I am sharing with all of you the contents below of an email that I sent to Mrs Josephine Teo, Minister of State for Finance and Transpore about a foreign company that deceived the Ministry of Finance to secure EPPU Financial Grade Approval and subsequent Award of NLB Contract via Gebiz Tender
Josephine,
As a true blue Singaporean, I was very surprised when it was reported in a Straits Times article on April 9, 2012 entitled, 'Government Procurement Regime Open and Fair to All: Josephine Teo', that you had assured MP Baey Yam Keng that there was no unfair discrimination between local and foreign suppliers. However, I can assure you that in the recent case of one US company that what you asserted in Parliament is just not true. It may or may not be that there are many other cases about foreign companies that we as ordinary Singaporeans just do not know because we do not have access to the relevant information to highlight unfair discrimination in such cases.
In this case, it concerns a US privately held company, namely, Follett Corporation, which is a holding company with consolidated financial statements that participated in a Gebiz Tender (Reference No: NLB Tender ref: NLB000/04/2009). Follett Corporation is not a trading company or a businesss unit with its own revenue stream but it was given a financial grade S10 approval by the Ministry of Finance's Expenditure and Procurement Policy Unit (EPPU) (Reference No: ESRA20100902785). It is not possible for any local company that is not a business entity with its own separate revenue stream to be given any financial grade approval let alone a financial grade S10 approval by the EPPU. The EPPU strictly adheres to these requirements for all local companies and in the case of Follett Corporation, a foreign company, the EPPU initially attempted to do the same when it asked a Follett Director in an email dated October 1, 2010, if Follett Corporation was a business unit with its own revenue stream and the Follett Director replied on the same date that Follett Corporation was NOT a business unit with its own revenue stream and was advised by the EPPU that it could not be granted any financial grade approval by the EPPU. When this news was broken to fellow Follett Directors, other Follett Directors contacted the EPPU and LIED to the EPPU that Follett Corporation was a business unit with its own revenue stream and on October 4, 2010, these Follett Directors confirmed this false information in a teleconversation with the EPPU and also in an email with an enclosure on Follett Corporation's letterhead confirming its own separate revenue stream and signed by a senior Follett Director. A hard copy of this letter was also sent to the EPPU shortly afterwards as requested by the EPPU. Follett Corporation had fooled the EPPU into providing the financial grade S10 approval that entitled Follett Corporation to advance to the next stage of the Gebiz Tender carried out by the National Library Board (NLB) and to be subsequently AWARDED the NLB Contract as one of the NLB's handful of contractors for the multi million dollar NLB Contract for a maximum period of six years!
Josephine, could you please investigate this matter that owing to the sloppiness and the errors in the review of the financial statements consolidated or otherwise and the gullibility of the EPPU in evaluating such financial statements from foreign companies that is blatant unfair discrimination that prejudices several local companies competing in the same Gebiz Tender and in the case of Follett Corporation to rub salt into open wounds not only did the EPPU give a financial grade approval as a consequence to the false information provided to it by Follett Corporation but it also UPGRADED Follett Corporation's financial grade approval from S8 to S10!
After being awarded the NLB Contract carried out through the Gebiz Tender, in April 2011, Follett Corporation which did not have a local presence in Singapore before the award of the NLB Contract attempted to invoice the NLB through one of it's subsidiary companies as invoicing the NLB on Follett Corporation's own letterhead as a holding company could have had serious adverse tax implications for Follett Corporation with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in the US! However, the NLB did not accept these invoices and required that these invoices be reissued on the letterhead of Follett Corporation that was the party that was awarded the NLB Contract via the Gebiz Tender and Follett Corporation had no choice but to agree to do it. I sincerely hope that the NLB will do the right thing and provide all invoices, NLB endorsed delivery summaries and payment vouchers in connection with Follett corporation to the IRS in the US if requested to do so by the IRS as Follett Directors have also boasted that Follett Corporation has done business in other countries around the world too whilst 'masquerading' as a holding company in the US! Follett Corporation being a foreign company is paid by the NLB in US dollars and the NLB bank drafts issued in favour of Follett Corporation are posted to Follett Corporation in the US.
