- Joined
- Jul 24, 2008
- Messages
- 33,627
- Points
- 0
<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=789><TBODY><TR><TD height=26 colSpan=3></TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top width=5> </TD><TD vAlign=top width=784 colSpan=2>Singapore Red Cross told to stop fundraising activity
By Hoe Yeen Nie | Posted: 06 December 2010 1920 hrs <LINK rel=image_src href="http://www.channelnewsasia.com/imagegallery/store/phpWjpDbL.jpg">
<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=260 align=right><TBODY><TR><TD width=20 align=right> </TD><TD width=240 align=right>
</TD></TR><TR><TD height=60 vAlign=top> </TD><TD class=update height=80 vAlign=top><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR><TD bgColor=#f6f6f6 width=138>Photos </TD><TD bgColor=#f6f6f6 width=47>1 of 1</TD><TD bgColor=#f6f6f6 width=18><INPUT id=btnPrev disabled onclick=Prev(); value="<< Previous" src="http://www.channelnewsasia.com/images/butt_previous.gif" width=18 height=15 type=image></TD><TD bgColor=#f6f6f6 width=19><INPUT id=bntPlay onclick=Play() value="Play - Stop" src="http://www.channelnewsasia.com/images/butt_stop.gif" width=19 height=15 type=image></TD><TD bgColor=#f6f6f6 width=18><INPUT id=btnNext disabled onclick=Next(); value=" Next >> " src="http://www.channelnewsasia.com/images/butt_next.gif" width=18 height=15 type=image></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
Logo of Singapore Red Cross seen on boxes of relief supplies.</TD></TR><TR><TD> </TD><TD class=update> </TD></TR><TR><TD> </TD><TD></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><!-- for Facebook Like function --><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=510><TBODY><TR><TD colSpan=4><HR align=left color=#dddddd SIZE=1 width=510></TD></TR><TR><TD height=30 vAlign=center width=210><?xml:namespace prefix = fb ns = "http://www.facebook.com/2008/fbml" /><fb:like class="fb_like fb_edge_widget_with_comment fb_iframe_widget" href="http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1097548/1/.html" layout="standard" show_faces="false" width="200"><IFRAME style="BORDER-BOTTOM: medium none; BORDER-LEFT: medium none; WIDTH: 225px; HEIGHT: 26px; BORDER-TOP: medium none; BORDER-RIGHT: medium none" id=f1984bc81a40eb3 class=fb_ltr title="Like this content on Facebook." onload=FB.Content._callbacks.f317db085e7f26e() src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?api_key=113370852059819&channel_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.channelnewsasia.com%2Fstories%2Fsingaporelocalnews%2Fview%2F1097548%2F1%2F.html%3Ffb_xd_fragment%23%3F%3D%26cb%3Df2d4a282e8a78c%26relation%3Dparent.parent%26transport%3Dfragment&href=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.channelnewsasia.com%2Fstories%2Fsingaporelocalnews%2Fview%2F1097548%2F1%2F.html&layout=standard&locale=en_US&node_type=1&sdk=joey&show_faces=false&width=225" frameBorder=0 allowTransparency name=f2ccf13b026b2c8 scrolling=no></IFRAME></fb:like></TD><TD width=10> </TD><TD width=145>
Twitter</TD><TD width=145>
Messenger</TD></TR><TR><TD colSpan=4><HR align=left color=#dddddd SIZE=1 width=510></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
SINGAPORE: The Commissioner of Charities (COC) has advised the Singapore Red Cross not to conduct any fundraising activity until its internal investigation is completed and additional safeguards are put in place.
The advice came a day after the Red Cross issued a statement saying it had lodged a police report on 3 December against a woman administrative assistant with the finance department who had allegedly misappropriated about S$90,000.
The Red Cross said the problems were uncovered during internal checks on its accounts on 1 December. They found that what was banked in did not tally with the receipts issued to donors. The discrepancies date back to February.
The COC also revealed that the Red Cross had earlier been selected to undergo a governance review in 2011.
