Saturday, June 19, 2010

Pastor Kong Hee and Wife Live like Hollywood Stars

SINGER Ho Yeow Sun, wife of Revrend Kong Hee, of City Harvest Church, who are being probed for alleged misuse of church funds, lives in a $28,000-a-month estate in same exclusive suburb in Los Angeles as Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, reported The New Paper on Sunday.

The pop star, 40, popularly known as Sun Ho, who has been shuttling back and forth between Singapore and the US since 2003, is renting the place at Hollywood Hills, which has four buildings in all. She lives in the sprawling estate - which is listed for sale at US$5.6 million (S$7.7 million) - with her son, an assistant, a nanny and her relatives.

She can boast of having Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt as her neighbours. She is now back in Singapore to help in the investigation of the City Harvest Scandal.

The New Paper on Sunday team, who went to the estate, spotted a black SUV and black Mercedes Benz CLK550 driving in an out of the estate, which has a total built-up area of 6,766 sq ft - or about the size of five five-room HDB flats - a swimming pool, a sun-deck and two-car garage.


Related Links:
Pastor Kong Hee full of shits

Pastor's Scandalous Wife

CHC under investigation

City Harvest buys Suntec City

By Ion Danker
Imagine living in a S$28,000-a-month rented estate where famous Hollywood celebrities such as Paris Hilton’s sister Nicky, “Ugly Betty” star America Ferrera and British singer Leona Lewis are your neighbours.

If luck is on your side, you could even cross paths with Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, who are also said to own a property in the vicinity.

Sounds too good to be true?

The Hollywood Hills estate is the place singer Ho Yeow Sun, 40, popularly known as Sun Ho, calls home since she moved to Los Angeles for her music career.

She is the wife of Reverend Kong Hee, 45, and co-founder of City Harvest Church and has been commuting between Singapore and the U.S. since 2003.

According to The New Paper, the Hollywood mansion Ho has been renting for the past year is listed for sale at S$7.7 million. It’s reported that Ho lives there with her 5-year-old son, Dayan, an assistant, a nanny and her relatives.

The profile of residents in the neighbourhood is said to comprise millionaires and high-profile businessmen who like the quiet, peaceful and well-policed area with a low crime rate.

The report’s detailed description also indicates that the dark green Spanish Mediterranean-style building Ho is renting stands out from the rest of the properties in the area due to its large size.

The estate stands on 29,000 sq ft of land or about a third of a football field. It’s made up of a main house, three self-contained structures, with quarters for a butler, nanny and maid. Not only does it boast a swimming pool, a sundeck and a two-car garage, its driveway still has space for another 9 cars.

The total built-up area of the estate is 6,766 sq ft or about the size of 5 five-room HDB flats, while the 4,135 sq ft main house has four bedrooms.

The paper also said the housing agent in charge of the property described Kong Hee’s wife as “Singapore’s top singer and entertainer” while a neighbour said she was very “sophisticated and seems traditional” as she often hosts gatherings during special occasions like Chinese New Year.

Back in Singapore, the couple also made some big property moves through the years.

They started off in a five-room HDB flat in Tampines which was purchased at S$127,000 before selling it for S$420,000. They then moved to a unit at Horizon Towers costing S$1 million in River Valley before selling it off to buy a new apartment at The Suites at Central on Devonshire Road, said to be worth about S$2.6 million.

Ho returned to Singapore last Monday to assist the Commercial Affairs Department (CAD) in an investigation into alleged misuse of church funds. She was said to have been grilled by police for more than eight hours.

Her husband, Kong Hee recently explained his silence in a Facebook post that said, “Because we’re in the midst of the investigation, I am unable to provide any details about the progress besides what already has been released by the Singapore Police in their statement to the press.”

“But I would like to assure everyone that I, together with the Management Board of the church, am fully cooperative in providing the necessary information needed for the investigation,” said the Pastor, who himself was recently accused of plagiarising three prominent Christian authors.

The couple and at least 16 others connected to the City Harvest Church are currently assisting the CAD in ongoing investigations.
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LEADERSHIP CHANGE
(SINGAPORE) There has been a leadership change at City Harvest Church, which is under investigation by the police.

Its founder has taken a backseat while two pastors, Derek Dunn and Aries Zulkarnain, have been put in charge of running the church. This arrangement will continue until the current investigations are completed.

The founder, Pastor Kong Hee, will however remain the president and chairman of the City Harvest board. He is among the 20-odd church members summoned by the Commercial Affairs Department as part of the probe.

Meanwhile, City Harvest has appointed auditors from RSM Chio Lim to conduct an independent review, Pastor Dunn told The Business Times yesterday.The independent review will examine the church’s corporate governance structure and internal control processes.

