Chitchat Oppie Low Admits That He Was Irresponsible! Getting Ready To Pay Back $33M To Aljunied Voters! Return Us Our Bloodsweat Money!

[Bad New Brown]

Unless someone can prove the $33 mil go into the pockets of the WP trio, if not then it just a case of overcharging from that husband & wife company.

I personally admired the Mr Low as he alone set up Hougang Town Council in 1991 at that time with no office to operate and the MA had terminated the contract with the TC.

The worst thing also happened in 2011 after winning Aljunied GRC.

All these people can say WP incompetence they wanted but I think Mr Low is very capable in running the TC with very limited resources. And holding on the that 1 SMC (Hougang) for about 20 years then expanding to Aljunied GRC.

Other than Mr Chiam is another local hero, nobody as an opposition had ever achieved these

 

[Kee Chew]

Sant Singh (SC) is in TR&C

 

[winnipegjets]

Unless someone can prove the $33 mil go into the pockets of the WP trio, if not then it just a case of overcharging from that husband & wife company.

I personally admired the Mr Low as he alone set up Hougang Town Council in 1991 at that time with no office to operate and the MA had terminated the contract with the TC.

The worst thing also happened in 2011 after winning Aljunied GRC.

All these people can say WP incompetence they wanted but I think Mr Low is very capable in running the TC with very limited resources. And holding on the that 1 SMC (Hougang) for about 20 years then expanding to Aljunied GRC.

Other than Mr Chiam is another local hero, nobody as an opposition had ever achieved these

There is no case. Based on the unique circumstances - an Opposition ward - the charges are reasonable. The amount went up but the plaintiff did not establish if the scope of work has increased. Would the HDB-owned company take on the job? It didn't previously nor it expressed any interest to pursue any business ties with the WP MPs.

The WP should go on the offensive - start the narrative that unless there are more opposition MPs (at least 40 percent), the PAP will make it difficult for opposition MPs to manage their wards. The PAP is using government resources (the estate management company is owned by HDB) for themselves and excluding opposition ward.

 

[winnipegjets]

When are they going to jail? The suspense is killing me!

Please don't die because they are not going to jail.

 

[winnipegjets]

I hope to see the WP oppies make out a $33M cheque to the residents of Aljunied GRC. Return us our bloodsweat money!!!

Fat chance. They will blow themselves up in Parliament instead (my wish for them).

 

[winnipegjets]

I dun think so ...

I am expecting the sinkie to run wild for the next one. WP to keep the 6 seats & possibly win a few more seats

Unless the WP becomes more aggressive, this is fat hope.

This is time for WP to start the narrative ...the case has shown how the PAP had a stranglehold on service providers and made it impossible for WP to tap into the existing network. And the PAP even reduce funding to the WP ward by 75%! Plant the seed now that if Opposition is to have a chance to make meaningful improvement in the lives of sinkees, they would need to form at least 40 percent of the MPs. Then, the Opposition can have the economies of scale benefit and thus be able to ward of PAP bullying.

Also, point out that the PAP is using government resources - the HDB-owned company is providing services - for its own gain. Is the HDB-owned company making reasonable returns? This info is not made known.

 

[JohnTan]

This is time for WP to start the narrative ...the case has shown how the PAP had a stranglehold on service providers and made it impossible for WP to tap into the existing network. And the PAP even reduce funding to the WP ward by 75%!

What nonsense! The Ministry of National Development is non-partisan and gives out the grants based on a formula depending on the number and type of flats in the ward.
This matter has been debated in parliament years ago.

In its statement on Thursday, the ministry said all town councils receive an S&CC operating grant based on the number of HDB units and type of flats. The grants are higher for smaller units - $33.30 a month and $26.20 a month respectively for one-room and two-room flats - compared to $17 a month for three-room and $9 a month for four-room flats.

Councils receive a higher amount if they have more and smaller flat-types, the ministry said. The councils for Ang Mo Kio, for example, where 39 per cent of the 89,127 flats are three-room or smaller, and Tanjung Pagar, where 59 per cent of the 75,050 flats are three-room or smaller, both receive more grants than AHPETC, where 29 per cent of the 71,760 flats are three-room or smaller.