This is an initiative to help charities and Institutions of Public Character (IPCs) to identify their governance gaps and to develop plans to address them.
The COC said this governance review on the Red Cross will be brought forward, without giving details on when this will take place.
It reminded charities that they need to put in place proper internal controls and conduct regular checks to prevent misappropriation or misuse of funds.
MediaCorp understands that ticket sales for the Red Cross annual gala dinner in March have commenced. In reply, a spokesperson for the Commissioner's office said the Red Cross may continue with that event, but it should monitor all procedures carefully.
The Red Cross said it will now implement more stringent and more frequent checks on its finances. And this does not just apply to the Red Cross headquarters, but also to its Home for the Disabled.
The Red Cross said it will also be more careful when hiring new staff. Its Secretary-General Christopher Chua also sent an open letter to the media addressed to the public.
"We apologise for what has happened. Second message is that we will do whatever we can to ensure that it doesn't happen again. Third message is to request our donors and supporters to continue to support the work that Red Cross is doing," said the letter.
The employee who allegedly misappropriated the Red Cross funds is in her 30s and was hired only last December.
Before that, she was working as a temp staff, also in the finance department, and was involved in large-scale fundraisers for the victims of Cyclone Nargis and the Sichuan earthquake in 2008. But at the time, she was not handling any cash.
Mr Chua believes her time with the Red Cross allowed her to become familiar with its internal procedures and allowed her to gain confidence among the other staff.
Two months later, she is said to have started stealing, between S$10 and several thousand dollars each time.
When confronted on December 1, she admitted guilt, and before the work day was over, she had left without a word, leaving her staff pass on her table. MediaCorp understands she was later admitted to hospital.
This case puts the charity sector in the hot seat again. But observers said it is too early to judge if the latest case reveals a systemic fault or a one-off lapse.
Speaking to MediaCorp, corporate governance expert Mak Yuen Teen noted that such incident might occur "even in the best systems".
Dr Mak is an Associate Professor with the NUS Business School. He also sits on the board of the Charity Council.
He said: "The Red Cross is a fairly big organisation, so I guess we would expect them to have some basic controls or adequate internal controls in place. But having said that, even if you have those controls in place, sometimes they can be circumvented and so on. I think it's too early to tell, but at least the fact that this (alleged misappropriation) was picked up during an internal review tells me that part of that process is working."
- CNA/ir <!-- Zone Tag : Channel News asia In Text <script type="text/javascript"> innity_pub = "66368270ffd51418ec58bd793f2d9b1b"; innity_zone = "12251"; innity_width = "**"; innity_height = "**"; innity_country = "SG"; </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://cdn.innity.com/network.js"></script>-->
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
By Hoe Yeen Nie | Posted: 06 December 2010 1920 hrs <LINK rel=image_src href="http://www.channelnewsasia.com/imagegallery/store/phpWjpDbL.jpg">
<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=260 align=right><TBODY><TR><TD width=20 align=right> </TD><TD width=240 align=right>
Logo of Singapore Red Cross seen on boxes of relief supplies.</TD></TR><TR><TD> </TD><TD class=update> </TD></TR><TR><TD> </TD><TD></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><!-- for Facebook Like function --><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=510><TBODY><TR><TD colSpan=4><HR align=left color=#dddddd SIZE=1 width=510></TD></TR><TR><TD height=30 vAlign=center width=210><?xml:namespace prefix = fb ns = "http://www.facebook.com/2008/fbml" /><fb:like class="fb_like fb_edge_widget_with_comment fb_iframe_widget" href="http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1097548/1/.html" layout="standard" show_faces="false" width="200"><IFRAME style="BORDER-BOTTOM: medium none; BORDER-LEFT: medium none; WIDTH: 225px; HEIGHT: 26px; BORDER-TOP: medium none; BORDER-RIGHT: medium none" id=f1984bc81a40eb3 class=fb_ltr title="Like this content on Facebook." onload=FB.Content._callbacks.f317db085e7f26e() src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?api_key=113370852059819&channel_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.channelnewsasia.com%2Fstories%2Fsingaporelocalnews%2Fview%2F1097548%2F1%2F.html%3Ffb_xd_fragment%23%3F%3D%26cb%3Df2d4a282e8a78c%26relation%3Dparent.parent%26transport%3Dfragment&href=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.channelnewsasia.com%2Fstories%2Fsingaporelocalnews%2Fview%2F1097548%2F1%2F.html&layout=standard&locale=en_US&node_type=1&sdk=joey&show_faces=false&width=225" frameBorder=0 allowTransparency name=f2ccf13b026b2c8 scrolling=no></IFRAME></fb:like></TD><TD width=10> </TD><TD width=145>
Messenger</TD></TR><TR><TD colSpan=4><HR align=left color=#dddddd SIZE=1 width=510></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>SINGAPORE: The Commissioner of Charities (COC) has advised the Singapore Red Cross not to conduct any fundraising activity until its internal investigation is completed and additional safeguards are put in place.
