AHPETC Court Case on Independent Auditor

A Fearful AHPETC Responds ... Finally

2 days before MND's application to the Singapore Courts to appoint independent auditors for AHPETC is heard, AHPETC made a surprising announcement that they have appointed their own external consultants to look into their accounts. (See our earlier article MND Moves to Protect Public Monies) While this is a welcome move, and something the Government has been asking for the past 3 years, the timing of the announcement is suspiciously political.

Coming at the eleventh hour, this move is clearly designed to delay the appointment of an independent auditor who would have full access to all AHPETC financial records. This is likely to mean that the Worker's Party is afraid that a full forensic audit of AHPETC accounts will likely reveal the following misuse of public funds:

Firstly, as mentioned in the Parliamentary Debate on the AGO's Special Audit, the AGO reported that approximately $6.1 million of public funds to FMSS and FMSI (both owned by Worker's Party supporters) was not fully justified or properly computed.

Secondly, the illegal commingling of S&CC funds and the late (or non-transfer or inadequate) transfer of residents' money to the Sinking Fund. This impacts residents as building adequate financial reserves is necessary to ensure that key community infrastructure like lifts can be upgraded or replaced for the safety of residents.

Thirdly, the gross over-payment for the services of a Managing Agent. By some accounts, this is rumored to be much as 100% above market rates for their General Manager Ms How Weng Fan. Such gross over-payment is equivalent to being an inducement for her to be less than truthful to the residents of Aljunied in order to safe-guard her own self-interest.