Prosecution not filing charges against businessman Lum Kok Seng over Iswaran case
Former transport minister S Iswaran (right) obtained valuable items from Mr Lum Kok Seng, a director at Lum Chang Building Contractors. (Photos: Lum Chang Holdings 2010 annual report, CNA/Marcus Mark Ramos)
SINGAPORE: The Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) said on Friday (Oct 4) that the prosecution will not file any charges against construction boss Lum Kok Seng, one of two businessmen linked to the case involving former transport minister S Iswaran.
Mr Lum is the managing director of Singapore-listed Lum Chang Holdings, which has subsidiaries in construction, property development and investments.
He was named in Iswaran's charges, along with billionaire hotelier Ong Beng Seng who was charged on Friday with abetting a public servant to obtain valuable things and obstruction of justice.
Iswaran was sentenced on Thursday to one year in jail for obtaining gifts worth about S$403,300 (US$313,200) over seven years from the two businessmen, as well as for obstructing justice.
The AGC had previously said it would "take a decision in respect of the investigations against Mr Lum" after the completion of Iswaran's case.
"In arriving at the decision, the prosecution considered all the relevant facts and circumstances of the case, including the role that Lum played in each of the transactions," an AGC spokesperson said in response to CNA's queries on Friday.
In 2016, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) awarded Lum Chang Building Contractors a S$325 million contract for works at Tanah Merah Station and existing viaducts.
LTA comes under the Ministry of Transport, where Iswaran served as minister from May 15, 2021 to Jan 17, 2024.
Iswaran knew that Mr Lum was involved in a contract between Lum Chang Building Contractors and LTA.
Receiving gifts from him was therefore in breach of Section 165 of the Penal Code, which makes it an offence for a public servant to accept or obtain anything of value, without payment or with inadequate payment, from any person with whom he is involved in an official capacity.
In late 2021, Iswaran sought Mr Lum's help to source whisky and red wine. After sending a photo of a bottle of Gordon & MacPhail Caol Ila whisky, he asked Mr Lum to check with his regular supplier "what he thinks about it".
In January 2022, Mr Lum told Iswaran that he had bought two bottles of the whisky and would send it to him with a batch of red wine.
That same month, Mr Lum arranged for two bottles of whisky and 12 bottles of red wine, worth about S$3,200, to be sent to Iswaran.
Iswaran also invited Mr Lum to his 60th birthday celebration on Jun 18, 2022, following which Mr Lum "suggested" that he would buy him a foldable bicycle for his birthday.
That June, Iswaran received a Brompton T Line bicycle worth S$7,900 from Mr Lum.
Iswaran also obtained golf clubs and equipment, as well as more whisky worth from him on other occasions.
Under the charges that Iswaran faced, the former transport minister obtained items worth about S$19,000 from Mr Lum between November 2021 and November 2022.
