Singapore PM’s ‘urgent’ probe of ministers K. Shanmugam and Vivian Balakrishnan’s bungalow tenancy finds no wrongdoing

Simultaneous probes by Singapore’s powerful anti-graft agency and PM Lee’s top political lieutenant found no misconduct by Foreign Minister Balakrishnan and Law and Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam

Opposition figure Kenneth Jeyaretnam had triggered the saga by questioning if the ministers were ‘paying less than market value’ rent for their tenancy of colonial-era bungalows

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Singapore’s Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan (left) and Law Minister K. Shanmugam are seen in this composite picture. Photo: dpa, SCMP

Published: 5:22pm, 28 Jun 2023Updated: 8:56pm, 28 Jun 2023

Singapore authorities have said that two separate investigations concerning government ministers leasing sprawling state-owned colonial bungalows found no evidence of wrongdoing, drawing a line under a months-old saga that had been the subject of intense public discussion.

The findings of the investigation over the matter involving Home Affairs and Law Minister K. Shanmugam and Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan indicated that rules were not broken and there had been no conflict of interest, observers said.

Still, the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) was likely to face tough questions regarding the saga in a parliament debate over it next week, the political analysts said.

An objective reading of the findings “should allay concerns that there was preferential treatment, conflict of interests, abuse of power, or even corruption in the leases granted by the state”, Singapore Management University law professor Eugene Tan said.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on May 23 had ordered an urgent investigation over the matter amid criticism from the main opposition Workers’ Party and other critics over the ministers’ tenancy of the properties.

The ministers themselves had said at the time they requested and welcomed the independent inquiry over the issue. Shanmugam characterised suggestions of impropriety as “outrageous” and said he had nothing to hide.