The former minister of transport of Singapore, S Iswaran pleaded guilty on Tuesday for receiving gifts worth over S $400,000 ( more than US $300,000) while in office and for obstructing the course of justice, local news agency Channel News Asia (CNA) reported. Iswaran faced charges related to his interactions with two Singaporean businessmen, Ong Beng Seng and Lum Kok Seng.
The former minister pleaded guilty to four charges of receiving valuable items and gifts while he was minister and chairman of the F1 Steering Committee from Ong Beng Seng, a businessman who brought Formula 1 (F1) to Singapore. These include obtaining tickets to F1 events and football matches, a private jet flight to Qatar, a hotel stay in Four Seasons Doha, and a business class flight from Qatar to Singapore. The charges fall under Article 165 of Singapore’s Penal Code, which forbids public servants from obtaining anything of value from any person with whom they are involved in an official capacity, either without payment or with inadequate payment.
Iswaran was also accused of obstruction of justice under Article 204A of the Penal Code for hiding the tracks of an “offered” flight to Doha on Ong’s private jet by repaying $5,700 to Singapore Grand Prix (GP) of which Ong was the majority shareholder. The former minister also admitted receiving valuable gifts, such as wine bottles and a Brampton bicycle, for no consideration when he was a public servant from Lum Kok Seng, the director of Lum Chang Building Contractors and managing director of Lum Chang Holdings.
Iswaran’s trial on Tuesday comes several months after prosecutors previously accused him of 35 corruption charges, which he denied. On January 18, he pleaded not guilty to the offenses brought against him under Article 165 of the Penal Code and the Prevention of Corruption Act concerning his interactions with Ong Beng Seng. Two months later, the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) accused him of eight additional corruption offenses related to his dealings with Lum Kok Seng. Nevertheless, in Tuesday’s trial, the prosecutor reduced the 35 charges to five but stated that he would take the remaining charges into account when giving the sentence. Furthermore, regarding the charges related to the interactions between Iswaran and Mr. Ong, the prosecution excluded the corruption charges stated in the PCA and maintained those stated in the Penal Code, which are less serious and easier to prove.
S Iswaran is currently the first minister in Singapore to face corruption charges since 1986. His trial is ongoing, and hearings will continue until September 27. Under the Penal Code, he faces a maximum jail sentence of seven years for obstructing the course of justice and a maximum imprisonment sentence of two years for obtaining valuables as a public servant, in addition to fines. However, the prosecution on Tuesday sought a lighter sentence of six to seven months in prison. According to CNA, the sentencing was postponed to October 3.
