SINGAPORE (Bloomberg): Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will address the ongoing graft investigation involving Transport Minister S. Iswaran and property billionaire Ong Beng Seng in parliament on Wednesday (Aug 2).
Lee’s ministerial statement will also discuss the resignations of parliament speaker Tan Chuan-Jin and ruling party lawmaker Cheng Li Hui, according to an order paper.
A series of scandals is putting Singapore’s image for clean governance to the test just as Lee prepares to pass the baton to new leaders. Lawmakers from the ruling People’s Action Party and opposition members filed questions related to the graft probe and other political controversies.
The parliament queries included the timeline for the probe’s disclosure. Opposition lawmakers also asked if the government received any requests from the UK related to Formula One mogul Bernie Ecclestone’s alleged undisclosed assets of $650 million in a Singapore bank.
Officials have yet to spell out the scope of their investigation, the first time since 1986 that a Singapore graft probe has involved a senior minister. Iswaran and Ong were arrested July 11 and subsequently released on bail.
Iswaran and Ong, 77, would have interacted over the years as a matter of course, with the minister’s roles in trade and transport intersecting with the tycoon known for helping bring the F1 Grand Prix to Singapore.
Iswaran, 61, has championed the Singapore F1 night race in his various capacities. Ong’s Singapore GP Pte and the country’s tourism agency in 2022 secured an extension to host the race through 2028. - Bloomberg
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