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MND WANTS 'ADDITIONAL SAFEGUARDS', BUT ONLY FOR WORKERS' PARTY TOWN COUNCIL
Post date:
31 Mar 2015 - 9:39pm
The Ministry of National Development (MND) has applied to the High Court to appoint independent accountants to oversee the government grants for the Workers' Party-controlled Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol-East Town Council (AHPETC). The reason given by MND is to have "additional safeguards".
These "additional safeguards" however involve:
1) segregating accounts
2) requiring the accountants to approve AHPETC's payments above $20,000
3) empowering the accountants to look at past payments
4) empowering the accountants to "take actions" to recover losses suffered
Especially with point 4, it is very likely the accountants appointed will take legal actions on behalf of AHPETC against households who are lagging behind S&CC payments or it may also include the ability to get money back from their Managing agent.
For point 3, this is the job of an auditor, not an accountant.
Unfortunately, Minister Khaw Boon Wan does not feel the need to install such "additional safeguards" for PAP Town Councils.
The WP AHPETC have contested this application by MND in a closed-door administrative hearing at the courts.
WP Chairman Sylvia Lim protested that such "additional safeguards" will only increase the workload of AHPETC as they will have to make different sets of preparations to different independent accountants.
It will no doubt make it even harder to meet the deadlines AHPETC committed to submit its financial accounts by.
The whole thing has been made even more difficult to organize as AIM, the software company controlled by former PAP MPs, withdrew financial management software support for Aljunied Town council when the Opposition Party won Aljunied GRC in 2011.
Responding to the application by MND for independent accountants to be appointed, Workers' Party's Sylvia Lim said that it would "derail our work towards meeting deadlines".
She and all the other WP MPs as well as all PAP MPs had earlier agreed to a motion in parliament for more accountability and care to be taken in town council financials.
The biggest question is of course, if the interest is to safeguard government funds, shouldn't the MND want to have independent accountants look after all the town councils, not just the one run by Workers' Party?
Related:
Auditor-General Finds “Major Lapses” in Workers' Party Accounts
Managing Agent for PAP Town Council Drops Fees Just Before the Attack on WP
PAP Fusses over WP's $6.6M Contracts while Refusing to Disclose its $800B+ Reserves
AGO Finds Multiple Major Lapses in Dozens of Government Ministries
Post date:
31 Mar 2015 - 9:39pm
The Ministry of National Development (MND) has applied to the High Court to appoint independent accountants to oversee the government grants for the Workers' Party-controlled Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol-East Town Council (AHPETC). The reason given by MND is to have "additional safeguards".
These "additional safeguards" however involve:
1) segregating accounts
2) requiring the accountants to approve AHPETC's payments above $20,000
3) empowering the accountants to look at past payments
4) empowering the accountants to "take actions" to recover losses suffered
Especially with point 4, it is very likely the accountants appointed will take legal actions on behalf of AHPETC against households who are lagging behind S&CC payments or it may also include the ability to get money back from their Managing agent.
For point 3, this is the job of an auditor, not an accountant.
Unfortunately, Minister Khaw Boon Wan does not feel the need to install such "additional safeguards" for PAP Town Councils.
The WP AHPETC have contested this application by MND in a closed-door administrative hearing at the courts.
WP Chairman Sylvia Lim protested that such "additional safeguards" will only increase the workload of AHPETC as they will have to make different sets of preparations to different independent accountants.
It will no doubt make it even harder to meet the deadlines AHPETC committed to submit its financial accounts by.
The whole thing has been made even more difficult to organize as AIM, the software company controlled by former PAP MPs, withdrew financial management software support for Aljunied Town council when the Opposition Party won Aljunied GRC in 2011.
Responding to the application by MND for independent accountants to be appointed, Workers' Party's Sylvia Lim said that it would "derail our work towards meeting deadlines".
She and all the other WP MPs as well as all PAP MPs had earlier agreed to a motion in parliament for more accountability and care to be taken in town council financials.
The biggest question is of course, if the interest is to safeguard government funds, shouldn't the MND want to have independent accountants look after all the town councils, not just the one run by Workers' Party?
Related:
Auditor-General Finds “Major Lapses” in Workers' Party Accounts
Managing Agent for PAP Town Council Drops Fees Just Before the Attack on WP
PAP Fusses over WP's $6.6M Contracts while Refusing to Disclose its $800B+ Reserves
AGO Finds Multiple Major Lapses in Dozens of Government Ministries
