Parliament rejects PSP proposal to suspend Iswaran as MP; will 'consider the matter' after outcome of graft probe
• Hazel Poa from the opposition PSP filed a motion to suspend Mr Iswaran from service of parliament, so that he would no longer receive an MP's allowance while not performing duties
• Parliament instead passed a counter-motion by Leader of the House Indranee Rajah, to “consider the matter” when the outcome of investigations is known
• The ruling People's Action Party will consider a clawback of Mr Iswaran’s MP allowance and salary if charges are brought against him and as a matter of party discipline
SINGAPORE: Singapore's lawmakers on Tuesday (Sep 19) rejected a motion by the opposition Progress Singapore Party (PSP) to suspend Transport Minister S Iswaran from parliament, voting instead to consider the matter when corruption investigations against him conclude.
During a two-hour debate, Leader of the House Indranee Rajah said the ruling People's Action Party (PAP) would consider a clawback of Mr Iswaran’s MP allowance if justified, such as if he is given criminal charges.
The PSP motion had called for Mr Iswaran to be suspended as an MP for the remainder of the current session of parliament. He was arrested in July and is under investigation by the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB).
But Ms Indranee filed a counter-motion for parliament to consider the matter when the outcome of ongoing investigations against Mr Iswaran is known.
PAP MPs voted for Ms Indranee’s motion, while the Progress Singapore Party's (PSP) two Non-Constituency MPs – Ms Hazel Poa and Mr Leong Mun Wai – voted for their own motion.
All eight opposition MPs from the Workers’ Party (WP) voted for the PAP’s motion, and against the PSP.
Ms Poa said she was filing the PSP motion so that Mr Iswaran would no longer receive the MP allowance while he was not performing his duties whether in parliament or in his West Coast constituency.
“This motion is therefore about the prudent use of taxpayers’ money, not a presumption of guilt,” she said.
She also filed a second motion for permission to introduce a Private Member’s Bill proposing amendments to the Parliament (Privileges, Immunities and Powers) Act, so that Mr Iswaran could be reimbursed for his MP's allowance if cleared of any wrongdoing.
Ms Indranee's counter-motion, meanwhile, also affirmed the need for MPs to uphold integrity and conduct themselves lawfully, and the need to deal firmly and fairly with any MP being investigated for possible wrongdoing.
On Tuesday, parliament debated Ms Poa’s and Ms Indranee’s motions simultaneously, but MPs voted on each motion separately.
"DO THE RIGHT THING AT THE RIGHT TIME"
After his arrest, Mr Iswaran was instructed to take a leave of absence. He has been interdicted from duty with a reduced pay of S$8,500 (US$6,200) a month. He continues to draw the full annual MP allowance of S$192,500.
Mr Iswaran’s ministerial duties are being covered by Acting Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat. His responsibilities as an MP are being covered by the other MPs in West Coast Group Representation Constituency (GRC). Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong has said it would be “difficult” for Mr Iswaran to carry out his MP duties during the corruption probe.
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong previously said that an MP’s allowance was not at the Prime Minister’s discretion, and that to remove it, parliament must move a motion to interdict the individual as an MP.
Parliament has not done this in previous cases, according to Mr Lee.
While tabling her counter-motion, Ms Indranee questioned the underlying principle of PSP’s motion, asking if it would be applicable in other situations.
“What is the principle that Ms Poa is advocating in calling for his suspension? Is it that he is under investigation? If so, then her proposal should cover all MPs being investigated,” she said.
Leader of the Opposition and WP chief Pritam Singh, along with fellow WP MP Faisal Manap, are also under police investigation for their conduct during hearings by the Committee of Privileges into former MP Raeesah Khan's lies in parliament.
Ms Indranee pointed out that Mr Singh and Mr Faisal have not been suspended as MPs, and questioned whether Ms Poa was calling for their suspension as well.
She added that it would be “premature” to take any action on Mr Iswaran as an MP at this stage, saying: “We simply do not have sufficient material to make an informed decision at the present time.”
“At the end of the day, it is important that we deal with situations like these objectively and dispassionately. We should not attempt to exploit such situations for political ends, but rather to do the right thing at the right time.”
PSP ON TAXPAYERS' MONEY
While introducing her motion, Ms Poa explained why Mr Iswaran’s case warranted a suspension in the PSP’s view.
First, she said that Mr Iswaran was no longer performing his duties as an MP, whether in parliament or West Coast GRC. “So, in effect, Minister Iswaran has been fully suspended from his MP duties, but not from his MP allowance.”
Second, she said that Mr Iswaran’s potential offences involved corruption, for which Singapore has “zero tolerance”, and which thus merited a strong response.
“In addition, for many years, the government has justified the high salaries for political office-holders on the basis of ensuring that our government remains honest and free of corruption. This is why many Singaporeans, including myself, find it difficult to accept that taxpayers’ money is being used in this way.”
Ms Poa questioned whether it was a “good use” of taxpayers’ money to continue paying an MP their allowance through the entire duration of a criminal investigation and court proceedings, up until the pronouncement of guilt or innocence and the exhaustion of all avenues of appeal.
She also argued that suspending the allowance and reimbursing it if the MP is found innocent was preferable to continuing to pay the allowance and clawing it back if the MP is found guilty.
This is because there could be difficulties in recovering the money later.
After her speech, Ms Indranee asked Ms Poa to confirm that she was “not bringing this motion as a matter of broad principle or general application, but a very specific targeted motion directed at Mr Iswaran”.
“Yes, I believe that all disciplinary cases are of that nature,” replied Ms Poa.
