SMRT confirms falsification of maintenance records at Bishan, to discipline 6 staff and probe 7 managers

SINGAPORE – Transport operator SMRT confirmed on Monday (Nov 6) that maintenance records for the flood pump system at Bishan station had been falsified between last December and June this year, and spelled out further disciplinary action against at least 13 staff.

"Disciplinary proceedings" will be taken against six members of its Building and Facilities Maintenance group - a manager, an engineering supervisor and four other crew members - linked to the falsification of the records, SMRT said in a statement announcing the completion of its internal investigation.

Another seven managerial staff from this Maintenance group – including two executives at the vice-president level – have been suspended and will face a further inquiry for their "supervisory responsibility" in the lapses.

On October 7, a heavy downpour had led to Bishan MRT station being flooded, and train services on the North-South Line being shut down for over 20 hours.

On Oct 31, SMRT released the preliminary findings of its internal probe into the incident. The report claimed that the crew responsible for the maintenance of the pump system at Bishan MRT Station had signed off and submitted maintenance records for nearly a year, without carrying out the works.

The transport operator's latest statement on Monday confirmed that the records had indeed been falsified, noting: "SMRT reiterates its strong stand of having zero tolerance for failures in supervision and diligence over maintenance tasks."

The Bishan incident will be taken into account when reviewing the remuneration of its senior management, from chief executive officer Desmond Kuek "through the relevant chain of command", SMRT added. It did not elaborate.

Separately, Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan said in a written Parliamentary response on Monday that "there is no evidence of shortcomings or lapses in regulatory oversight by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) or Ministry of Transport staff."

He was responding to a question from Non-Constituency Member of Parliament Leon Perera as to whether senior staff from the two agencies tasked with oversight of SMRT would have their pay affected as well, following the flooding and discovery of the maintenance lapses at Bishan.

Mr Khaw added: "On Sept 29, in accordance with its regulatory role, LTA did expressly highlight to SMRT the importance of regular and diligent maintenance of tunnel pump systems and to surface a list of pumps requiring replacement to LTA.

"Unfortunately, the remedial actions instructed by LTA were not taken in time. The flooding incident occurred before the replacement programme could be completed."

Mr Khaw is due to deliver a ministerial statement on Tuesday in response to a slew of questions filed by Members of Parliament (MPs) on the flooding incident at Bishan MRT Station. A total of 11 MPs, both from the People’s Action Party and the Workers’ Party (WP), have tabled 15 questions for the minister.

In its statement on Monday, SMRT also confirmed that it had offered an "amnesty" for errant staff to come clean on maintenance lapses, and that "a number of submissions" had been received from staff in the same maintenance group connected to the falsification of records at Bishan.

"The amnesty ended on Nov 3 2017, and a number of submissions relating to scheduled maintenance works not being carried out have been received from the Building and Facilities Maintenance group, which is also responsible for the Bishan water discharge system. The returns are being studied," SMRT added.

Commenting on SMRT's latest revelation, executive secretary of the National Transport Workers' Union (NTWU) Melvin Yong urged the transport operator to share information on its investigations and be "forthcoming" with the union during the disciplinary inquiry.

"We hope that SMRT will apply a balanced approach in its investigation and disciplinary inquiry – considering the reasons and circumstances under which work was not carried out properly or at all," he said in a statement.

Mr Yong further urged SMRT to clearly communicate what the amnesty offer meant and how it would be administered fairly "to allay workers' concerns on the ground and ensure that workers would not suffer undue stress by the process".

Many of SMRT's workers have given the feedback that they are concerned about the public's perception of their work and attitudes, said Mr Yong.

Meanwhile, the LTA's separate technical investigations into the Bishan tunnel flooding incident are ongoing with SMRT's participation, the transport operator said.

SMRT added that the heads of all other trains maintenance units have conducted a further assessment and found that they complied with the specified maintenance standards.