In the Gebiz Tender documents submitted by Follett Corporation for evaluation by the NLB, Follett Corporation claimed to be working closely with a local company, Fables Pte Ltd (Fables), that Follett corporation described as its Singapore Partner but Follett Corporation has recently advised the NLB that it has dissolved it's association with Fables without giving any reasons. Fables introduced Follett corporation to the NLB and the NLB's Gebiz Tender and was instrumental in Follett Corporation's success in being awarded the NLB Contract but Follett Corporation has apparently been given the NLB's blessing to do business with the NLB on its own as the NLB officer in charge has previously indicated on various occasions a preference for working with foreign companies which he insists speak their minds as opposed to local companies which he insists just do as they are told by the NLB! Nevertheless, Follett Corporation's track record as evaluated by the NLB during the ongoing transition phase is described as poor.
Josephine, could you please investigate if Follett Corporation has made any financial contribution to the NLB in the form of sponsorship or otherwise and, also, if any such financial contribution had induced the NLB to continue to work with the NLB during it's dismal performance during the ongoing transition phase. Could you also please clarify whether any such financial contribution was given to the NLB by the same Follett Director, directly or indirectly, who signed off on the Follett corporation letterhead falsely to secure the EPPU financial grade approval!
After being awarded the NLB Contract carried out through the Gebiz Tender, in April 2011, Follett Corporation incorporated Follett Singapore Pte Ltd and in blatant breach of the Jurong Town Corporation's and Urban redevelopment authority's office use rules and regulations is openly operating a retail bookstore and warehouse at the International Business Park in Jurong East without any change of use application to or approval by the URA in office space that is clearly designated by the JTC and the URA for office use only. However, after a year of openly doing business as a retail bookstore and a warehouse it is still apparently not subject to any enforcement action by the URA or the JTC despite the Ministry of National Development's recent crackdown on such misuse of office space because of the attraction of cheap rent.
Josephine, I hope that you will investigate the unfair financial grade approval granted to Follett Corporation by the Ministry of Finance's EPPU as a consequence of false information provided by Follett Corporation and take all necessary steps to create a level playing field for both local companies and foreign companies so that one day in the future your assurance given in Parliament that government procurement is transparent, open and fair and value for money for both local companies and foreign companies will have the ring of truth about it for all.
Yours sincerely,
Blue
Josephine,
As a true blue Singaporean, I was very surprised when it was reported in a Straits Times article on April 9, 2012 entitled, 'Government Procurement Regime Open and Fair to All: Josephine Teo', that you had assured MP Baey Yam Keng that there was no unfair discrimination between local and foreign suppliers. However, I can assure you that in the recent case of one US company that what you asserted in Parliament is just not true. It may or may not be that there are many other cases about foreign companies that we as ordinary Singaporeans just do not know because we do not have access to the relevant information to highlight unfair discrimination in such cases.
In this case, it concerns a US privately held company, namely, Follett Corporation, which is a holding company with consolidated financial statements that participated in a Gebiz Tender (Reference No: NLB Tender ref: NLB000/04/2009). Follett Corporation is not a trading company or a businesss unit with its own revenue stream but it was given a financial grade S10 approval by the Ministry of Finance's Expenditure and Procurement Policy Unit (EPPU) (Reference No: ESRA20100902785). It is not possible for any local company that is not a business entity with its own separate revenue stream to be given any financial grade approval let alone a financial grade S10 approval by the EPPU. The EPPU strictly adheres to these requirements for all local companies and in the case of Follett Corporation, a foreign company, the EPPU initially attempted to do the same when it asked a Follett Director in an email dated October 1, 2010, if Follett Corporation was a business unit with its own revenue stream and the Follett Director replied on the same date that Follett Corporation was NOT a business unit with its own revenue stream and was advised by the EPPU that it could not be granted any financial grade approval by the EPPU. When this news was broken to fellow Follett Directors, other Follett Directors contacted the EPPU and LIED to the EPPU that Follett Corporation was a business unit with its own revenue stream and on October 4, 2010, these Follett Directors confirmed this false information in a teleconversation with the EPPU and also in an email with an enclosure on Follett Corporation's letterhead confirming its own separate revenue stream and signed by a senior Follett Director. A hard copy of this letter was also sent to the EPPU shortly afterwards as requested by the EPPU. Follett Corporation had fooled the EPPU into providing the financial grade S10 approval that entitled Follett Corporation to advance to the next stage of the Gebiz Tender carried out by the National Library Board (NLB) and to be subsequently AWARDED the NLB Contract as one of the NLB's handful of contractors for the multi million dollar NLB Contract for a maximum period of six years!