‘If the review identifies lapses, the church will take necessary corrective measures recommended by the adviser to prevent such lapses in the future,’ said Pastor Dunn. ‘The church is fully committed to accountability and integrity in the church’s dealings and has taken steps to protect its interest and that of its members.’

He broke the church’s silence for the first time since the probe began.

At the start of this month, the police and the Commissioner of Charities said that they were investigating ‘financial transactions involving several individuals and companies, related or connected to the City Harvest Church’, after the Commissioner’s office received complaints of misuse of church funds.

These related companies under probe include those that are not charities or subsidiaries of the church, the Commissioner’s office said.

These objections were apart from complaints over the church’s purchase of a minority stake in Suntec Singapore. The acquisition would cost the church $310 million, including expected renovation and equipment expenses, City Harvest announced in March.

Pastor Dunn declined comment on the ongoing police investigations. ‘We are very grateful for and deeply appreciate the strong love, concern and support demonstrated by all of our members as well as those from the Christian community here in Singapore and abroad, during this challenging period,’ he said.

‘The authorities have been more than professional and have extended their utmost courtesy to our members in the investigative process.’

While the two pastors will take charge of ministerial duties at City Harvest, the 10-strong board will continue taking on the management role. The church created a deeper separation between the executive and board roles after a review by the Commissioner of Charities some two years ago, said Pastor Dunn.

Recommendations from the review on City Harvest and six other religious organisations – which were mostly kept private – included cutting the number of pastoral members sitting on the church board. The church currently has 24 pastors.

‘Following the review, the church has reduced the number of pastoral members on the board to three. This allows a greater degree of independence of the board from the church’s spiritual and pastoral leaders,’ said Pastor Dunn.

Previously, pastoral members made up a majority of the board.

‘There is no doubt, however, that it is not practical for a church to effect a complete separation of the leadership of the governing board from its pastoral leadership,’ he added.

The board looks at the daily operations of City Harvest, which entails ensuring that the accounts of the church are properly audited and recorded, as well as managing its investments.

Its other duties extend to administrative matters, which were previously under the purview of the pastoral department.

The board members are nominated by an executive member and voted in by a simple majority. They serve for a year, before being put up for re-election at the church’s annual general meeting (AGM) the next year.

BT understands that there are 750 voting members of the church, who are eligible to vote in board members. These include ordinary members who take on more responsibilities, having been with the church for a longer time and receiving training.

As part of the 2008 review, the Commissioner also asked the church to consider a strategy for board renewal, with ‘particular attention’ to the roles of the chairman and the treasurer, said Pastor Dunn, adding that the plan was put in place by the 2009 AGM.

Investigations into the church and its financial dealings have flung the door open to debate over the segregation of commercial and religious pursuits of the church, which had total funds of $103 million, including a $65 million building fund, for its fiscal 2009.

And what are the church’s views on the comfortable lifestyle enjoyed by Pastor Kong and his wife, Ho Yeow Sun?

Pastor Dunn stressed that claims of extravagance have been exaggerated.

‘Concerning the lifestyle of Rev Kong and his wife, we know them well. Rev Kong is a dedicated and motivated senior pastor of the church. He has been working hard for the past 20 over years and is a renowned and recognised personality on the speaking circuit. His wife is a successful singer,’ he said.

‘While their lifestyle reflects their own accomplishments, we do not see it as lavish or excessive.’
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Newsgroups: soc.culture.singapore
From: wiseguy
Subject: Sun Ho: Hollywood Star???
(http://sg.yfittopostblog.com/2010/06/20/pastors-wife-lives-lavishly-
in-l-a/)

Patrick says:
The fact is, there are way more inconsistencies and suspicious "facts"
regarding Sun's music career that far overshadow any humanitarian work
that Sun has done on behalf of the church.

For one, in Singapore, outside her church followers, she is hardly
considered a pop star or celebrity. At best, she is known for being
the pastor's wife who is trying to be a pop star.

Even though her own websites and wiki suggests she is big, there is
hardly any media who writes about her or reviews her music. Do a
simple Google search and see how little 3rd party info there actually
is. Compare that with if you google "Stephanie Sun" or "J J Lin" who
most Singaporeans will consider bonefide successful Singapore pop
stars. A legit mainstream celebrity should have online mentions beyond
church supporters.

Her "lavish lifestyles" are really no issue if it is her own money.
However, the suspicioon sets in when no actual numbers are available
for the number of albums she has actually sold in Asia. Her supporters
have claimed "millions" have been sold but there is no 3rd party or
documented collaboration.

In addition, she would have no money coming in from her first two
albums since she donated the proceeds of both albums to charity as
reported in The Straits Times.
http://www.religionnewsblog.com/2148/poon-says-sorry-pastor-asks-chur...

