    (iii) Kemansuhan yuran Peperiksaan Nasional  dan yuran Peperiksaan Politeknik/ITE

    Perkara ketiga yang ingin saya ketengahkan adalah tentang kemansuhan yuran peperiksaan nasional dan yuran peperiksaan politeknik dan ITE. Saya mengalu-alukan kemansuhan yuran-yuran Peperiksaan Nasional seperti PSLE, GCE Peringkat ’N’, ‘O’ dan ‘A’ dan juga yuran bagi peperiksaan Politeknik serta ITE seperti yang diumumkan. Kemansuhan yuran peperiksaan nasional ini merangkumi setiap pelajar Singapura yang menuntut di sekolah pemerintah sementara kemansuhan yuran peperiksaan Politeknik dan ITE diberikan kepada pelajar-pelajar sepenuh masa.

    Disini, saya ingin meminta agar Kementerian Pedidikan membuat pertimbangan untuk melanjutkan kemansuhan yuran-yuran peperiksaan ini kepada pelajar-pelajar sekolah swasta dan juga kepada pelajar-pelajar politeknik dan ITE yang membuat pengajian secara sambilan.

    Puan, pada tahun 2013 Kementerian Pendidikan telah mengambil keputusan untuk melanjutkan Skim Edusave kepada setiap pelajar-pelajar Singapura yang berusia 7 hingga 16 tahun. Keputusan ini diambil selepas 20 tahun Skim Edusave diperkenalkan iaitu pada 1993. Dalam masa 20 tahun ini, ramai pelajar-pelajar yang tidak menuntut di sekolah-sekolah pemerintah atau awam telah terlepas peluang untuk meraih manfaat dari skim ini.

    Menteri Negara bagi Pendidikan, Puan Sim Ann, dalam ucapan beliau semasa perbincangan Pindaan rang undang-undang Skim Endowmen dan Simpanan  Pendidikan telah menyatakan bahawa Kementerian Pendidikan telah menjalankan kajian selepas debat COS 2013 untuk melanjutkan Skim Edusave dan setelah pertimbangan yang teliti, Perdana Menteri telah mengumumkan lanjutan sumbangan Edusave kepada semua rakyat Singapura yang berumur tujuh hingga 16 di Rapat Hari Kebangsaan pada tahun 2013.

    Puan, saya ingin meminta agar Kementerian Pendidikan dapat mengadakan kajian dan penelitian yang sama dalam perkara ini iaitu kemungkinan melanjutkan kemansuhan yuran peperiksaan nasional bagi setiap pelajar-pelajar Singapura, tidak terhad kepada pelajar-pelajar yang menuntut di sekolah pemerintah sahaja, serta mengambil langkah yang sama juga terhadap pelajar-pelajar politeknik dan ITE yang membuat pengajian secara sambilan.

    Puan, sepekara lagi yang saya ingin cadangkan adalah agar Kementerian Pendidikan turut membuat pertimbangan untuk melanjutkan skim FAS kepada pelajar-pelajar Singapura yang menuntut di sekolah-sekolah swasta atau privet. Saya rasa adalah penting bagi setiap skim bantuan pendidikan pemerintah dihulurkan kepada kesemua pelajar-pelajar Singapura kerana setiap daripada pelajar-pelajar ini apabila dewasa kelak akan menjadi warga yang menyumbang kepada pembangunan masyarakat dan negara.

    Puan, akhirkata, saya harap pemerintah dapat membuat penilaian yang serius tentang cadangan-cadangan yang telah diutarakan agar skim-skim yang disebutkan diatas akan mendatangkan lebih maanfaat kepada masyarakat Singapura secara keseluruhannya, ini sesuai dengan objektif pemerintah untuk membina sebuah masyarakat yang saksama dan inklusif.

    Terima Kasih Puan.

