SINGAPORE — The National Parks Board (NParks) assistant director implicated in the controversial Brompton bikes case did not insist on hiding his friendship with the supplier of the bicycles.

The court heard this on day two of a trial where 42-year-old Bernard Lim Yong Soon is fighting two counts of giving false information to officers from the Ministry of National Development (MND), who were conducting an internal audit into NParks’ purchase of 26 Brompton bikes between June and July 2012.

Bernard Lim, who was overseeing the purchase, had allegedly denied being a friend of Mr Lawrence Lim Chun How, the director of Bikehop Singapore, which had won the tender to supply the bikes.

Yesterday (March 11), 42-year-old Lawrence Lim said the accused had asked him to try and not mention their friendship to NParks or MND auditors. Today however, he said that Bernard Lim had at no time insisted he lied to authorities.

During the defence’s cross-examination, Mr Lawrence Lim also agreed that no agreement was made between the two to hide their friendship from officers.

Two other witnesses took the stand today — Mr Yong Fook Chyi, resource management director at NParks, who was roped in to review procurement processes, and Mr Wesley Su, then-manager at NParks, who was involved in the tender at the centre of the case.

Mr Su told the court that the accused had asked him to award the tender as soon as possible, after learning that the quotation was within the budget.

The trial continues tomorrow with MND officers slated to take the stand. CHANNEL NEWSASIA