PA launches official investigation into business dealings of YPAP member Sear Hock Rong
January 5th, 2010 | 
Author: Written by Our Correspondent
The People’s Association (PA) has launched an official investigation into the business dealings of YPAP members Mr Sear Hock Rong and Mr Fong Yoong Keong with Eunos grassroots organizations following an email complaint lodged by Mr Alex Tan last week. (read article here)
Mr Sear and Mr Fong are both grassroots leaders in Eunos. Mr Sear is the Chairman of the Eunos Community Club Youth Executive Committee while Mr Fong is the Assistant Secretary of Eunos Zone “3″ Resident Committee.
All grassroots organizations in Singapore are under the purview of the People’s Association, a statutory board. In a recent speech, MM Lee Kuan Yew insinuated that these organizations are “part” of the PAP.
Mr Sear and Mr Fong currently run an education service company. Though it was set up only in July last year, it counts many Eunos grassroots organizations as its clients including Eunos Zone “3″ RC.
Netizens have been questioning Mr Sear if there are any conflicts of interest between his business and grassroots work.
The Temasek Review compiled a series of 10 questions for Mr Sear to answer based on the PA’s operating guidelines for acquisition of services from external vendors.
Among the key questions are whether if there were quotations submitted by other companies and if Mr Sear or Mr Fong sit on the Constituency Tender Committee in charge of awarding tenders to external vendors for services provided to non-CC based grassroots organizations.
Mr Sear posted a comment on our site saying that he “does not have to explain anything to anybody” and challenged netizens to lodge a report against him to the authorities.
Mr Alex Tan, who had earlier challenged the YPAP to an open debate at Speaker’s Corner obliged by sending an email questioning Mr Sear and Mr Fong’s business dealings with Eunos grassroots organizations to several government agencies such as the PA, CPIB and AGC as well as to all the MPs in parliament.
In a short reply to Alex, Ms Adlina Jaffar, the Head of the PA’s Corporate Communications Division wrote:
“Dear Alex
Please refer to your e-mail on Mr Sear Hock Rong and Mr Fong Yoong Kheong’s
business involvement with Eunos grassroots organisations. The matter is
being investigated.
Thank you for your feedback.”
[Source: Alex's blog]
There were no immediate comment from either Mr Sear or Mr Fong, both of whom are moderators of the YPAP Facebook.
Since the controversy first erupted, they had been relying on fellow comrades Mr Edgar Khieu and Mr Genesis Shen to defray criticisms from netizens.
Mr Edgar Khieu had earlier said that he did not see any “problem” with Mr Sear’s business involvement in the grassroots organizations as any potential conflict of interest is “well managed”.
In the meantime, Alex received a threat from an anonymous poster on his blog yesterday warning him to stop “harassing” YPAP members. It also claimed to have made a “report” against Alex and urged him to “stop before it is too late”.
It is not uncommon to see grassroots leaders who are concomitantly PAP members being involved in business dealings directly with the grassroots organizations they are serving in.
Though there may be nothing wrong technically in such practices, questions must be raised on whether they enjoy an unfair advantage over others because of their connections with the PAP.
Grassroots organizations are supposed to be non-partisan in nature to promote harmony between the different races in Singapore.
With so many PAP members serving as grassroots leaders at the same time, they risk becoming the grassroots support bases of the PAP instead.
Copyright © 2009 – 2010 The Temasek Review
(If you are going to reproduce this article on your blog or forum, please provide a link back to ours)
Related articles:
1. Sear Hock Rong berates TR for “associating” with Alex Tan
2. PA’s operating guidelines for acquisition of services
4. YPAP member demands Temasek Review apologize for “putting PAP in a bad light”
5. Identity of YPAP member who leaked Alex Tan’s DB record on Facebook
6. Alex Tan to YPAP members: Don’t be cowards on Facebook
7. Alex Tan challenges YPAP to public debate at Speaker’s corner
8. YPAP member slammed by netizens for revealing critic’s detention record
9. YPAP member resorts to smearing critic’s character to silence him
10. PAP MP De Souza: More robust debate from PAP than opposition MPs
Posted in Editorial
I am waiting for the investigation results to be announced on newspaper.
I hope there is sincerity on the part of PA & PAP in investigating the matter.
Well let’s see whether the PA & PAP will dig all the way to the very bottom to see what it unearths. OR they already have a quickie answer in waiting but pretend to wait a while to magnify their investigative process is very thorough but still turns out to be one of those PAP ambiguous replies.
My advice to PA & PAP, be brutally honest. And how many more grassroots organizations have this similar set up as Sear-Fong show in Eunos & will you ask Auditor General to do annual checks instead?
