The WP in Court: Five things that Mr Low Thia Khiang said
Here are 5 take-aways from Mr Low’s evidence on 16 October , the first day of his cross examination:
1. WP arranged for its friends and supporters to set up a company ( FMSS) and become the new MA.
On 12 May, WP supporters How Weng Fan and Danny Loh started to incorporate FMSS, at Mr Low’s request.
In the same week, he also asked How to write to CPG, to ask to “take over the management of ATC”. And he told the other WP MPs that “we will not extend the managing agent agreement” – obviously the emails show that they had decided to ask the incumbent MA, CPG, to leave.
Mr Low conceded that the email trail shows that WP had decided by 29 May, to appoint FMSS, to replace CPG. He said however that though the emails show that, that was not his team’s actual intention.
All this – decided within days of the GE, and without even meeting CPG.
All this – before CPG asked to be released.
All these actions with FMSS and CPG were done without the Town Councillors being told the facts.
2. Mr Low failed to act as a responsible Town Councillor would, when discharging CPG
Mr Low confessed in Court that he did not bother to check the terms of CPG’s contract to see if CPG could unilaterally terminate.
He agreed that this was “the responsible thing to do” – but admitted that he had failed to do it.
So the WP let CPG go, without bothering to check what the TC’s legal rights were.
The TC had many choices : it could have asked CPG to fulfil its contract – there were 2 more years to go, on the contract. Or the TC could have asked CPG to stay on for a few months, while a proper tender was called. But Mr Low and his team decided on FMSS, and decided that CPG will be asked to go, and decided that there will be no tender.
3. WP chose to appoint FMSS, knowing that this would allow their supporters to make money.
Mr Low admitted How/ Loh directly as employees (as had been done previously). In that case they would just earn basic salaries.
Mr Low also admitted that asking How and Loh to set up a company, FMSS, allowed them to make more money from the TC.
FMSS’s fees covered not only employees’ salaries, but also include an added profit element. In other words – How and Loh received double payments (salary, as employees, and profit, as FMSS shareholders).
Mr Low further conceded that he didn’t consider what FMSS was going to charge, what FMSS cost structure was going to be.
FMSS made staggering profit margins – within one year, it made a 300% jump in profit (over $2 million); whilst the Town Council suffered a $2 million operating deficit.
Mr Low also told the Court that he did not check what FMSS’s cost structure was.
4. WP turned away 2 other companies who wanted to be MA.
Mr Low previously told Parliament that WP had no choice but to appoint FMSS because no one else wanted to work for them.
But in Court yesterday, he admitted that two other companies had offered to act as AHTC’s MA. These had some qualifications, and more than FMSS. Mr Low conceded that FMSS had no relevant experience in running a TC the size of Aljunied.
5. Mr Low admitted that he didn’t think of calling a tender.
Even though he knew that if a tender was called, and someone made a better bid than FMSS, the TC will have to award the contract to that better tenderer.
Yet, Mr Low turned away these 2 other parties.
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