Josephine, could you please investigate this matter that owing to the sloppiness and the errors in the review of the financial statements consolidated or otherwise and the gullibility of the EPPU in evaluating such financial statements from foreign companies that is blatant unfair discrimination that prejudices several local companies competing in the same Gebiz Tender and in the case of Follett Corporation to rub salt into open wounds not only did the EPPU give a financial grade approval as a consequence to the false information provided to it by Follett Corporation but it also UPGRADED Follett Corporation's financial grade approval from S8 to S10!
After being awarded the NLB Contract carried out through the Gebiz Tender, in April 2011, Follett Corporation which did not have a local presence in Singapore before the award of the NLB Contract attempted to invoice the NLB through one of it's subsidiary companies as invoicing the NLB on Follett Corporation's own letterhead as a holding company could have had serious adverse tax implications for Follett Corporation with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in the US! However, the NLB did not accept these invoices and required that these invoices be reissued on the letterhead of Follett Corporation that was the party that was awarded the NLB Contract via the Gebiz Tender and Follett Corporation had no choice but to agree to do it. I sincerely hope that the NLB will do the right thing and provide all invoices, NLB endorsed delivery summaries and payment vouchers in connection with Follett corporation to the IRS in the US if requested to do so by the IRS as Follett Directors have also boasted that Follett Corporation has done business in other countries around the world too whilst 'masquerading' as a holding company in the US! Follett Corporation being a foreign company is paid by the NLB in US dollars and the NLB bank drafts issued in favour of Follett Corporation are posted to Follett Corporation in the US.
In the Gebiz Tender documents submitted by Follett Corporation for evaluation by the NLB, Follett Corporation claimed to be working closely with a local company, Fables Pte Ltd (Fables), that Follett corporation described as its Singapore Partner but Follett Corporation has recently advised the NLB that it has dissolved it's association with Fables without giving any reasons. Fables introduced Follett corporation to the NLB and the NLB's Gebiz Tender and was instrumental in Follett Corporation's success in being awarded the NLB Contract but Follett Corporation has apparently been given the NLB's blessing to do business with the NLB on its own as the NLB officer in charge has previously indicated on various occasions a preference for working with foreign companies which he insists speak their minds as opposed to local companies which he insists just do as they are told by the NLB! Nevertheless, Follett Corporation's track record as evaluated by the NLB during the ongoing transition phase is described as poor.
Josephine, could you please investigate if Follett Corporation has made any financial contribution to the NLB in the form of sponsorship or otherwise and, also, if any such financial contribution had induced the NLB to continue to work with the NLB during it's dismal performance during the ongoing transition phase. Could you also please clarify whether any such financial contribution was given to the NLB by the same Follett Director, directly or indirectly, who signed off on the Follett corporation letterhead falsely to secure the EPPU financial grade approval!
After being awarded the NLB Contract carried out through the Gebiz Tender, in April 2011, Follett Corporation incorporated Follett Singapore Pte Ltd and in blatant breach of the Jurong Town Corporation's and Urban redevelopment authority's office use rules and regulations is openly operating a retail bookstore and warehouse at the International Business Park in Jurong East without any change of use application to or approval by the URA in office space that is clearly designated by the JTC and the URA for office use only. However, after a year of openly doing business as a retail bookstore and a warehouse it is still apparently not subject to any enforcement action by the URA or the JTC despite the Ministry of National Development's recent crackdown on such misuse of office space because of the attraction of cheap rent.
Josephine, I hope that you will investigate the unfair financial grade approval granted to Follett Corporation by the Ministry of Finance's EPPU as a consequence of false information provided by Follett Corporation and take all necessary steps to create a level playing field for both local companies and foreign companies so that one day in the future your assurance given in Parliament that government procurement is transparent, open and fair and value for money for both local companies and foreign companies will have the ring of truth about it for all.
Yours sincerely,
Blue