  • Pritam Singh: Managing Agent’s Staff Not Privy To Tender Process

    Pritam Singh: Managing Agent’s Staff Not Privy To Tender Process

    The couple who own FMSS Solutions and Services (FMSS), the company appointed as Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council’s (AHPETC) managing agent, may hold top appointments in the town council, but they are not involved in its tender decision-making processes, Aljunied GRC Member of Parliament (MP) Pritam Singh said today (Feb 13), as he addressed the conflict of interest raised in the Auditor-General Office’s (AGO) audit of the beleaguered Workers’ Party-run town council.

    The AGO’s audit report had highlighted AHPETC’s failure to properly disclose and assess safeguards to address the potential conflicts before it entered into agreements with FMSS.

    Mr Singh, who is also the vice-chair of AHPETC, said: (The) “decision-making to award the tender in such a case would … be the sole remit of the Tender and Contracts Committee.”

    None of the staff at FMSS is privy to the evaluation or the decision-making process, he said. The secretary of the town council, Mr Danny Loh, and the general manager, Ms How Weng Fan, were not involved in this process, which Mr Singh stressed was conducted in “strict adherence” to the Town Council Financial Rules.

    Today, Mr Singh and his WP colleagues, Hougang MP Png Eng Huat and Punggol East MP Lee Li Lian, took turns to address some of the lapses flagged by the AGO and tried to assure the House that AHPETC was already setting things right.

    For instance, the town council had, in May 2013, paid back in full about S$18.6 million owed to the Housing and Development Board (HDB) for lift upgrading work, Mr Singh said.

    He added that those expenses were not recorded in the town council’s books in the earlier years because it had a dispute with the HDB over the amount that should be recognised.

    The AHPETC also “duly reversed” several incorrectly stated figures in its books, said Mr Singh, including a S$110,375 figure it believed it should have received from the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore — an error that was corrected last May.

    After the 2011 General Election, staff of the previous managing agent in Aljunied GRC, then a PAP ward, resigned.

    As they were familiar with the handling of financial documents, their resignation meant the town council lost “a lot of institutional knowledge”, Mr Singh explained.

    He acknowledged that the handover of records from the previous town council management could have been better managed, but added that proper handover procedures were now in place.

    To strengthen internal controls, closed-circuit television cameras have also been set up to monitor the town council’s reception area to detect unauthorised access to its mail, said Ms Lee.

    All cheques received are scanned and saved on a central server and those not banked in by the end of each day are placed in a safe, she added.

    Mr Png said AHPETC has made “incremental improvements” to its computer system over the years. Contrary to the AGO’s findings, he asserted, AHPETC has a “live and up-to-date” system to track every financial transaction in a resident’s account, including arrears in service and conservancy charges.

    Dismissing the insinuation in media reports that AHPETC’s secretary and the general manager, both owners of its managing agent, were pocketing monies paid to the town council,

    Mr Singh reiterated that the recurring payments were necessary “to keep (the) town running, (or) else rubbish will pile up three-storeys high and lives will be endangered if residents are trapped in the lifts with no rescue effort carried out in the shortest possible time”.

     

    Source: www.todayonline.com

  • Parliament To Debate Lapses Highlighted in AGO’s Audit Of WP’s AHPETC

    Parliament To Debate Lapses Highlighted in AGO’s Audit Of WP’s AHPETC

    Parliament will sit today, with the Auditor-General’s report on the audit of the Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council (AHPETC), as well as the calculation of public transport fares on the agenda.

    A total of 45 questions were submitted by Members of Parliament for this sitting: Thirty-three questions for oral answer and 12 for written answer.

    Minister of National Development Khaw Boon Wan will move a motion on the Auditor-General’s report on the AHPETC, which flagged major lapses in “governance and compliance”.

    The Ministry of National Development will call for a stronger legislative framework for town councils, in order to hold those responsible for their good management to proper account, and will also call on all Town Councils to uphold high standards of accounting, reporting and corporate governance to safeguard residents’ interest.

    The Members of Parliament have also submitted questions on a wide range of topics, covering childcare centres, public transport fees, the Productivity and Innovation Credit scheme and the rental or sale of HDB flats, among others.