“Sacrifice 1 Tree To Save The Whole Forest is better than Sacrificing The Whole Forest To Save One Tree”.
So to those YPAP mini LKY don’t always think your master will back you up forever. You are just a pawn in these political games.
which newspaper? TNP? heh heh.
Great, can somebody please ask the MSM to get the story out. Fellow Singaporean has the right to know.
Will TR please send your paparazzi to keep up with the activities of the celebrities. Some great taekwondo poise, we also don’t mind. Some background stories up the rise and rise of the celebrities will be good enough for all of us here. Since the MSM will not do the honor of highlighting these gentleman perhaps you should.
Is it tonight Alex says he is going to Hong Lim Park?
Can work meh? YPAP members investigated by PA and all under PAP. No results one lah. The most they just “wayang” some answers to us.
Readers expecting a big firework and fanfare are so going to be disappointed. There ain’t going to be any.
This is ONLY an Internal Investigation and the findings will NEVER BE MADE PUBLIC unless it is a matter of Public Interest in the eyes of those ON TOP, which the case is not or they would have conducted their own investigation when the fiasco started.
There can be only 2 very possible likely scenario here:
1. Sear and company is asked to leave quietly and case closed.
2. If Sear is well connected, the case will be under ‘investigation’ for a very very long time till GE is over or Sinkaporean forgot, whichever comes first. Then its business as usual for Sear and company and PAPies reverts to see nothing, hear nothing mode for the next 4 years AGAIN making MILLIONS or BILLIONS.
The 3rd and most UNLIKELY scenario would be Sear and company is found with questionable conduct and dealings, then referred to the AGC for further action but I bet my last dollar this is NOT going to happen.
If there is any other possibility other than the above, I would surely want to hear it.
Ha ha ha!
What investigation results you people are waiting for? They belong to the same group and you people are expecting them to open the book for you to see?
It is about doing business.
In China they called it ‘Guanxi’ (关系).
In Singapore we called it ‘Connections.’
MSM sucks. Probably won’t even give coverage on the investigation else they would tarnish PAP’s reputation.
I urge the PA to make an example of SHR.
Send a strong message to the Community that you will NOT stand for such profiteering by people involved with the grassroots organization in the pretext of working for the benefit of the Community.
Earn the trust of the people and stop SHR dead in his tracks!! The People are watching closely.
PA should also send a strong message to all grassroots leaders not to use their privileged position to terrorise common people and not to bring politics into educational institutions.
PA should also make use of this opportunity to train and educate its grassroots leaders what is proper behaviour when engaging the public. PAP should also make use of this opportunity to rein in their wayward members.
This is an opportunity not to be missed. Otherwise, how else can you tell your lackeys to behave when you actually need their support. If a party surrounds itself with low grade people, the party will decline. Pls fully make use of this opportunity to do some house-cleaning.
I have a nasty feeling that the result of the investigation will be that no misconduct is found and the pair will be exonerated of any conflict of interest. However, PA will review future acquisition of services of RC. In other word, this people cannot be touched by insolent digits like us. For the time being, I am going to find the best spur to stick it in my hide! As it is spoken and it shall be done!
COI is very difficult to prove. I suspect they will come out and say things like, ‘They have follow the procedures as layout in our …..blar blar blar and we find no issue with the process that is set in place’ There can be 3 quotes, but how do you prove that the one from SHR comes in before the other 2 or comes in after he managed to see the other 2???? Cannot prove and hard to prove…..there will be 3 quotes, even SHR is a higher quote, there can be thousands and one reason to justify why that is chosen…..so how to prove???? You need to bring the whole committee down in order to prove COI in such cases…..
However, I applaud Alex for his perseverance and spirit in pursuing till PA has to reply and conduct it’s investigation.
Even then, these leeches can not make use of the grassroots organisations to fatten their wallets again. They have to compete on meritocratic terms and not because they are warply connected.
This will also make them think thrice when engaging concerned citizens. Never again will we allow these servants of the people to treat us like dirt. If the dogs do not behave, take the master to task.
In addition, the govt needs to investigate how a mediocre, EQ-less Sear can be accepted into MFA, a grade A ministry. Was it based on meritocracy or was it done upon the strong recommendation / influnce of SOMEONE, without considering the impact on the performance of the ministry, as well as his salaries were borned by us taxpayers.
If that was the case, how many such incompetent persons got into civil service?
See their face pui them lah.
@Great Asia on Tue, 5th Jan 2010 7:26 pm
Wrong. In Singapore, we call it meleetocracy.
