Civil servants are subject to four layers of safeguards aimed at preventing the misuse of non-public government information for personal gain, Coordinating Minister for Public Services Chan Chun Sing said in Parliament on Tuesday (Oct 6).
The safeguards include controlled access to sensitive information, declaration and approval requirements for personal transactions, additional measures for agencies handling particularly sensitive information, and channels for reporting suspected wrongdoing.
Chan was responding to parliamentary questions following a study that found a statistical association between civil servants involved in rail planning and property purchases near future MRT stations before their locations were announced.
As part of the Government's review, property transactions involving 191 officers in agencies involved in rail planning were examined. The officers had purchased properties between 2007 and 2014 near locations that were later announced as MRT stations.
Of these, eight officers have been identified for further examination, either because of the circumstances surrounding their purchases or because there was insufficient information to rule out concerns.
@asiaone Coordinating Minister for Public Services Chan Chun Sing explained that the referrals arose due to specific circumstances surrounding the purchase, or that there wasn't adequate information to exclude the cases from further review. #sgnews #Singapore #Property #MRT #Parliament ♬ original sound - AsiaOne
Under the existing safeguards, officers are granted access to sensitive information on a need-to-know basis, with such information subject to security and access controls.
"Since the 1990s, all officers have been required to declare purchases of private property and annually any non-owner-occupied properties they hold," Chan said.
These requirements have been progressively tightened over the years.
He explained that where an officer has relevant non-public information about a transaction they intend to undertake, they must seek approval from their agency head before proceeding.
This requirement is not limited to property transactions, but also applies to other personal transactions involving relevant non-public information, he added.
Finally, officers can report suspected wrongdoing to their supervisors, HR departments or agency heads.
Responding to a follow-up question from Member of Parliament Gerald Giam on whether such declarations should extend to the properties and assets of public officers' immediate family members, Chan said that there needs to be a "balance" between ensuring accountability and avoiding unnecessary reporting requirements.
"You need to declare for yourself, for your immediate family, which includes your spouse and your financially dependent children," Chan said.
However, he emphasised that the focus is on the use of non-public information for personal gain.
"It doesn't matter whether it's you, your immediate spouse, immediate family members, or your extended family. It is still wrong," Chan said.
He cited the Singapore Land Authority, which had required officers in the relevant department to declare property or land sales involving themselves, their spouses or financially dependent children.
The agency-specific requirement supplements the existing rules requiring all public officers to declare purchases of private property.
"This provides an additional means of bringing possible misconduct to attention," Chan said.
He added that no system could completely eliminate the possibility of wrongdoing, but the Government would continue to reduce opportunities for abuse, detect potential misconduct and act firmly where wrongdoing is established.
@asiaone Responding to parliament questions on a working paper, which made a statistical association between civil servants and the homes they purchased near planned MRT stations, Coordinating Minister for Public Services Chan Chun Sing said that no system can eliminate the possibility of wrongdoing entirely, but where such actions are found, firm actions will be taken. #sgnews #Singapore #Property #MRT #Parliament ♬ original sound - AsiaOne
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