The advice came a day after the Red Cross issued a statement saying it had lodged a police report on 3 December against a woman administrative assistant with the finance department who had allegedly misappropriated about S$90,000.
The Red Cross said the problems were uncovered during internal checks on its accounts on 1 December. They found that what was banked in did not tally with the receipts issued to donors. The discrepancies date back to February.
The COC also revealed that the Red Cross had earlier been selected to undergo a governance review in 2011.
This is an initiative to help charities and Institutions of Public Character (IPCs) to identify their governance gaps and to develop plans to address them.
The COC said this governance review on the Red Cross will be brought forward, without giving details on when this will take place.
It reminded charities that they need to put in place proper internal controls and conduct regular checks to prevent misappropriation or misuse of funds.
MediaCorp understands that ticket sales for the Red Cross annual gala dinner in March have commenced. In reply, a spokesperson for the Commissioner's office said the Red Cross may continue with that event, but it should monitor all procedures carefully.
The Red Cross said it will now implement more stringent and more frequent checks on its finances. And this does not just apply to the Red Cross headquarters, but also to its Home for the Disabled.
The Red Cross said it will also be more careful when hiring new staff. Its Secretary-General Christopher Chua also sent an open letter to the media addressed to the public.
"We apologise for what has happened. Second message is that we will do whatever we can to ensure that it doesn't happen again. Third message is to request our donors and supporters to continue to support the work that Red Cross is doing," said the letter.
The employee who allegedly misappropriated the Red Cross funds is in her 30s and was hired only last December.
Before that, she was working as a temp staff, also in the finance department, and was involved in large-scale fundraisers for the victims of Cyclone Nargis and the Sichuan earthquake in 2008. But at the time, she was not handling any cash.
Mr Chua believes her time with the Red Cross allowed her to become familiar with its internal procedures and allowed her to gain confidence among the other staff.
Two months later, she is said to have started stealing, between S$10 and several thousand dollars each time.
When confronted on December 1, she admitted guilt, and before the work day was over, she had left without a word, leaving her staff pass on her table. MediaCorp understands she was later admitted to hospital.
This case puts the charity sector in the hot seat again. But observers said it is too early to judge if the latest case reveals a systemic fault or a one-off lapse.
Speaking to MediaCorp, corporate governance expert Mak Yuen Teen noted that such incident might occur "even in the best systems".
Dr Mak is an Associate Professor with the NUS Business School. He also sits on the board of the Charity Council.
He said: "The Red Cross is a fairly big organisation, so I guess we would expect them to have some basic controls or adequate internal controls in place. But having said that, even if you have those controls in place, sometimes they can be circumvented and so on. I think it's too early to tell, but at least the fact that this (alleged misappropriation) was picked up during an internal review tells me that part of that process is working."
- CNA/ir <!-- Zone Tag : Channel News asia In Text <script type="text/javascript"> innity_pub = "66368270ffd51418ec58bd793f2d9b1b"; innity_zone = "12251"; innity_width = "**"; innity_height = "**"; innity_country = "SG"; </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://cdn.innity.com/network.js"></script>-->
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
