The #RidoutGate Mega-Thread!

[SBFNews]

The Maharajah talk cock.

 

[batman1]

Really lost touch with reality.

 

[batman1]

He is still in hallucination.

 

[k1976]

View attachment 184109

He is really a gentleman and do his part for our country...

 

[Loofydralb]

Legal actions and pofma will be taken soon

That will be the last thing. It will all e exposed in court

 

[ThugSin]

 

[SBFNews]

 

[SBFNews]

Ridout Road Properties: A Question Of Accountability and Transparency
kuanyewism.com

Ministers Shanmugam and Vivian Balakrishnan has been in the news lately for their tenancy at at 26 Ridout Road and 31 Ridout Road. In multiple journal pieces and articles, Reform Party’s Kenneth Jeyaretnam (KJ) and The Online Citizen posed a number of important questions regarding this. Here is a summary of all the arguments.

1) The Ministers Should Not Be Able To Afford The Rent On Ministerial Salary Alone​

KJ acknowledges that he knew of a colonial mansion rented out for $30,000 a month, “but that was several years ago and market rents will have increased considerably since then”. He also says that his conservative estimate of the cost of the house at $1100 psf show that the house would be worth at least $55 million. At this price, a 3% rental yield would cost $1.65m a year.

“Even on our Ministers’ outrageous salaries of around $2 million a year it is difficult to see how Vivian or Shanmugam could afford to pay the market rent for such a pricey property. “
Kenneth Jeyeretnam

Accordingly, he questions whether the ministers are paying market rental reached in an open bidding process.

“If Shanmugam and Vivian are paying less than the market rent then there is also the question of whether this has been declared to Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) to ensure that this perk is taxed as income (even at Singapore’s very low rates for the rich).”
Kenneth Jeyaretnam

Source: Facebook

2) Someone Else Could Be Paying For Them, Possibly A Criminal Breach Of Trust​

“It may be that a generous donor to the PAP, concerned that our hard working Ministers should have somewhere bucolic to relax in so that they can brainstorm novel ideas for investing money to improve the lives of as yet unborn generations of Singaporeans, most of whom will come from abroad… If Shan and Vivian are indeed occupying these palatial properties and the state is picking up at least part of the tab then it is plausible that they are guilty of Criminal Breach of Trust as public servants.”
Kenneth Jeyaretnam

If this is the case, KJ is asking for the ministers to be accountable to be Singaporeans.

3) The Bungalows Were Not Empty. Someone Else Was Forced By SLA To Make Way For Shanmugam, The Boss Of SLA​

KJ shared that he spoke to sources in the neighborhood who told him that 26 Ridout Road was not actually empty. It had apparently been inhabited by an expat hedge fund manager “who was then squeezed out by unreasonable terms imposed by SLA, which as we know is headed by Shanmugam”.

Source: Facebook

4) A Significant Number Of Trees Were Cut Down After Ministers Moved In, They May Have Abused Their Power To Do So​

The Online Citizen shared in an article that satellite images show that their move led to a lot of trees being cut down.

TOC shared that the trees are likely to be mature as these are colonial bungalows. Ironically, there is a Heritage Tree Scheme officially launched in 2002 by Vivian Balakrishnan, then Minister of State for National Development, which protects “heritage trees” from being felled with a girth exceeding 1m without prior approval.

“Did the trees cut down at the ministers’ residences have conservation status? If so, was approval sought for their removal, and who gave this approval? Were the approvals, if any, backed by independent assessments?”
The Online Citizen

5) Tenants Are Supposed To Pay For Their Own Renovation, But Did SLA Pay For Shanmugam’s Renovation?​

TOC noted that SLA may have built a carpark just for Shanmugam. However, SLA’s tenancy agreement clearly states that any renovation should be at the tenant’s own cost.

“As SLA states that the property was rented to Mr Shanmugam in June 2018, it then raises questions as to why SLA, instead of the Minister engaging his own contractor, assumed the role of developer for constructing the sheltered car park. The issue of who financed the construction works also remains unclear.”
The Online Citizen

6) There Is Conflict Of Interest As The Ministers Are Essentially SLA’s Bosses.​

The ministers are essentially SLA’s bosses, there is a conflict of interest. Hence, in an open letter, KJ asked for a independent committee of inquiry to look at the issue. This is especially since SLA’s statement is insufficient to answer all the questions so far.

Source: Facebook

The Ridout Rd Issue Has Also Highlighted To Us The Inefficient Use Of Land in Singapore​

The fact that these huge pieces of land are untenanted shows how our land is inefficiently managed. KJ pointed out that there is a “severe housing shortage in Singapore”.