By contrast, Chua Chu Kang - which has an almost similar 71,348 flats as AHPETC - receives less in S&CC grants as only 12 per cent of its flats are three-room or smaller. The S&CC grant for Chua Chu Kang is $4.9 million compared to AHPETC's $7.2 million, the ministry said.

The ministry also responded to a question from The Straits Times to explain comments by Minister of State for National Development Desmond Lee on Nov 7 about the financial position of AHPETC.

And it also confirmed that after the 2011 General Election - when the People's Action Party lost Aljunied GRC to the WP - an amount of $3.7 million from Aljunied council's accumulated surplus was transferred to its sinking fund. Under the Town Councils Act, this must be done after an election. But the sinking fund can be used by councils for future major repair and repainting works.

In his comments on Nov 7, Mr Lee noted that Aljunied Town Council - before it was merged with Hougang Town Council by the WP - had an operating surplus of $3.3 million. But within two years, the merged council's financial position deteriorated rapidly. It had an operating deficit of $734,000 in the 2012 financial year.

Using financial statements of AHPETC, the ministry provided comparisons of finances in the 2012 financial year, and that of the 2010 financial year when Aljunied was under the PAP.

The data showed that despite AHPETC's increased income of $29.8 million in FY2012 - 11 per cent more than the $26.8 million in FY2010 - its expenditure was up significantly at $35.4 million. This was 30 per cent more than the $27.3 million of FY2010.

The council's operating deficit in FY2012, before grants, was $5.6 million. The ministry said this was a 1,120 per cent increase over the $500,000 operating deficit in FY2010.

After grants and less transfers, AHPETC's operating deficit was $734,000 - as compared to a surplus of $3.3 million in FY2010.

As to the question of why Aljunied received $26.7 million in government grants in FY2010/2011 and that a much lower $7.3 million went to AHPETC in both FY2011/2012 and FY2012/2013, the ministry said that of the $26.7 million given, an amount of $19.2 million was a one-off grant to help the council offset the cost of the lift upgrading programme. It added that Hougang council, under the WP in FY2010, similarly received $5 million.

https://www.straitstimes.com/singap...xplains-town-council-surplus-and-grant-issues

 

[PTADER]

more images of contented sinkies sextisfying their sinkie-form of ocd by choping tables, queueing up, and makaning away. can see the happiness in their faces when they finally find a table, stand in line, sink their teeth into the food, and kpkb (tcss) into the night.

Not just food. See how contented Sinkies are happily queuing for non-food items like Hello Kitty dolls, iPhones, Lois Vuitton, etc.

The PAP is truly doing a wonderful job. Thank you PAP.

Other countries:

 

[PTADER]

We have learned a lot of this lawsuit.

How to manage a large scale town council without a enterprise resource software ?

Using the manual excel can be nightmare

An outsourced contractor providing cleaning and maintenance services will definitely make a profit from its clients

A very strong and tight internal control system has to be established

Too much cock and bull from WP cultists and gongkias. If you do not have the integrity, competence and management skills and hence, will not be able to, or are not ready to run a TC that you already know to be one of your primary responsibilities as an MP, there is a very simple solution. Don't stand for elections.

 

[PTADER]

https://ingoodfaith.blog/

Why don't the "in good faith" millionaire triumvirate of Shameless Low, Lying Lim and Turbanless Tigress demonstrate their "in good faith" and "transparency" by revealing their wealth and answering these five simple questions which was asked five days ago?

BTW, here's another "in good faith" by a crook across the causeway.

"Does it smack of somebody who was trying to cheat or steal? If the intention was to steal, why would I use a local ​

bank account in my own name? [...] “As far as I am concerned, I acted in good faith." Najib Razak, "Why would​

I use a local bank account in my own name if I wanted to steal, asks Najib", New Straits Times, 02 July 2018.​

************

Five "Fundraising" Questions for WP's Low, Lim and Singh

Besides your beholden fellow MPs, NCMPs including party members and cadres looking to rise in the party's hierarchy, cheerleading teams of WP astroturfers and those who donate out of self-interests (due to the contracts and businesses they have with AHTC), there will be, admittedly, genuine donors amongst the "5,241+" who donated to you three. Many would be HDB dwellers with low household income of less than $1,000 a month (12.2% of households in Singapore) or whose value of their property can be as low as $260,000 (a three-room HDB flat).

