WP’s Sylvia Lim responds to Lawrence Wong’s op-ed

Singapore Worker's Party (WP) Ms Sylvia Lim has supposedly responded to Minister Lawrence Wong's op-ed published in the Straits Times on 10 Dec 2014.

 

In typical WP fashion, Ms Lim responded with gobbledygook. While appearing to say much, Ms Lim's statement has in fact said nothing but has reiterated statements that she has been making for the past 2 years.

 

 

The following is a copy of Ms Sylvia Lim's actual statement released to the Straits Times .... 

"Minister Wong may have not known that the TC had explained to MND its challenge in submitting arrears data in MND’s format from mid-2013.  I had explained that while the IT system being used at AHPETC could churn out arrears reports, manual counting and sorting was required to get the information into the format required by the MND. I had also informed MND that AHPETC had requested its software developers to enhance the system to churn out the reports in the required format, but this was work in progress. MND had been informed that AHPETC’s Finance Team and its software developers had been involved in (two consecutive) audits, first by the TC’s own auditors (commencing mid 2013) and then by the Auditor-General (commencing March 2014), and that this had led to a deferment of reporting requests, including MND’s request for arrears data in its prescribed format.  I had concurrently offered to submit to MND the arrears data the TC had as it was, but this was rejected by MND."

 What Ms Sylvia Lim has failed to mention are:

 

Fact: Hougang Town Council never had any problems submitting the arrears data in MND's format. So why the problem now? If it was so difficult, how come AHPETC could submit the arrears data in MND's format until April 2013.

 

Fact: Audits are part and parcel of any business. No business has ever stopped running just to accommodate an audit. If this were the case, how can business/ organizations survive.

 

It is time for the Worker's Party stop the gobbledygook and come clean. This is not how first world parliamentarians work and if there is indeed trouble in AHPETC, the sooner the Government steps in to help, the better it will be for the Singaporeans living in Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East.