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Perceptions matter when it comes to questions on conflict of interest

A reader asks: Granted, there might not be an actual conflict of interest and one’s duties is carried out fairly, but with the spouse of a political office-holder being given the Government’s top audit appointment, can Singaporeans be faulted for wondering if she will be conflicted in auditing her spouse’s ministry even though the audit process does not involve political office-holders?

The Government and the public service should not risk being undermined by conspiracy theories and any tinge of suspicions that could affect their clean and incorrupt image, says the reader.

The Government and the public service should not risk being undermined by conspiracy theories and any tinge of suspicions that could affect their clean and incorrupt image, says the reader.

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Sean Lim Wei Xin

Mr Chan Chun Sing, Minister-in-charge of the Public Service, said in Parliament recently that even though the new auditor-general is the wife of Mr Heng Chee How, Senior Minister of State for Defence, there is no conflict of interest generally because political office-holders are not involved in the audit process conducted by the Auditor-General’s Office (AGO).

I do not find this explanation convincing enough.

I believe in the integrity of our leaders and officers in the government sector and that they will discharge their duties to the best of their abilities.

However, optics — or the public's view and understanding of the matter as reflected in public channels — plays a part in politics and governance, too.

Granted, there might not be an actual conflict of interest and one’s duties is carried out fairly, but with the spouse of a political office-holder being given the Government’s top audit appointment, can Singaporeans be faulted for asking if she will be conflicted in auditing her spouse’s ministry even though the audit process does not involve political office-holders?

What happens if the AGO audits turn up something major in the particular ministry that calls into question not only the procedures put in place by the senior civil servants in charge, but also the leadership of the political office-holders in the ministry?

The Government and the public service should not risk being undermined by conspiracy theories and any tinge of suspicions that could affect their clean and incorrupt image.

Auditing firms in the private sector have strict clauses on conflict of interest.

Take the example of Mr Zaqy Mohamad, a backbencher of the People’s Action Party (PAP) then who turned down his appointment to the PAP’s central executive committee in 2015 because his employer Ernst & Young was the party’s auditor.

Mr Chan said that there are specific processes in the public service to manage conflict of interest. For the sake of transparency and public interest, it would be ideal for the Government to explain the process to Singaporeans.

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