In contrast, the three of you collectively earn $48,125 a month ($16,041/month/individual) or $577,500 a year ($192,500/individual) just in MP allowances alone. This is not considering your other income streams. Also, your 6 WP MPs and 3 WP NCMPs earn a total of $1,241,625/year [$192,500 x 6 + $86,625 x 3 ($28,875/year/NCMP)]

Your landed property is worth well over $4 million (Half-Truth Low). Combined with Lying Lim's Toh Tuck condo and Turbanless Tiger's condo, this brings the value of the property you live in (as a luxurious lifestyle choice) to at least $6 million plus.

A few questions for you triumvirate of three:

1. Why did you three not disclose your lifestyle choice of living in a luxurious landed private property or condo, all of which have a combined value of no less than $6 million (as a conservative estimate), before choosing to raise funds from the public?

2. Why have you three not disclose your total assets (property/ies, investments, salaries, income streams and other assets) before choosing to raise funds from the public?

3. Why did you three choose to hide and not reveal such assets to the public? Shouldn't the "transparency" you talk about not apply in your fundraising?

4. Are raising funds and using the funds, especially those obtained from low-income Singaporeans who live in HDB flats whose value is a fraction of your property, in order to pay for either your dishonesty and/or personal incompetence in running AHTC (and previously Punggol), ethical and morally acceptable to you three?

5. Are your actions not reminiscent of, and not dissimilar to that of City Harvest's Kong Hee and his wife, Sun Ho?

 

[maxxi]

The famous leaving court 'I am OK' big grin...

 

[Robert Half]

Unless the WP becomes more aggressive, this is fat hope.

This is time for WP to start the narrative ...the case has shown how the PAP had a stranglehold on service providers and made it impossible for WP to tap into the existing network. And the PAP even reduce funding to the WP ward by 75%! Plant the seed now that if Opposition is to have a chance to make meaningful improvement in the lives of sinkees, they would need to form at least 40 percent of the MPs. Then, the Opposition can have the economies of scale benefit and thus be able to ward of PAP bullying.

Also, point out that the PAP is using government resources - the HDB-owned company is providing services - for its own gain. Is the HDB-owned company making reasonable returns? This info is not made known.

You still cannot understand what type of oppositions do the people wanted.

People want a moderate oppositions & not those troublemakers type. WP is decent & middle ground type of opposition MP that fit the mood of the electorate

 

[Robert Half]

Too much cock and bull from WP cultists and gongkias. If you do not have the integrity, competence and management skills and hence, will not be able to, or are not ready to run a TC that you already know to be one of your primary responsibilities as an MP, there is a very simple solution. Don't stand for elections.

Cannot .. we want them to stand for elections

Let the next generations learn how to run a TC

 

[Bonut]

You still cannot understand what type of oppositions do the people wanted.

People want a moderate oppositions & not those troublemakers type. WP is decent & middle ground type of opposition MP that fit the mood of the electorate

I'm one of the "people" you mentioned. I don't want troublemakers. Incidentally, this is a term coined by an ex-PAP MP. But who are the troublemakers ? I don't consider Dr Chee or Dr Thambyah as troublemakers.

Neither do I want “You voted for a tiger in the chamber and you got a mouse in the House" (1 September 2015)."

 

[Robert Half]

I'm one of the "people" you mentioned. I don't want troublemakers. Incidentally, this is a term coined by an ex-PAP MP. But who are the troublemakers ? I don't consider Dr Chee or Dr Thambyah as troublemakers.

Neither do I want “You voted for a tiger in the chamber and you got a mouse in the House" (1 September 2015)."

I am not those people who have very high expectations but they really did well in the Parliament.

 

[Bonut]

I am not those people who have very high expectations but they really did well in the Parliament.

So when you quote "people" just don't forget you don't represent every people.

We don't have to go to the extreme to employ a term used by ex PAP MP - troublemakers - to justify the performance of WP. If WP needs to be compared with troublemakers like Prof. Zeng or Harban Singh, then I really worry for WP.

You think WP did well in Parliament ? Examples ? Did they open the books of Temasek and GIC ?

 

[JohnTan]

The Workers' Party (WP) town councillors involved in multimillion-dollar lawsuits over alleged improper payments have paid their lawyers another $195,800.

This brings their legal bill to around $800,000 to date.

