Monday 9 February 2015

AHPETC Audit AGO Findings - All in the Family

SINGAPORE. Auditor-General's Office (AGO) founds major lapses in governance and compliance by the Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council (AHPETC). Specifically, the AGO found several major lapses in Governance of Related Party Transactions.

AGO report on WP-led AHPETC town council

"The Auditor-General's Office (AGO) found that AHPETC did not have the necessary checks and balances in payment to related parties. PwC observed 84 invoices amounting to $6.61 million from FMSS and FMSI which were issued and signed by the General Manager and Secretary of AHPETC in their roles as director of FMSS and owner of FMSI respectively. Of these, 11 invoices amounting to $1.69 million were certified (for work done) by the General Manager on behalf of AHPETC and 9 invoices amounting to $264,000 were verified by the Deputy General Manager who is a shareholder of FMSS. For these invoices, the General Manager also approved the payment vouchers and / or the cheques before the cheques were handed over to the cheque signatories for signing. The Secretary was also one of the signatories for some of the cheques."

In essence, the husband and wife team of Mr Danny Loh Chong Meng (Secretary for AHPETC) and Ms How Weng Fan (General Manager for AHPETC), could freely issue invoices for "work", get it "certified as completed" and then "pay themselves". This is an ideal arrangement that allowed them full access to any amount of money they needed.

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