Possible overpayments, irregularities flagged in latest Auditor-General report
It notes EDB and MPA have lapses in contract management and procurement, while PUB has anomalies in records
[SINGAPORE] The Auditor-General’s Office (AGO) flagged several public agencies for lapses in areas such as contract management and procurement, revenue management and records furnished for audit in its latest annual audit of the government’s accounts.
The AGO carried out audits and issued opinions on the financial statements of 16 ministries and eight organs of state. The report also stated financial statement audits were conducted on three statutory boards, four government-owned companies and two other accounts.
Selective audits were conducted on six statutory boards and two government funds, while a thematic audit was conducted on the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star) and the National Research Foundation (NRF). (* see amendment note below)
In its report released on Tuesday (Sep 9), the AGO found lapses in procurement and contract management at the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), Home Team Science and Technology Agency (HTX), national water agency PUB, the National Environment Agency (NEA) and the Economic Development Board (EDB).
Tender fairness
The AGO noted that several agencies such as HTX, PUB and JTC had instances where tender evaluation was not carried out in accordance with the published evaluation criteria.
It noted that the outcome of the award was not affected for these cases, but the changing of evaluation criteria after the closing date of tenders could raise questions on the fairness of the evaluation process. The AGO hence reminded the agencies to ensure that tenders are evaluated in accordance with published evaluation criteria.
BT in your inbox
Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox.
Contract management and procurement
In the audits of HTX, PUB and MPA, the AGO noted inadequate checks on goods delivered or services provided. As a result, there were inadequate assurances that payments were made for goods or services that complied with contractual requirements.
NEA failed to monitor a private-sector partner’s compliance with requirements in its project agreement pertaining to the project’s financial model.
The partner did not provide NEA with an updated model to reflect the actual costs incurred as required. As a result, the agency overpaid the partner by about S$530,000. After the model was updated, it would pay S$1.73 million less for the remaining contract period.
The AGO also found that tender evaluation by EDB and MPA lacked “robustness”.
EDB failed to clarify a discrepancy when a tenderer submitted required supporting data after the close of the tender that did not tally with its bid price.
In addition, EDB did not use the tenderer’s submitted bid price in its tender evaluation and award recommendation to the Tender Approving Authority. It instead used a higher figure that it had derived from the supporting data received after the close of the tender.
To address the lapses, EDB said it has taken “immediate rectification steps”. These include improvements to the documentation of processes, such as detailed deliberations and assessment by the evaluation committee in accepting clarifications from tenderers due to omissions after the tender closing date.
It is also enhancing its procurement checklist to incorporate learning points from the audit, and is regularly administering risk management and procurement training for its officers.
As for MPA, the AGO found two instances of errors in the evaluation scoring of a tender. One of the errors could have affected the award, which could have gone to another tenderer whose bid price was S$2.43 million lower.
In response, MPA said it has since updated its evaluation protocols to allow the capabilities of entities within the tenderers’ group to be considered, as long as they are clearly declared in the documentation.
The Ministry of Finance (MOF) said it is improving the knowledge and capabilities of public-sector officers, so that they can better handle procurement and contract management tasks in accordance with established policies and procedures.
Management of grants
EDB was also found to have weaknesses in the administration and design of the Singapore Global Network Funding Programme (SGNFP).
They included inadequate assurance that applicants and event attendees met eligibility criteria for funding, as well as the lack of a requirement for applicants to declare a conflict of interest (COI) when submitting claims.
The AGO stated that there was also no evidence that EDB had carried out eligibility or COI checks when processing the applicants and attendees’ claims.
In addition, the AGO noted gaps in the funding framework that would allow applicants to “game the system”, to secure a higher percentage of funding for supported events.
EDB responded that it has remediated the lapses identified in the cases sampled by the AGO, acknowledging that there is “scope to strengthen SGNFP processes”. The reimbursement framework has also been tightened, while its officers have been provided with an updated processing workflow to refer to.
Possible irregularities in records
While auditing PUB, the AGO found possible irregularities in the records furnished for its checks for two contracts.
For a construction contract, the AGO found possible irregularities in quotations provided for “star rate items”. This led to concerns over the authenticity of the quotations provided and whether value for money had been obtained for the items. PUB subsequently lodged a police report.
PUB said that the police investigation is ongoing, and that it will enhance the training of its officers to ensure that they are familiar with and adhere to the proper procurement processes.
For another contract, the AGO noted “tell-tale signs” of possible irregularities in the supporting documents submitted to the office. The contract required certificates to be prepared by an accredited laboratory for each delivery of goods.
However, the certificates had been altered to give the false impression that requisite checks had been performed by the laboratory, and that PUB had accepted goods that met its contractual requirements. Following the AGO’s observation, PUB initiated an internal investigation into the matter.
It confirmed that the quality of the stocks it had received earlier met its requirements, and that it will explore digitalising the checks on the certificates. It added that disciplinary action was taken against the officers accountable for these lapses.
PUB also said that it does not condone the alteration of documents furnished for audit. It added that it has carried out and completed an internal investigation, with disciplinary action taken against the officer involved.
MOF said the agency involved is conducting investigations and will be taking the necessary actions, including referring the case to the police if there are grounds to do so.
Thematic audit on grants
The AGO conducted a thematic audit of Research, Innovation and Enterprise (RIE) 2025 – research and development grants managed by A*Star and NRF. The audit focused on selected funding initiatives which had a total disbursement of nearly S$655 million during the audit period.
It covered five stages of grant management: design and setup; evaluation and approval; disbursement; monitoring and review; and cessation.
The AGO highlighted A*Star setting up a centralised and independent grant management unit to administer competitive grants for the RIE ecosystem as a good practice, as well as the use of dashboards to monitor various aspects of grant administration.
The NRF was also praised for clearly defined key grant scheme parameters in the funding initiatives’ approval papers, and operational objectives and pertinent information in the initiatives’ proposals.
The AGO said NRF’s implementation of a grant management IT system, which enabled standard workflows and templates in grant administration, was another good practice.
A*Star and NRF still had areas for improvement, said the AGO, and both said that they have taken immediate steps to further tighten governance, strengthen accountability and enhance operational processes. Such steps include the implementation of dashboards for tracking and monitoring.
A*Star added that the errors made by staff involved in incorrect manpower cost allocation will be taken into consideration during the employees’ performance appraisals.
Privileged account access and verification checks
MOF noted that the AGO report also highlighted the need to manage and monitor access to privileged accounts.
In response, the ministry said the government will continue to strengthen its IT governance policies and processes, and will step up targeted training of infocommunication technology officers on common areas for improvement.
The government will also continue to encourage agencies to make better use of administrative data and analytics, to enhance the effectiveness of verification checks in scheme administration, said MOF.
The AGO report was submitted to the president on Jul 2, and presented to Parliament on Monday.
*Amendment note: A previous version of the article stated an incorrect number of statutory boards, government-owned companies and government funds that the AGO conducted financial statement and special audits on.
Copyright SPH Media. All rights reserved.