    The State Lands (Amendment) Bill and the Land Acquisition (Amendment) Bill will be introduced during this Parliament sitting. The second reading for the Deep Seabed Mining Bill will also be deliberated.

    The report by the Auditor-General following its audit of the Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council (AHPETC) revealed that key individuals running the town council also have stakes in companies it hired to manage its estates.

    Experts have said that in cases where there are such conflicts of interests, a possible solution may be to have an independent body overseeing some of the town council’s management processes, such as when it calls for tenders.

    Lapses in the management of related party transactions were among the findings in the Auditor-General’s report that was released on Monday (Feb 9).

    The Auditor-General’s report found that AHPETC had hired two managing agents to carry out estate maintenance services. One of these was FM Solutions and Services Management (FMSS), which was first set up in May 2011.

    FMSS’ managing director, general manager and two deputy general managers are shareholders in the company. They are also on the management board of the AHPETC – holding the position of secretary, general manager and deputy general managers.

    AHPETC’s secretary also owns FM Solutions and Integrated Services (FMSI), a sole proprietorship. FMSI was engaged as a managing agent to manage precincts under the Hougang Town Council from April 2011 to June 2012.

    Among the lapses highlighted in the Auditor-General’s report, it was found that a fee of S$1.28 million paid to the two companies for services during the financial year of 2012 to 2013 was not recorded in its financial statements.

    Invoices made to the two companies were also issued and signed by the town council’s general manager and secretary, who were acting in their capacity as director of FMSS and owner of FMSI respectively.

    The report said the town councils did not adequately manage the conflicts of interests that arose.

    Associate Professor Mak Yuen Tee, who is with the National University of Singapore Business School, said: “The minimum is to declare and make people aware that you have those conflicts, to then not be involved on both sides of the transactions. In other words, you should not be verifying the payments and then approving the payments.

    “Ideally, you want a situation where you are not sitting on both sides – either you step off the town council or you do not get involved with the managing agent.”

    A possible alternative is to have an independent body overseeing some of the management processes like tenders for projects where there might be potential conflicts of interests.

    Assoc Prof Mak added: “If you need estate management services, one issue would be what are the available options out there. If you call a tender, are you able to get different organisations to participate in the tender?

    “I am involved in organisations where we call tenders and sometimes you do not have enough options and you end up selecting from a list of one. Ideally, you do not want that to happen but sometimes it will. If that happens and you end up in a related party situation, then that is where you need to take steps to mitigate that by involving people who are independent to review and to approve.”

    Another solution is to develop or adopt a framework that can help the town council improve its management processes and manage risks.

    Mr Sidney Lim, managing director of Protiviti Singapore, a company that deals with corporate governance, said: “The framework essentially looks at the three different risks that organisations face – the compliance risk, operational risk and reporting risk. And what is in the framework is a series of processes as well as components to help them manage and improve on corporate governance.”

     

    Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

  • David William Graaskov: A Hero?

    David William Graaskov: A Hero?

    Please refer to the Straits Times article, “Teen is first among five in Toa Payoh graffiti case to plead guilty to theft, criminal trespass”http://www.straitstimes.com/news/singapore/courts-crime/story/teen-first-among-five-toa-payoh-graffiti-case-plead-guilty-theft-c

    David William Graaskov, 18, is no ordinary Singapore young man. He is one of the few young men and women, far too few unfortunately in that island, who has the character and courage to stand on principle. No one can say that he does not have courage, character or integrity, qualities that most young men and women who have grown up under Lee Kuan Yew, the Singaporean dictator and his son, the Prime Minister, utterly lack.

    Any father or mother should be proud to have a boy like him. And in his journey in life ahead of him, one can see the making of a leader unlike the vast majority of others in that island who can only live their lives in fear and obedience.

    Singapore is a repressive island, devoid of basic human rights such as freedom of speech, assembly, association and anyone engaging in any such activity is liable to be arrested and imprisoned, loss of job and career and victimized the rest of his life by a government determined to keep their citizens under control.

