The current investigation by the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) involving Transport Minister S Iswaran is "very different" from the matter of Ridout Road, Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said on Jul. 12.

In the case of Ridout Road, questions had been raised in public, including various online allegations about Ministers K Shanmugam and Vivian Balakrishnan, Wong highlighted.

This was followed by a statement by the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) which said that the transactions complied with procedures, Wong added.

Wong said:

"But still questions were raised, including questions in Parliament. And the two ministers themselves wanted and asked for an independent review of the matter. The Prime Minister agreed and asked CPIB to investigate, and the investigations eventually concluded that there was no wrongdoing on the part of the ministers, there was no corruption. The findings were published and there was a full accounting of the matter in Parliament."

In comparison, the current case is completely driven by CPIB, Wong said.

There was no public complaint, he added.

"It was CPIB that discovered the matter through their initial findings and investigations, and they felt that there was a need to interview Minister Iswaran as part of further investigation," he said.

CPIB had been carrying out an "unrelated investigation" earlier

As for the context of the case, Wong said CPIB had been undertaking an "unrelated investigation" on a separate matter earlier.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong had been updated on this investigation in May, Wong said.

Wong also said he had been kept in the loop and was familiar with the background.

"CPIB took some time to delve into the matter and they updated their findings to the Prime Minister last week on July 5," Wong added.

At that time, CPIB told PM Lee that they had to interview Iswaran as part of further investigations.

PM Lee gave his concurrence to the director of CPIB to open formal investigations and these processes began on Jul. 11, Wong elaborated.

MP duties will be covered by other West Coast GRC MPs

As for his duties as a Member of Parliament (MP), these will be covered by his other MPs while he is on a leave of absence, Wong said.

Iswaran had been asked by PM Lee to take a leave of absence until investigations by CPIB into a case are completed.

The leave of absence means Iswaran will not be in a position to undertake his ministerial responsibilities, Wong added.

It will also be difficult for him to undertake many of his MP duties, Wong noted.

More details will be revealed by the MPs themselves, he said.

Concrete proof of how Singapore's system works

In noting that Singaporeans were concerned about the matter, Wong called for the public to refrain from further speculation and to allow the investigation to take its source.

He said:

"We have always upheld a clean and incorrupt system of government and our track record on this over the decades is clear and evident to all.

And this is the foundation of the people's trust in the PAP government. The Prime Minister and I are fully committed to keeping and preserving this trust. So we will maintain a tough, zero tolerance stance against corruption. We will continue to uphold stringent standards of honesty, integrity and probity that Singaporeans expect of their political leaders."

"We will be upfront and transparent, and we will not sweep anything under the carpet, even if they are potentially embarrassing or damaging to the to the government," Wong added.

Background

Iswaran is currently assisting the CPIB with an investigation into a case uncovered by the agency.

The director of CPIB briefed PM Lee on Jul. 5 about the case and sought his concurrence to open a formal investigation that involves interviewing Iswaran, among others, according to a statement from Prime Minister's Office.

PM Lee has given the director of CPIB his concurrence to launch a formal investigation.

PM Lee gave the concurrence the next day and the formal investigation will start on Jul. 11.

CPIB acknowledged the public interest in the case because a minister is being interviewed and said that it will investigate thoroughly with "strong resolve to establish the facts and the truth".

The agency also said it is unable to provide further details about the case.

In the meantime, Iswaran was asked by the Prime Minister to take a leave of absence until these investigations are completed.

In his absence, Senior Minister of State Chee Hong Tat will be Acting Minister for Transport.

Top left image by Daras Singh, right photo by Sumita Thiagarajan