SINGAPORE: Tomorrow (11 Jan) marks exactly six months since the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) launched a probe into Transport Minister S Iswaran on 11 July 2023.
While the anti-graft agency arrested and later released the ruling party politician on bail, the lack of details into the outcome of the investigation – or even what the case is about – has raised public expectations on the magnitude of the case.
The absence of information for months has also led to questions on how the People’s Action Party (PAP) will be impacted as it undergoes its long-awaited leadership transition this year and heads into the next election.
After a long silence spanning months, the Government revealed in Parliament yesterday (9 Jan) that the CPIB has concluded the investigation, and its findings are now before the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC). Details about the case, however, have yet to be released.
Responding to Progress Singapore Party Non-Constituency MP Hazel Poa’s request for an update, Education Minister Chan Chun Sing said on behalf of the Prime Minister:
“I understand that there is much public interest in this matter. I want to give my assurance that this case will be put through the due legal process.”
Revealing that the CPIB probe was “robust and thorough,” Mr Chan said that the AGC is now reviewing the matter.
This is the first official update in the case since early August 2023, when the Government revealed that Mr Iswaran, who has been placed on a leave of absence, has had his ministerial pay cut to $8,500 per month while he earns his full MP allowance.
This means that, although he has been interdicted from his duties, the politician has earned about $147,000 in the six months since he was arrested on 11 July 2023.
“The investigation went on for too long”
While questions about the nature of the case being investigated are rife, Singaporeans also ask whether the six-month wait for answers is too long.
Corruption cases involving ministers are rare in Singapore, and there is no reliable precedent for how long a CPIB probe would take in such an instance.
The last time a Cabinet minister was involved in a CPIB probe was in November 1986, when then-National Development Minister Teh Cheang Wan was investigated for allegedly accepting bribes.
The probe, however, came to a standstill after the Minister died by suicide before being charged for the offences.
On whether taking close to half a year to investigate the case was too long, academic Dr Howard Lee told The Independent Singapore (TISG):
“The Iswaran probe indeed went on for too long, and it is only necessary to do so if the case involves multiple parties and there is a need to trace every single source or corruption.”
Suggesting that the lengthy wait will only raise public expectations, the lecturer in communication from Murdoch University told TISG:
“The government needs to realise that the longer it delays this, the greater the expectations that this is a serious case with wide ranging impact. Whatever Iswaran’s culpability, be it minor or major, it will be magnified by the perceived seriousness of the case given the duration of investigation.”
The potential impact on West Coast GRC
While the implications of the probe’s findings remain to be seen, National Development Minister Desmond Lee called the probe a “very worrying development,” in a recent interview.
Mr Desmond Lee was lifted from Jurong GRC ahead of the 2020 General Election to support Mr Iswaran on the West Coast as he prepared to face off with former ruling party MP Tan Cheng Bock and his PSP team at the polls.
Mr Iswaran’s team narrowly retained control on the West Coast, with a vote share of 51.68 per cent – despite the presence of two ministers.
The West Coast GRC team is operating one MP short, with the other MPs sharing the load. With their anchor minister missing in action over the past six months, Mr Desmond Lee has said that the incident “has had an impact, is a big impact”, although he did not elaborate on what this impact is.
He, however, said that despite the impact, his team has been working to engage residents and deal with issues like the cost of living and inequality. He told The Straits Times and Lianhe Zaobao:
“Since (the news broke) in July, we have been able to hold the team together, energise them to continue serving the ground with passion and dedication.”
The National Development Minister added, “But that has not distracted us from the important mission of continuing to serve our residents and ensuring that there is no disruptive trend to service continuity, that there are people that residents will continue to look for assistance.”
With West Coast GRC appearing to be on shakier ground, it remains unclear if the ward will continue to exist within its current boundaries, whether Mr Desmond Lee will take over as anchor minister or whether other heavyweight ministers will be redeployed to lead the team in the next election, which must take place by 2025.
Dr Howard Lee expects that West Coast GRC’s electoral boundaries will change for the next GE – but this will have little to do with the impact of the case involving Mr Iswaran.
He told TISG: “We should expect a fairly extensive reshuffle of the GRCs for the next GE, and this has little to do with Iswaran and West Coast as much as it has to do with two significant developments in the PAP.
“First, a number of senior Ministers will be looking at retiring, so there will be a need for junior Ministers to fill the void as anchor candidate.
Second, the 4G leadership was still very much riding on the near-spent goodwill of the 3G in GE2020. They have yet to substantively prove themselves as an electoral team, or even demonstrate their ability to work together as an effective government.”
Pointing out that there hasn’t been a single GE where the redrawing of electoral boundaries has not take place, Dr Lee said: “I doubt Iswaran and West Coast will have a significant part to play on how this will be done.”
Also Read:
Desmond Lee: S Iswaran corruption probe had “big impact” on West Coast GRC