The latest bill was for "work done in the final pre-trial stage", WP chairman Sylvia Lim, secretary-general Pritam Singh and former chief Low Thia Khiang said on their blog In Good Faith yesterday, along with a picture of the receipt.


Last week, the trio raised over $1.13 million in a crowdfunding exercise that closed after three days, as the amount raised "substantially covers the legal fees required at this point in time", they wrote then.

Prior to the exercise, they had paid about $600,000 in fees out of their own pockets.

Of the crowdfunded amount, $1 million was deposited with law firm Tan, Rajah & Cheah. Senior Counsel Chelva Rajah is representing the trio and two other Aljunied-Hougang town councillors in the civil suits, for which the first leg of hearings ended on Tuesday.

The quintet, former AHTC managing agent FM Solutions & Services (FMSS) and its owners How Weng Fan and her late husband Danny Loh, have been sued by AHTC over $33.7 million in alleged improper payments.

AHTC was directed to sue by an independent panel led by Senior Counsel Philip Jeyaretnam.

At the close of their online appeal, WP chairman Sylvia Lim, secretary-general Pritam Singh and former chief Low Thia Khiang had raised a total of $1,008,802.

Separately, the panel said in an update on Wednesday that the law firm representing AHTC will let the High Court determine its fees after the case ends, through a legal process known as taxation.

The update added that the law firm had not been paid any professional fees so far, and AHTC has only paid for its share of the hearing fees.

Mr Cyril Chua, director of law firm Robinson LLC, said taxation is a "transparent process that pre-empts accusations of lawyers being overpaid".

He added that judges determine the appropriate legal fees based on the time spent by lawyers and the complexity of the case, among other things.

The Pasir Ris-Punggol Town Council has also launched a lawsuit against the defendants, to recover its share of losses allegedly incurred when Punggol East constituency was managed by the WP-led town council from 2013 to 2015. It is represented by Senior Counsel Davinder Singh of Drew & Napier.

When asked about Mr Singh's legal fees, Punggol East MP Charles Chong said he would not be commenting as long as the case is still before the courts.

FMSS' lawyers Netto & Magin LLC also declined to speak about their clients' fees to date.

https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/wps-legal-bill-800k-to-date-ahtc-to-let-court-decide-its-fees

 

[Bonut]

The Workers' Party (WP) town councillors involved in multimillion-dollar lawsuits over alleged improper payments have paid their lawyers another $195,800.

This brings their legal bill to around $800,000 to date.

The latest bill was for "work done in the final pre-trial stage", WP chairman Sylvia Lim, secretary-general Pritam Singh and former chief Low Thia Khiang said on their blog In Good Faith yesterday, along with a picture of the receipt.


Last week, the trio raised over $1.13 million in a crowdfunding exercise that closed after three days, as the amount raised "substantially covers the legal fees required at this point in time", they wrote then.

Prior to the exercise, they had paid about $600,000 in fees out of their own pockets.

Of the crowdfunded amount, $1 million was deposited with law firm Tan, Rajah & Cheah. Senior Counsel Chelva Rajah is representing the trio and two other Aljunied-Hougang town councillors in the civil suits, for which the first leg of hearings ended on Tuesday.

The quintet, former AHTC managing agent FM Solutions & Services (FMSS) and its owners How Weng Fan and her late husband Danny Loh, have been sued by AHTC over $33.7 million in alleged improper payments.

AHTC was directed to sue by an independent panel led by Senior Counsel Philip Jeyaretnam.

At the close of their online appeal, WP chairman Sylvia Lim, secretary-general Pritam Singh and former chief Low Thia Khiang had raised a total of $1,008,802.

Separately, the panel said in an update on Wednesday that the law firm representing AHTC will let the High Court determine its fees after the case ends, through a legal process known as taxation.

The update added that the law firm had not been paid any professional fees so far, and AHTC has only paid for its share of the hearing fees.

Mr Cyril Chua, director of law firm Robinson LLC, said taxation is a "transparent process that pre-empts accusations of lawyers being overpaid".

He added that judges determine the appropriate legal fees based on the time spent by lawyers and the complexity of the case, among other things.

