WP seeks answers on Keppel bribery scandal

SINGAPORE — The Workers’ Party (WP) has tabled a slew of questions, for the Jan 8 Parliament sitting, on what has been described by one of its leaders as a “shocking” international bribery scandal involving Keppel Corp’s offshore and marine unit.

Among other queries, the Opposition party is seeking answers on the role of Temasek Holdings and the finance ministry in overseeing the conduct of government-linked companies (GLCs), and details of follow-up actions by Singapore authorities.

Putting up the questions on a Facebook post on Friday (Dec 29), WP’s Aljunied GRC Member of Parliament Pritam Singh — who is also the party’s assistant secretary-general — said he was “surprised” at the lack of information on the case, as well as the fact that none of the ruling People’s Action Party MPs had filed any questions on the scandal, “suggesting that a Ministerial Statement may well be made”. Nevertheless, he noted that Parliament Speaker Tan Chuan-Jin has the power to allow questions to be admitted for the coming Parliament session after the cut-off date on Boxing Day.

Last Saturday, Keppel Offshore & Marine (KOM) said in a press statement that it has agreed to pay US$422 million (S$570 million) in fines as part of global resolution with authorities in Singapore, Brazil and the United States.

The US Justice Department said that from 2001 to 2014, KOM had engaged in a scheme to pay US$55 million in bribes to win contracts.

Mr Singh said: “Amidst the shocking revelation of what must be one of the largest corruption scandals in the history of Singapore’s Government Linked Companies, I was most surprised to see the virtual absence of any substantive information on this scandal on the AGC (Attorney-General’s Chambers) or CPIB (Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau) websites except a brief media statement on the conditional warning given to Keppel, something made even more curious in view of Keppel’s denial over a year ago that its top executives were even involved in giving out bribes for contracts.”

Apart from Mr Singh, Aljunied GRC MP Sylvia Lim and Hougang MP Png Eng Huat also tabled questions.

Ms Lim, who is WP chairman, is asking Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong whether the penalty to be paid by KOM was part of a three-nation plea bargain agreement involving the respective countries and Keppel companies, and what are the considerations in reaching such arrangements which have “implications on local law enforcement and prosecutorial decisions”.

Mr Png also addressed his questions to Mr Lee, asking about the timeline for CPIB to complete its probe in respect of the Singaporeans involved in the scandal. He is also asking “how far back in time will CPIB go” in the investigation given that the corrupt activities were committed “as early as 2001”.

Seeking answers from Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat, Mr Singh wants to know if the settlement “includes any condition that prevents the public disclosure of the identities of the Singaporeans who are involved”, and when does the Government expect the CPIB and AGC to “formally complete investigations and to charge the individuals in question”.

He is also asking Mr Heng how many GLCs or their subsidiaries locally or overseas “have been investigated or continue to be investigated by local or overseas authorities for corrupt practices over the last 30 years”. He added: “What role do the Ministry and Temasek Holdings play to ensure that GLCs or their subsidiaries do not engage in corrupt practices when conducting business overseas?”

Apart from Keppel, Sembcorp Marine (SembMarine) was also linked to the news. The bribes were paid to win contracts with Brazil’s state-run oil company Petrobras and Sete Brasil, a privately-held Brazilian company that commissioned a large fleet of rigs for Petrobras’ use. Sete Brasil was behind about US$10 billion of rig-building contracts awarded to KOM and SembMarine.

Commenting on the scandal, corporate governance experts whom TODAY spoke to had earlier stressed the need for GLCs such as Keppel and SembMarine to hold themselves to more stringent standards given the Singapore Government’s pristine reputation and tough stance against graft.