Iswaran charged, will return salary and allowance, focus on clearing his name
Former Minister for Transport, S Iswaran appeared in court yesterday (18 Jan 2024). 27 charges were filed against him. On 16 January 2024, Mr Iswaran wrote to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong to resign as a Cabinet Minister and as a member of the People’s Action Party (PAP). He also resigned as Member of Parliament […]
Ministerial statement on money laundering: how the case was uncovered in likely the largest anti-money laundering operation in the world
Singapore’s money laundering case is one of the largest anti-money laundering operations not just in Singapore, but likely the world as well, Mrs Josephine Teo, Minister for Communications and Information & Second Minister for Home Affairs said in a ministerial statement. The probe is comprehensive and extensive. How it was uncovered It began with disparate […]
Jamus Lim’s flawed argument on the second key: he might not have read the Constitution
At the recent Parliament sitting, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong explained to WP Jamus Lim that CPIB’s reporting line has two keys, first to the PM and then the President. In a subsequent Facebook post, A/P Jamus Lim of the Workers’ Party (WP) agreed with the need for two keys, but disagreed that they should […]
If the Government does nothing, litigation could change societal norms very quickly, says Shanmugam
We should not assume that the Courts will never strike s 377A down just because the Government chooses to retain it, Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam said in Parliament. The CA has said that legal standards do still exist, and may be applied, to judge the legality or constitutionality of Section 377A. “Our […]
Spotlight on AHTC saga: in good faith and in bad faith
In the beginning, Singaporeans did not know that FMSS was owned by close affiliates of Workers’ Party (WP).Only WP and the Ministry of National Development (MND) knew these facts.But MND left them alone because, as then National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan said, they allowed some latitude with regard to party affiliation because TCs are […]
WP MPs acted in bad faith, face damages after Court of Appeal found “gross negligence” in AHTC’s payment process.
Workers’ Party leaders involved in the Aljunied-Hougang Town Council (“AHTC”) civil suit face damages involving $23 million after the Court of Appeal found gross negligence in the town council’s payment process. While the five-judge panel said that the WP MPs acted in good faith when they appointed FMSS as the Managing Agent, they maintained that […]
The long-running AHTC saga coming to a close
Today is the day (November 9, 2022) when the judgment is released. Although the Town Councillors and Employees involved may have acted in good faith, there was neither an adequate nor an independent safeguard in AHTC’s approval process for disbursing payments to FMSS and FMSI. The court found that the members and senior employees of […]
MHA responds to Pritam Singh’s death penalty commentary and points out errors
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has on Tuesday (6 September) responded to a commentary by the Leader of the Opposition, Pritam Singh, on the death penalty in Singapore, which was published by Today (“Death penalty for drug trafficking should stay, but certain aspects of drug law can be improved”) Broad agreement MHA noted that […]
India Supreme Court’s decision on definition of marriage illustrates the risk of legal challenge to current definition of marriage: Shanmugam
The recent ruling by the Indian Supreme Court to widen the definition of families to “atypical” households like same-sex couples has starkly illustrated the risks of a legal challenge to Singapore’s current definition of marriage, Home Affairs and Law Minister K Shanmugam said in a Facebook post on 1 September. Mr Shanmugam noted that the […]
Section 377A: what led to the decision to repeal and where do we go from here
Why repeal? 377A have been struck down by the courts in other countries, including India. In Singapore, there had been 4 applications to the Supreme Court to challenge it as ‘unconstitutional’ based on Article 12 where all persons are equal before the law and are entitled to equal protection of the law. Though unsuccessful so […]