Iswaran handed 27 charges for corruption, obtaining valuables as a ...

SINGAPORE — Former Transport Minister S Iswaran was on Thursday morning (Jan 18) handed 27 charges at the State Courts, mostly related to bribery and corruption involving more than S$384,300.

The 61-year-old was charged with 24 offences under Section 165 of the Penal Code, two under the Prevention of Corruption Act and one for obstruction of justice.

Section 165 of the Penal Code makes it an offence for a public servant to accept anything of value — without payment or with inadequate payment — from a person with whom he is involved in an official capacity.

It is not necessary to establish that the item of value was received as an inducement or a reward for it to be deemed as an offence.

Under this section of the Penal Code, Iswaran was accused of obtaining valuable things worth about S$218,058.95 from Mr Ong Beng Seng, managing director of Hotel Properties Limited and a Malaysian billionaire who gained a high profile for bringing the Formula 1 Grand Prix to Singapore

For the two counts of corruptly obtaining gratification, Iswaran allegedly received about S$166,280 worth of event and flight tickets, among other items, in September and December 2022 from Mr Ong.

This amount was alleged to be inducement for advancing Mr Ong's business interests in relation to contracts between the Singapore Grand Prix and the Singapore Tourism Board.

In May 2023, Iswaran allegedly made repayment of S$5,700 for a business class flight ticket paid by Mr Ong in December 2022. This constitutes the single obstruction of justice charge against him.

Iswaran, who is represented by Senior Counsel Davinder Singh, pleaded not guilty to the charges and intends to contest them.

On Thursday, Mr Singh raised an issue in court regarding his client's charges and sought the prosecution's clarification on them.

He said that the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) had on Monday dealt Iswaran 36 charges and took cautioned statements on all of them.

A cautioned statement is a defence or explanation provided by someone in response to a charge.

"However, this morning, we learned from documents that were handed to us by the prosecution that there are now 27 charges," Mr Singh said. 

"I'd like to know... whether the prosecution is proceeding with the remaining nine charges."

In response, Chief Prosecutor Tan Kiat Pheng confirmed that the prosecution will not be proceeding with the other nine charges, after "considering all the evidence" in this case.

Mr Singh later asked the court to note the prosecution's decision not to proceed with the nine charges, adding that he would reserve the right to pursue this matter at the "appropriate time".

Iswaran's bail was set at S$800,000 and a pre-trial conference has been scheduled for March 1.

Iswaran resigned from his positions as Minister for Transport and Member of Parliament (MP) as well as from the ruling People’s Action Party, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced in a statement on Thursday.

He will also return all monies received — his salary as a minister and allowances as an MP — from the start of the investigations by the CPIB in July 2023, the statement added.

Iswaran was arrested last July and later released on bail.

It was later revealed that he was assisting CPIB with investigations into a case it had uncovered, though the bureau did not elaborate on the nature of the investigation.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong separately said that he had given CPIB the green light for the investigation, and that he had instructed Iswaran to take a leave of absence until the probe was completed.

Mr Ong the hotelier was also assisting in the investigations. 

In response to media queries, the Attorney-General’s Chambers said on Thursday that besides investigating Iswaran, CPIB also investigated the role of other persons including Mr Ong.  

"The Attorney-General’s Chambers will take a decision in respect of the investigations against Mr Ong and others, after the case against Mr S Iswaran has been completed, including the presentation of evidence in court," it added.

Mr Lee told Parliament last August that Iswaran had been interdicted or not been allowed to carry out his duties and was getting a reduced monthly pay of S$8,500 until further notice.

Me Lee said then that since incidents involving ministers being probed for corruption are rare here, there was no rule or precedent on how to effect an interdiction on a political office-holder. He thus used the current civil service practice as a reference point.

The last time that a minister was instructed to take a leave of absence during a graft probe was almost 40 years ago. 

In 1986, then National Development Minister Teh Cheang Wan was investigated by CPIB for allegedly accepting two bribes totalling S$1 million in return for helping two property developers retain and acquire pieces of land for development. 

Teh had been placed under a leave of absence during the course of the investigations, but he died by suicide before he could be formally charged. 

Before that in 1975, then-Minister of State for the Environment Wee Toon Boon was charged and then convicted and jailed over four counts of corruption involving a sum over S$800,000.

Iswaran was first elected as an MP in 1997 and was appointed to the Cabinet in 2006.

He held ministerial positions in the Ministry of Communications and Information, Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Education.

His latest portfolio was as Minister of Transport and Minister-in-charge of Trade Relations at the Ministry of Trade and Industry.

Any public servant convicted under Section 165 of the Penal Code can be sentenced to jail for up to two years or be handed a fine, or both.

If found guilty of accepting or obtaining gratification under the Prevention of Corruption Act, Iswaran can be fined up to S$100,000 or jailed for up to five years, or both.

If convicted with obstructing the course of justice, he can be jailed for up to seven years or fined, or both.