Minister for Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing confirmed that the Government is aware of the relationship between Singapore’s new Auditor-General Goh Soon Poh and her spouse, Senior Minister of State Heng Chee How, but asserted that there is no conflict of interest since Ms Goh is not a political office holder.
56-year-old Ms Goh was appointed as Auditor-General on 8 Feb this year and leads the Auditor-General Office, which audits government ministries, organs of state, statutory boards and reports its findings through an annual report.
Mr Chan said that there is no conflict of interest at hand due to the relationship between Ms Goh and Mr Heng, in response to a question posed in parliament by Workers’ Party (WP) chairman, Sylvia Lim. Ms Lim had asked:
“I do not know the appointee personally, and I have no reason to doubt her integrity. Indeed, I am prepared to assume that she would do her best to do her work honourably.
“However, can the Prime Minister confirm that the current appointee is the spouse of a Senior Minister of State, and if this is so, did the Prime Minister consider how appointing the spouse of a Senior Minister of State would affect the public perception of the independence of the AGO?”
Mr Chan replied: “You asked if we are aware that Ms Goh Soon Poh, the new Auditor-General, is the wife of Senior Minister of State Mr Heng Chee How. Yes, we are aware.”
On the process of how Ms Goh was selected, he added:“The President will consult the counsel of presidential advisers, which provides an additional level of scrutiny and advice.”
The Minister elaborated on Ms Goh’s qualifications for the role and noted that she “has more than 30 years of public sector experience, working in various government ministries” and that she “will be familiar with governance matters related to finance, procurement, and human resources”.
Mr Chan asserted that “the audit process generally does not involve political office holders”, and that “there is no conflict of interest generally between AGO and the ministries it audits”.
He concluded: “Where there is a conflict of interest, there are specific processes to manage this, just as in any professional organisation.”
New Auditor-General is wife of SMOS and PAP MP, Heng Chee How
In Parliament on Thursday, Workers' Party MP, Sylvia Lim asked the Prime Minister to confirm whether the current appointee for Auditor-General is the spouse of a Senior Minister of State.Answering on the behalf of PM Lee, Minister of Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing said that the Public Service was aware Ms Goh and Mr Heng are married when she was appointed Auditor-General.Mr Chan said: “(Ms Lim) asked if we were aware that Ms Goh Soon Poh, the new auditor-general, is the wife of Senior Minister of State, Mr Heng Chee How. Yes, we are aware.”He added that Ms Goh was appointed by the country’s president in accordance with the prime minister’s advice. She was proposed for the president’s approval after consulting with the chairman of the Public Service Commission.Mr Chan said that Ms Goh has more than 30 years of public sector experience, working in various government ministries such as the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Home Affairs and is thus familiar with governance matters related to finance, procurement and human resources.The auditor-general leads the Auditor-General Office in auditing government ministries, organs of state, statutory boards and report its findings to Singapore’s president, parliament and the public through an annual report.Ms Goh, 56, was appointed to her new role in January and took over the position on Feb 8 after the term ended for former Auditor-General Willie Tan Yoke Meng, who retired.Under Mr Tan, AGO raised several alarming issues with the ministries in its annual reports. One of which is in regards to the People's Association which Mr Chan is deputy chairman of.In 2015, 35 out of 91 Community Club Management Committees (CCMCs) test checked by the AGO, was found to have failed to obtain approvals from the relevant authorities for awarding 53 tenancy contracts worth a total of $17.78 million.10 of the 35 CCMCs also did not obtain the relevant approvals for the direct award of 13 tenancy contracts worth a total of $3.67 million. These contracts were also given without competition, which can only be given under exceptional circumstances.In 2017, AGO test checked 189 purchases amounting to $6.03 million made by PA’s 18 GROs during this audit. Out of the 18 GROs, 13 (or 72%) were found not to have obtained proper approvals for award of contracts and variation for some 25 purchases totalling $619,900.
Posted by The Online Citizen SG on Thursday, 28 February 2019