“The PAP Government has provided no real justification for why it is holding back so much land in the form of former colonial estates when it acknowledges a severe housing shortage in Singapore and when prices keep rising… On a per capita basis Singaporeans have some of the smallest living spaces in the world at only 258 square feet per capita according to a South China Morning Post survey.”
Kenneth Jeyaretnam

Updates (23 May)​

On Tuesday (23 May), Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced that Senior Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security, Teo Chee Hean, is to conduct an independent review regarding two residential properties. Mr Shanmugam, the Home Affairs and Law Minister, and Dr Balakrishnan, the Foreign Affairs Minister, had requested a review that is independent of the ministries and agencies they supervise.
In an interview with the media, Shanmugam called the matter “outrageous” and said that he had “nothing to hide”. Vivian Balakrishnan also responded by saying that he is “very glad that Prime Minister Lee agreed to have this review and to publish all relevant facts and findings before we have a full debate in Parliament”.
[Edited with inputs from Kenneth Jeyaretnam]

https://kuanyewism.com/2023/05/ridout-road-properties-a-question-of-accountability-and-transparency/

 

[Willamshakespear]

That will be the last thing. It will all e exposed in court

Let's hope it will not be taken to court. Singapore is a Democratic & transparent Nation. The issue is over a mere trivial matter of an office holder's needs in his duties to serve our Nation.

However, what is not trivial are the seemingly attempts to use this matter to attack & shake our Institutions & social fabric. Why were other more pertinent domestic issues not raised in Parliament? Was there outside sources that had made use of others either directly or indirectly to serve their own personal interests? We know there are some whom are unjustifiably upset with Singapore over its handling of our own national issues such as capital punishment, harsh policies against harmful drugs, homo-sex community issues, ASEAN decisions over South China Sea tensions, etc.

So long as we citizens, are kept informed & united as sworn by our sacred National Pledge, we will be able to withstand any subtle or direct attack upon our cherished institutions that had saw our progress & evolution over our 58 years of history as an Independent Nation.

 

[Merl Haggard]

Yes I don’t doubt you have nothing to hide Your Majesty K Shanmugam. Yes I am also sure everything was done above board.



However, you must also be aware that as a minister, the electorate is watching you all the time - the car or cars you own, the watches and shoes you wear, the lifestyle you lead and of course where you live.

I remember in the early 70s as a young serving officer in the Ministry of Defence, I saw our Deputy PM and Defence Minister DR Goh Keng Swee driving pass the complex gates in his old beat up Morris and parked the car himself and strode to his office in pretty unfashionable office attire. He definitely could drive a more handsome car and wear more stylish clothes but he chose not too.

He must have known all eyes were on him and it was best not to prance around and show off his position and money especially when the rest of us were living from pay check to pay check.

LKY in interviews for one of his books, said as PM, he could live in the Istana (like the British governors) with his family. However, he did not want his children to grow up living in opulence with butlers picking up after them. Perhaps what he did not say was he did not want the citizens to look aghast at the PM living in an ostentatious house with expansive grounds especially at a time when everyone was finding it hard to make a living.

In later years he could well afford to live in the most prestigious areas of the city but he still chose to live in Oxley Road in a relatively humble home. As a leader and a minister he knew full well he had to lead by example and to be seen to lead by example. Living in grandiose surroundings would not do for a political leader and former prime minister.

In the 80's, when Lee Hsien Yang and I were attending a senior officers staff course I recall taking a lift from him after one of our TEWT exercises. I remember chiding him on the humble car he was driving and cheekily asked why wasn’t he driving a fancier car which some of the officer students were driving.

I knew fully well he could easily afford it. Rather calmly he told me yes he could afford to, but he had been brought up not to be seen flaunting his position or living an extravagant lifestyle and anyway he was very happy with his car.

I am sure what he meant but did not say was his colleagues, friends and people at large would always be watching him and he did not want to embarrass himself or his father as a person who was living a life of privilege because of who his father was.

Perhaps both Rajahs Shanmugam and Vivian should take heed of the fact that they are servants of the people (as mentioned by PM LHL in one of his public speeches) and despite their generous salaries, they are expected to show decorum and dignified propriety in the way they live and how they maintain or support their personal affairs and lifestyle.

They must understand they are holding their positions of power for a purpose - to serve the people of Singapore with a sense of duty and commitment coupled with empathy for those who are less fortunate and who are unable to even in their wildest dreams live in houses in Ridout Road.


Gerard Ong.

 

[Merl Haggard]

Why appoint a One Man review?