Public officials SHOULD AVOID SITUATIONS in which divided loyalty issues could arise i.e. avoid all situations and circumstances of involvement WHEN THERE IS POSSIBLE CONFLICT OF INTEREST CAN ARISE.
IF ANYONE DO BUSINESS, TAKE YOU BUSINESS ELSEWHERE UNRELATED TO YOUR ROLE IN THE RELEVANT PUBLIC OFFICE.
THE WHOLE WORLD IS SO BIG – WHY SH@T IN THE RICE BOWL WHERE YOU EAT???
AND TO AVOID DOUBT, IF THERE IS ANY PUBLIC QUERY OF SOME INTENSITY, INVITE THE AUDITOR-GENERAL TO COME IN TO DO AN “INTEGRITY” AUDIT IS THE BEST DEFENCE.
I am a bit confused:
1. My understanding from blogs about this case is Seah is a YPAP and grassroots leader. His company shows most of his clients , i wonder if all, are PA or related. So, is it not that PA awarded to Seah?
2. Now this thingie are PA launching an investigation due to a complaint.
Did you see my confusion? Did u catch my drift?
PA investigating YPAP?
The results will be no different from LKY checking on Goh Chok Tong.
Vote this govt out. Conniving pigs. Who knows how many profiting from taxpayer’s $$$ through connections.
Meritocracy – my foot
Well now I am concern. shouldn the PA already know that there is a interested party transaction to begin with? If they already know, why the need to investigate. Now if they did not know that its like NKF but on a small scale and involving smaller fishes.
If the threat to that Alex is true, the people from YPAP who made those threats are not different from the Mafia or gangsters?
Are you absolutely sure they are from YPAP? Arent they link to PAP who preaches on doing this the right way and following the law?
Guess they will probably do a go-thru-motion sweep on this & give us the usual crap answer. However, I do think that this incident will kick some lazy butts & hopefully, wake up some deadwood from their 40yrs of sleep!
The heaviest punishment I reckon might be the sacking of Sear & Fong & even some some players in the rank; dont forget, if they were to dig deeper, mosr shit will surface. Therefore, the upper-middle & Ivory-Tower class of idiots will be spared, just like how WKS was spared by LSL which till now, I still couldnt figure out why our PM is so forgiving when his dad is known as the Hachet Man!
Throw him to the lions and save the PAP! What an utter disgrace!
why TR so interested in sear and fong? at least they are in the open. TR ppl we dun know them. will they publish this comment and tell us who are they really?
What a joke!
They are all one big happy family!
Trina, we don’t know you too. Can you tell us who you are?
how about u, PAP Member? can you answer my question to TR, why TR so interested in both of them? who are u?
PA just out patronise Alex Tan by saying that it is “investigating” the matter.
Just a wayang.
Well, Trina, since you are the one asking for the identity of TR ppl, shouldn’t you have the courtesy to identify yourself first?
Why should I answer your question to TR?
Your modus operandi is similar to Sear. You are so like Sear. When you can’t discuss an issue, you will divert attention by asking for ppl’s identity, asking others “do you agree this, do you agree that” and many other irrelevant questions.
Yah, why ppl so interested in Sear and Fong, you tell me, Trina.
Trina, are you a female or male? Is your surname Sear? haha…
Do you want TR to be interested in you as well? Are you jealous that TR is interested in Sear and Fong and not you. Are you jealous of the limelight they get?
By the way, Fong is a sidekick. Sear is the Hero. What are you? A shadow?
Do you agree that Sear has done wrong?
Do you agree with the way he behaves?
Do you concur that there is a conflict of interests?
Or do you actually think that that Sear is right in using his privileg position in grassroots to stuff his co account?
Or do you agree that Sear as a grassroot leader should insult common citizens?
Or do you agree that Sear’s action is proudly representative of PAP?
Do you agree that PA should investigate Sear & Co.’s?
If you do not agree, you mean PA is in the wrong? If you opined that PA is in the wrong, do you mena it’s chairman is also wrong to approve the investigation?
@ Trina on Thu, 7th Jan 2010 9:04 pm
Wen Jiaobao didn’t ask who is the netizen before he replies. The Chinese Premier is relating without guilt complex with over 350 million netizens.
Unless you are trolling the net for a “hot” date, it is NOT necessary. Don’t you agree your quirky paranoia is misplaced?
You could of course publish your identity and what else to advertise of yourself if you so wish. NO ONE IS STOPPING YOU. It could be top “news” in cyberspace after that.
The anonymity of blogosphere is that ALL IS EQUAL – only the issues need debated.
No need for bait trolling.