Parliament rejects PSP proposal to suspend Iswaran as MP; will 'consider the matter' after outcome of graft probe
• Hazel Poa from the opposition PSP filed a motion to suspend Mr Iswaran from service of parliament, so that he would no longer receive an MP's allowance while not performing duties
• Parliament instead passed a counter-motion by Leader of the House Indranee Rajah, to “consider the matter” when the outcome of investigations is known
• The ruling People's Action Party will consider a clawback of Mr Iswaran’s MP allowance and salary if charges are brought against him and as a matter of party discipline
SINGAPORE: Singapore's lawmakers on Tuesday (Sep 19) rejected a motion by the opposition Progress Singapore Party (PSP) to suspend Transport Minister S Iswaran from parliament, voting instead to consider the matter when corruption investigations against him conclude.
During a two-hour debate, Leader of the House Indranee Rajah said the ruling People's Action Party (PAP) would consider a clawback of Mr Iswaran’s MP allowance if justified, such as if he is given criminal charges.
The PSP motion had called for Mr Iswaran to be suspended as an MP for the remainder of the current session of parliament. He was arrested in July and is under investigation by the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB).
But Ms Indranee filed a counter-motion for parliament to consider the matter when the outcome of ongoing investigations against Mr Iswaran is known.
PAP MPs voted for Ms Indranee’s motion, while the Progress Singapore Party's (PSP) two Non-Constituency MPs – Ms Hazel Poa and Mr Leong Mun Wai – voted for their own motion.
All eight opposition MPs from the Workers’ Party (WP) voted for the PAP’s motion, and against the PSP.
Ms Poa said she was filing the PSP motion so that Mr Iswaran would no longer receive the MP allowance while he was not performing his duties whether in parliament or in his West Coast constituency.
“This motion is therefore about the prudent use of taxpayers’ money, not a presumption of guilt,” she said.
She also filed a second motion for permission to introduce a Private Member’s Bill proposing amendments to the Parliament (Privileges, Immunities and Powers) Act, so that Mr Iswaran could be reimbursed for his MP's allowance if cleared of any wrongdoing.
Ms Indranee's counter-motion, meanwhile, also affirmed the need for MPs to uphold integrity and conduct themselves lawfully, and the need to deal firmly and fairly with any MP being investigated for possible wrongdoing.
On Tuesday, parliament debated Ms Poa’s and Ms Indranee’s motions simultaneously, but MPs voted on each motion separately.
"DO THE RIGHT THING AT THE RIGHT TIME"
After his arrest, Mr Iswaran was instructed to take a leave of absence. He has been interdicted from duty with a reduced pay of S$8,500 (US$6,200) a month. He continues to draw the full annual MP allowance of S$192,500.
Mr Iswaran’s ministerial duties are being covered by Acting Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat. His responsibilities as an MP are being covered by the other MPs in West Coast Group Representation Constituency (GRC). Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong has said it would be “difficult” for Mr Iswaran to carry out his MP duties during the corruption probe.
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong previously said that an MP’s allowance was not at the Prime Minister’s discretion, and that to remove it, parliament must move a motion to interdict the individual as an MP.
Parliament has not done this in previous cases, according to Mr Lee.
While tabling her counter-motion, Ms Indranee questioned the underlying principle of PSP’s motion, asking if it would be applicable in other situations.
“What is the principle that Ms Poa is advocating in calling for his suspension? Is it that he is under investigation? If so, then her proposal should cover all MPs being investigated,” she said.
Leader of the Opposition and WP chief Pritam Singh, along with fellow WP MP Faisal Manap, are also under police investigation for their conduct during hearings by the Committee of Privileges into former MP Raeesah Khan's lies in parliament.
Ms Indranee pointed out that Mr Singh and Mr Faisal have not been suspended as MPs, and questioned whether Ms Poa was calling for their suspension as well.
She added that it would be “premature” to take any action on Mr Iswaran as an MP at this stage, saying: “We simply do not have sufficient material to make an informed decision at the present time.”
“At the end of the day, it is important that we deal with situations like these objectively and dispassionately. We should not attempt to exploit such situations for political ends, but rather to do the right thing at the right time.”
PSP ON TAXPAYERS' MONEY
While introducing her motion, Ms Poa explained why Mr Iswaran’s case warranted a suspension in the PSP’s view.
First, she said that Mr Iswaran was no longer performing his duties as an MP, whether in parliament or West Coast GRC. “So, in effect, Minister Iswaran has been fully suspended from his MP duties, but not from his MP allowance.”
Second, she said that Mr Iswaran’s potential offences involved corruption, for which Singapore has “zero tolerance”, and which thus merited a strong response.
“In addition, for many years, the government has justified the high salaries for political office-holders on the basis of ensuring that our government remains honest and free of corruption. This is why many Singaporeans, including myself, find it difficult to accept that taxpayers’ money is being used in this way.”
Ms Poa questioned whether it was a “good use” of taxpayers’ money to continue paying an MP their allowance through the entire duration of a criminal investigation and court proceedings, up until the pronouncement of guilt or innocence and the exhaustion of all avenues of appeal.
She also argued that suspending the allowance and reimbursing it if the MP is found innocent was preferable to continuing to pay the allowance and clawing it back if the MP is found guilty.
This is because there could be difficulties in recovering the money later.
After her speech, Ms Indranee asked Ms Poa to confirm that she was “not bringing this motion as a matter of broad principle or general application, but a very specific targeted motion directed at Mr Iswaran”.
“Yes, I believe that all disciplinary cases are of that nature,” replied Ms Poa.
More at https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/parliament-votes-against-psp-motion-suspension-iswaran-corruption-3782671