But, what is published fact is that her sole music management company
has lost way more money than record sales have brought in; based on
financial records, as widely reported in the media and available
through ACRA. Latest available FS from 2007 shows in lost S$5.8mil
dollars.

So, any objective person would question where her money comes from?
Her other businesses have made little or no money (based on released
FS) and her husband does not draw a salary as a Pastor. She has not
released a single album in the US so it is unlikely her recording
label will pay $28k a month on her acccomodation when she brings in no
money. Her dance chart hits are not indicators of sales as shown and
she does not tour.

So how does one live it up in Hollywood when there are no indication
of big money rolling in?

These are not accusations but simple questions that have not been
answered yet, which is why there is a police probe in possible misuse
of funds. The unfortunate possibility for her or her husband is that
the CAD have an impeccable conviction rate once they start an official
investigation.

This has nothing to do with pesercution of religion or media-bashing
on Sun. It is the asking of questions that have never been answered.
Because CAD has stepped in, the public, disenchanted members of the
church and ex-church members have seen it appropriate to begin asking
the hard questions and not reply so much on "blind faith".

17 comments:

  1. Use church monies to have kid, relatives and herself stay in LA to escape national service, living the life of luxury, then pretend to be a pop star in USA.... LOL. She is a nobody in USA. Just a backup singer type only. Performed in Las Vegas? Hah! Maybe in some sleazy backstreet bar beyond the main strip in Las Vegas more than likely.... LOL.

    ReplyDelete
  2. living amongst hollywood stars is the right move.
    nothing like rubbing shoulders with rich and famous people, indirectly helps to promote Sunho.
    of course funded by those who contributed to CHC

    ps: god helps those who help themselves, so kong hee and sunho got this part right...lol

    ReplyDelete
  3. I m disgusted by how her husband can urge unemployed and NS men and poor people to donate to the church when they live in such disgusting opulence. My friend's secondary school child skipped lunch everyday for 2 months to save up his pocket money to donate to CHC. This is how bad the hypocrisy is. These people are shameless con-men. I will not feel one bit sorry if they are sent to jail.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Jesus told that rich young man to sell all his possessions and then follow Him but that guy went away in deep sorrow. Sad
    Zaccaeus paid back 4 times those he had cheated n Jesus blessed him.
    wat a big contrast!

    ReplyDelete
  5. If people want to give money and let them spend u cannot stop them right? Just like son give money to father... People call them father leh... of course must give money and let him spend lah...

    If the people like to give, just let them give. If it is just a game of mind. The one with the stronger mind can control the one with a weaker mind.. Just let them be.. You cannot stop them. Even now people still support them. what can u do? Anyway it is their money, as long as they don't go and steal or rob or do illegal thing to get that money, it is ok.. Just let them be..

    ReplyDelete
  6. God does not need a super church. God did not ask for a super church. God does not need your donation. God did not ask for your donation.

    A church does not need to be lavish to be blessed. Donations are meant to help those who are needy. But when God's purpose and intention are hijacked by those who ask God's flock to donate until they teared in their eyes so that a mega church can be built in His honor and greatness...... this is so perverse.. this is so unbiblical... it is so sickening.. is is so satanic... it is these people that are wrap in sheep's skin... who pretend that they are among the sheep....

    The church should just be a simple church. And 95% of the donations should go to help fellow humans and not to construct mega edifice in God 's honor. For doing so you are dishonoring the Lord that you honor

    ReplyDelete
  7. There are many established businesses in SG dealing with designers' clothes or CDs. Do these businessmen live like Hollywood stars? Wah, I want. I better give free food to temples and hope to get 10x or even 60 folds in return for my legitimate launder..y business.

    ReplyDelete
  8. that why all nowaday all singaporeans pastor earm money drive big car and have many house...
    i also not more giving money to church it's waste of my money give to church
    better save it money for myself better

    ReplyDelete
  9. http://sg-truth.blogspot.com/2010/03/city-harvest-church-questioned.html#comments



    i also hate and dislike all the cell group member and chc friend
    all of them is unreal to you
    as all of them is acting infront of you and
    all of them is acting pure and holy
    last month,
    my water&electrical cut off soon,
    i write a email to pastor kong
    for help to pay my bills
    and pastor kong asked me to work and pay myself
    see what type off ass pastor is it
    only want our money
    i even asked my chc church friend for help
    i asked for lent me $300
    for bills
    all my chc church is saying jesus will help me
    untill now my water&electriacal bills cut off
    thank chc chruch and chc church memeber not helping me let me sufferning

    ReplyDelete
  10. Just wondering what sort of successful business is she involved in to be able to afford such lifestyle and luxuries ? Or that she strike the 1st prize toto many times over ?