When Reesah Khan was found uttering rubbish in Parliament over something that did not happen the Singapore government swung into immediate action to form a Parliamentary Select Committee to look into the lie that she ostensibly told. Leader of the opposition Pritam Singh and Chairman Sylvia Lim of the Workers Party were hauled up by Edwin Tong and Company to face hours and hours of public grilling by the Parliamentary Committee presided by the Speaker. In the end Raessah Khan had to resign and the punishment for Pritam Singh for giving wrong advice to his colleague still hangs in the air.

Compared to Ridout Gate involving possible conflict of interest and pecuniary gain over a rental period of least 3 years and only came to light on May 6th 2023 the Raessah Khan affair pales in comparison. Why is it that only 1 minister is appointed to review this ghastly affair? Why Is he given so much time the whole month of June and the last week of May to review such a hideously horrid affair? The longer this investigation drags the greater the disrepute and contempt the government draws to itself. Most important of all is that such a fiasco involving two senior ministers warrant a similar Parliamentary Select Committee to look into the skullduggery that has been buried over the last few years.


Lowinsky.

 

[syed putra]

So ministars are suppose to live in hdb?

 

[eatshitndie]

please lah. shan needs at least 6.9 acres (306k sqft divided by 44k sqft) of space or buffer to ward off a siao char bor. he’s been harassed so much that an entire island is too small as a refuge.

 

[Willamshakespear]

Mr KJ had only shown his own personal perspectives, self indulgences in his assertiveness & ignorance over the issue & even attempt to predict an outcome that he presume will put him in a sadly misguided heroic light.

a. In terms of property sizes & comparisons, is he aware that MANY of our Singapore property tycoons own even FAR MORE bigger Singapore land sizes in their land banks? Would anyone dare call the sons of Mr. Ng Teng Fong as Emperors?

b. He claims 'someone' else is paying for the rent. Having made such BOLD assertions, so WHO is the one? Does that someone exists or is it just a figment of imagination from his feverish mind? Did he show any evidences? or else it is just wild accusations amounting to slander.

c. He claims 'someone' had been living in that home - an expat even, & not vacant, so surely he can back up that claim with evidences? or is it another wild imagination of him & expects citizens to believe his words alone?

d. Renovations are done by the Landlord, to ensure it attracts tenants & they have a level of comfort to live within the premise & not the other way around.

e. Ultimately, with a review in place, it would be best to await findings rather than to second guess or make wild accusations that Mr. KJ had erroneously made.

 

[blackmondy]

PAP no such thing as conflict of interest, just look at ho ching, she can be PAP anytime.

Conflict of interest is a privilege only enjoyed by a despotic regime like ours.

 

[ODACHEK]

Conflict of interest is a privilege only enjoyed by a despotic regime likes ours.

 

[batman1]

So ministars are suppose to live in hdb?

They assumed they are maharajahs and are entitled to stay in castles or palaces.

 

[blackmondy]

This pig is the most equal among the rest. And our in-house commie dog tanwahtiu adores him to death.

 

[Patriotmissile]

Teo: Vivi and Sham, come have some coffee.
Sham, Vivi: We prefer tea leh, 不然黑吃黑。
Teo: Fuck lah, now still got mood to crack jokes!
Sham: okk, serious boss. How to settle?
Vivi: Should I go overseas and shake Wangyi that aguaman's hand to whitewash and elevate myself abit like usual?
Teo: mai kia, I just wayang do some investigation lah. SLA side I settle already. Everyone needs rice bowl there.
Sham: Boss you are da best!
Vivi: hehehe.

 

[Papsmearer]

Why appoint a One Man review?

When Reesah Khan was found uttering rubbish in Parliament over something that did not happen the Singapore government swung into immediate action to form a Parliamentary Select Committee to look into the lie that she ostensibly told. Leader of the opposition Pritam Singh and Chairman Sylvia Lim of the Workers Party were hauled up by Edwin Tong and Company to face hours and hours of public grilling by the Parliamentary Committee presided by the Speaker. In the end Raessah Khan had to resign and the punishment for Pritam Singh for giving wrong advice to his colleague still hangs in the air.

Compared to Ridout Gate involving possible conflict of interest and pecuniary gain over a rental period of least 3 years and only came to light on May 6th 2023 the Raessah Khan affair pales in comparison. Why is it that only 1 minister is appointed to review this ghastly affair? Why Is he given so much time the whole month of June and the last week of May to review such a hideously horrid affair? The longer this investigation drags the greater the disrepute and contempt the government draws to itself. Most important of all is that such a fiasco involving two senior ministers warrant a similar Parliamentary Select Committee to look into the skullduggery that has been buried over the last few years.


Lowinsky.

It should be a CPIB case. But then the CPIB is own and controlled by the PMO, and Pinky is not going to use it to whack two of his cabinet ministers