Goh Thien Phong, partner in accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), was released as a witness on Day 7 of the landmark Aljunied-Hougang Town Council (AHTC) trial on Oct. 15.

Goh was released from the stands following a cross-examination by defence lawyer Leslie Netto, who is representing defendant How Weng Fan.

How is a majority owner of former town council managing agent FM Solutions & Services (FMSS) along with her late husband, Danny Loh. Netto is also representing FMSS itself.

Alleged duplication of work

Netto asked why the PwC report pointed out "over-payments" and "unjustified payments" when the other accounting firm, KPMG, had already done so.

He asked if this meant that PwC was duplicating the work done by KPMG.

In response, Goh said:

"We have stated that we refer to KPMG’s findings. Independently, we also saw evidence right from the start that FMSS has secured appointment as an MA without (the) town councillors calling for a tender."

Goh added that PwC was not provided with any documentation to show that the town council had negotiated the terms and fee structure with FMSS.

Pasir Ris-Punggol Town Council (PRPTC) had engaged PwC to review payments made by AHTC, back when it was managing Punggol East under the name of Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council (AHPETC).

The PAP won Punggol East back from the Workers' Party (WP) during the 2015 general election, and the ward is currently being managed by PRPTC.

Goh challenged assertion PwC's report was speculative

Netto then moved on to another topic, and asserted that PwC's report was "prejudiced", and made "sweeping statements".

He disputed the claim that by initially appointing FMSS as the town council's managing agent, this gave the company the advantage when the time came to bid for subsequent tenders.

Netto said:

"This is laughable what you’re stating, that’s speculation."

In reply, Goh said:

"The tender was waived, but it’s not as though there was no alternative service provider. Other service providers approached the town council. The fact the tender was waived was a real concern."

When Netto said that was a "ludicrous conjecture" on Goh's part, the accountant replied:

"We all know that FMSS has no prior experience in running a larger town council (for a GRC)."

Later on during the cross-examination, Netto asked why PwC did not seek How's views before publishing the report, when KPMG had done so.

Goh replied that it was not necessary, as KPMG had already contacted How.

Her feedback would have been reflected in its report, on which PwC partly based their findings.

Political climate not mentioned in the report

Netto also claimed that the PwC report was prejudiced as it failed to take into account the "political nature" of town councils, and the fact that the opposition WP would be taking over a GRC.

Said Netto:

"Your prejudice is apparent from not only what you stated, but what you didn’t state."

He asserted that the previous managing agent, CPG, was unwilling to serve under an opposition party and the residents of Aljunied GRC would be inconvenienced from a halt in their services if CPG pulled out.

According to Netto, this justified AHPETC's decision to waive the tender for a managing agent.

Goh replied that while he agreed that a waiver was needed during an emergency, he does not believe that AHPETC's situation qualified, as CPG was willing to give "two or three months" to the town council.

When Netto claimed that no other managing agents were prepared to put in a tender for an opposition-run town council, Goh asked how Netto knew that when the tender was not called in the first place.

Refusal to duplicate work

Netto then asked why the PwC report did not mention the withdrawal of the town council management system by IT firm Action Information Management, which effectively stripped the town council of its computer system.

Goh replied, apparently in reference to their earlier discussion:

"That was addressed in KPMG’s report, and as I’ve said, I do not want to duplicate KPMG’s work."

Lawyer for the plaintiff, Senior Counsel Davinder Singh did not have further questions for Goh.

The trial will resume on Oct. 16, with WP's former Secretary-General Low Thia Khiang expected to take the stand.

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Top image by Matthias Ang