    Since the consequences of any attempt to assert their citizens rights under the Constitution will result in harsh and serious consequences to their life and liberty, most Singaporeans do not dare to criticize the government openly or demand their rights for fear of certain retribution, as is the case in Communist China.

    This courageous young man David William Graaskov is not among the general cowardly population that you find in in the island of Singapore. On May 07, 2014, he and 4 other young men of his age, climbed atop a HDB Government Housing Residential Block and wrote slogans such as “Freedom” protesting the lack of basic human rights of the citizens. Since as mentioned Singapore laws makes it illegal to protest, he and the others were charged for vandalism which under Singapore law not only results in imprisonment but also caning (whipping) a very brutal and inhuman form of punishment which leaves the victim suffering permanent injury and scarred for life.

    Yesterday, December 22, 2014, young Graaskov pleaded guilty to theft and criminal trespass in Lee Kuan Yew’s sons Courts in Singapore. He will be sentenced at a subsequent date.

    Graskov is clearly a hero. He need not have bothered to do this. He has nothing to gain from doing this. Like the other cowardly young men and women who are satisfied to live in bondage, he could have done nothing and merely went on with his life. But not Graaskov. He felt that this is wrong. And when something is wrong, it is courageous who stand up to it. It is honorable act. It shows character and leadership.

    In fact he has much more integrity and leadership than even his ethnic Chinese lawyer walking next to him, a member of a legal profession that has shown it has no intention to do any real lawyering. Very probably his lawyer , undoubtedly a very timid fellow would have advised him to plead guilty and not antagonize the judge. To show how timid these Singapore lawyers are, you might want to know that opposition politician Chee Soon Juan, when sued for defamation of character some years ago, by Lee Kuan Yew and his son, was unable to find a single lawyer to represent him in that entire island! That explains volumes of the lawyering capacity of these Singaporean lawyers.

    If I was Graaskov’s lawyer, I would have advised him to fight the charges. Of course I realize that there is the possibility of caning, but this government today is so maligned and has lost so much respectability that it is most unlikely that they would cane 18 year old Graaskov.

    Of course it is certain that he would lose at any trial but the publicity that he generates by mounting a Constitutional right of free speech and expression , would result in Lee’s son, the Prime Minister who controls everything including the courts,  suffering much more loss to his reputation, while Graaskov would come out the hero, a David who stood up to the one eyed Goliath.

    We all come to the cross roads in life’s journey. At that point those with courage and leadership take the right path, even though it is hard. Others take the easy path although they know it is wrong. Here we have Graaskov, standing up to what is right regardless of the consequence, while other lesser mortals remain quiet and submit.

    If I had to follow a leader, I can say without hesitation that it will be Graaskov, not the hundreds of thousands of young men and women who are incapable of doing anything but going back from school to their TV sets as if nothing is happening around them.

    Making a prediction, I say, 18 year old Graaskov, would one day be a leader of men.

    I would also suggest that Graasskov’s parents should try to send him to the West for his higher education. He is surrounded by an entire island of submissive and cowed population and this is not good for his upbringing or his education. His Singapore teachers themselves terrified of the government would be telling him to be like the others and submit in silence. His parents, if they are Singaporeans would probably be telling him the same thing. And the Singaporean mindset is itself bad because it considers submission and obedience as virtues while challenging authority is a crime.

    Graaskov has shown extraordinary courage even while living under such suppressive and repressive climate as Singapore island. Imagine how much more he will progress if allowed to live among people who have their heads screwed on right and know that it is heroic and honorable to stand up to an unjust regime, and submission to injustice is cowardly.

    Well done Graaskov. You have guts.

    Gopalan Nair
    Attorney at Law
    A Singaporean in Exile
    Fremont California USA
    Tel: 510 491 8525
    Email: [email protected]
    Facebook: www.facebook.com/singapore.dissident

    Posted by at 10:31 PM 
    Source: http://singaporedissident.blogspot.sg