Tighter controls needed on spending by public sector agencies

WHEN Singapore's chief auditor released his annual report of the country's public sector agencies last week, there was a sense of deja vu. Within the report's 72 pages were the same sorts of irregularities and lapses that the Auditor-General's Office (AGO) had uncovered in the last few years.

There were the usual blunders that Auditor-General Willie Tan and his team uncovered for the 2014/15 financial year: lapses related to slip-ups in procurement and tenders, poor management of contracts, a lack of oversight and bad financial administration, to name a few.

The People's Association, a large statutory board set up to promote racial harmony and social cohesion, was one of the organisations that racked up a particularly notable series of errors. Nearly a third of the 91 community club/centre management committees checked did not obtain approvals from the relevant authorities for awarding tenancy contracts worth S$17.8 million. Separately, the chairman of a citizens' consultative committee was involved in approving the award of two contracts worth S$32,000 and corresponding payments to a company of which he was part of the top management.