The Pasir Ris-Punggol Town Council has also launched a lawsuit against the defendants, to recover its share of losses allegedly incurred when Punggol East constituency was managed by the WP-led town council from 2013 to 2015. It is represented by Senior Counsel Davinder Singh of Drew & Napier.

When asked about Mr Singh's legal fees, Punggol East MP Charles Chong said he would not be commenting as long as the case is still before the courts.

FMSS' lawyers Netto & Magin LLC also declined to speak about their clients' fees to date.

https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/wps-legal-bill-800k-to-date-ahtc-to-let-court-decide-its-fees

Bayi is the most expensive lawyer in Singapore. Nabeh, PRPG Town Council got open tender to pick the lawyer or not ? Straightaway go for the most expensive one in Sinkieland.

 

[garlic]

There are zero CBT charges, this alone already indicate that LTK, Sylvic, Pritam et al, did not enrich themselves through this whole process. Therefore, there is no need for oppies to change their votes in upcoming elections. If anything, this civil trial shows that the three are trustworthy and smart, they rather ownself appoint independent panel to sue ownself, rather than wait for PAPpies to initiate a suit. You think that the MIWs will not sue them?

 

[winnipegjets]

What nonsense! The Ministry of National Development is non-partisan and gives out the grants based on a formula depending on the number and type of flats in the ward.
This matter has been debated in parliament years ago.

In its statement on Thursday, the ministry said all town councils receive an S&CC operating grant based on the number of HDB units and type of flats. The grants are higher for smaller units - $33.30 a month and $26.20 a month respectively for one-room and two-room flats - compared to $17 a month for three-room and $9 a month for four-room flats.

Councils receive a higher amount if they have more and smaller flat-types, the ministry said. The councils for Ang Mo Kio, for example, where 39 per cent of the 89,127 flats are three-room or smaller, and Tanjung Pagar, where 59 per cent of the 75,050 flats are three-room or smaller, both receive more grants than AHPETC, where 29 per cent of the 71,760 flats are three-room or smaller.

By contrast, Chua Chu Kang - which has an almost similar 71,348 flats as AHPETC - receives less in S&CC grants as only 12 per cent of its flats are three-room or smaller. The S&CC grant for Chua Chu Kang is $4.9 million compared to AHPETC's $7.2 million, the ministry said.

The ministry also responded to a question from The Straits Times to explain comments by Minister of State for National Development Desmond Lee on Nov 7 about the financial position of AHPETC.

And it also confirmed that after the 2011 General Election - when the People's Action Party lost Aljunied GRC to the WP - an amount of $3.7 million from Aljunied council's accumulated surplus was transferred to its sinking fund. Under the Town Councils Act, this must be done after an election. But the sinking fund can be used by councils for future major repair and repainting works.

In his comments on Nov 7, Mr Lee noted that Aljunied Town Council - before it was merged with Hougang Town Council by the WP - had an operating surplus of $3.3 million. But within two years, the merged council's financial position deteriorated rapidly. It had an operating deficit of $734,000 in the 2012 financial year.

Using financial statements of AHPETC, the ministry provided comparisons of finances in the 2012 financial year, and that of the 2010 financial year when Aljunied was under the PAP.

The data showed that despite AHPETC's increased income of $29.8 million in FY2012 - 11 per cent more than the $26.8 million in FY2010 - its expenditure was up significantly at $35.4 million. This was 30 per cent more than the $27.3 million of FY2010.

The council's operating deficit in FY2012, before grants, was $5.6 million. The ministry said this was a 1,120 per cent increase over the $500,000 operating deficit in FY2010.

After grants and less transfers, AHPETC's operating deficit was $734,000 - as compared to a surplus of $3.3 million in FY2010.

As to the question of why Aljunied received $26.7 million in government grants in FY2010/2011 and that a much lower $7.3 million went to AHPETC in both FY2011/2012 and FY2012/2013, the ministry said that of the $26.7 million given, an amount of $19.2 million was a one-off grant to help the council offset the cost of the lift upgrading programme. It added that Hougang council, under the WP in FY2010, similarly received $5 million.

https://www.straitstimes.com/singap...xplains-town-council-surplus-and-grant-issues

That's a load of crap ....when PAP ran the TC, grant was $26 million. WP took over, grant went to $7 milllion. All the cooked up tales to justify that substantial decrease. Is there a PAP ward that experience similar decline in grant?