    Some of our richest men like Ng Teng Fong or Ong Beng Seng also live such an oppulent lifestyle like that !

    If she is such a successful singer or businesswoman, she must have been paying taxes to the tune of millions and one of the best customer to IRAS ?

    The police should have invited her for dinner at Les Amis instead of kopi only. Really makes one wonder where the real money comes from ?

    ReplyDelete
  11. Aiyoh! so wat if neighbour is Brad Pitt or Angelina Joline? Dun make any difference. We are not so superficial.

    More interesting question is:
    "What kinda business in Singapore justify this kinda of salary if the money is not from donation but from legitimate business?"

    "If the annual income is so good, how much are their Annual Income Tax?"

    "Also, what percentage of his annual income was donated to charity / to the church?"

    Dun expect there to be any answers to the above questions but commoon sense should serve as wakeup call for the people.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Right on the money WiseGuy!!
    If her call to fame is just Wikipedia, then any good researcher will
    know that anyone, including Ah Beng, Ah Seng and Ah Kow can edit and
    write into Wikipedia and info contained therein may or may not be
    accurate. Falling short of saying that the husband and wife team
    actually co-authored the contents in Wikipedia, her income and expense
    simply do not follow ethical accounting principles at all. Source of
    her income is unknown and very vague. Her so-called success can never
    be substantiated in Singapore as well as in USA. You are right, those
    CHC members who still stand behind this couple are either too blind in
    exploited faith or are just too poor in simple mathematical logic.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Frankie Lee wrote:
    ***Did you know your hateful analysis of Ho smacks of deep rooted
    jealousies and distortions?You sound like a bitter competitor,whinning
    like a loser.

    I never understand how on earth can someone string such sentences,"her
    humanitarian works was overshadowed by suspicious facts'?
    Is there anything suspicious,or is it not you made it up, in your own
    fanciful imaginations?

    She cuts album,and was highly popular.Have you heard that there are
    many ways to skin a cat?Given her stature and popularity,you mean she
    cannot get upfront cash or millions of $,just by one manager working
    for her?You knew peanuts of how business works in entertainment
    circles,and perhaps you better be ignorant lest you learn too much.

    You try to make her unpopular and suspect that she don't do well in
    her business pertaining to the entertainment circles just by making
    allegations out of thin air,and mixed with some fertile
    imaginations.Did you know that she sang very well and had a great
    voice or are u another nut who knew next to nothing about Music
    industries?She is very talented and that goes without dispute,and must
    she produce expert witness to convince you?

    Are you sure CAD had impeccable results in investigation,or rather is
    it not your slander and hope that your personal agendas which are hate-
    filled,an envied nut like you ,wanted to believe false allegations
    have legs to stand against her?

    What disenchented members?What ex-members?The Church had 34000 members
    today!Your kind of childish insinuations will not work anymore.This is
    old gloves.

    Do you want to know how she make her money?Must she report to you,or
    Income she made overseas?What indication do you want to see that funds
    are rolling into her laps?

    On one hand you think she doesn't deserve to live like a star,but she
    did live like a star,and you question why she live like a star,and you
    want to probe where she got those funds?Just because you have no info
    nor understand how Entertainment biz work,so you assume
    impropriety,and became suspicious of her.

    Why don't you go along Orchard rd and question why those guys bought
    and sold houses by the millions?I have a few friends who made hundreds
    of millions of $ in the time of Beng Seng,and some of them were
    unknown,even today.St market from 16000 then to today almost 30000,do
    you know how many millionaires are there?

    All Ho needs is one smart guy to advise her on investments,and she
    could live that lifestyle easily.There are stocks that doubled and
    doubled.

    Stop your mindless obssession on her.Her charitable deeds are truly
    outstanding,and don't be a fool by nit picking against her.

    ReplyDelete
  14. LOL!!! Freakie. Freakie. Ho Sun is a celebrity mah...So, naturally,
    folks want to know as much details about her as possible.

    Look, there is a multi-billion dollar industry out there in books, TV
    shows and tabloids scrutinising the daily going-ons of celebs of whom,
    Ho Sun claims to be one. She knew this all along and she embraced this
    when she jumped into a life in showbiz. So there's no need to come to
    her defense when Commie xiaoren like us are fascinated at the daily
    life and going-ons of Capitalist tuarens like u and Sun Ho.

    After all, we are not like the nosy paparazzi in HK, where they even
    want to know the colour of Fiona Sit's underwear for the day! LOL!!!

    Instead, we are just wondering out loud how she can managed to spend
    money in the US, like as if she's burning paper money.

    Money spent on her music career, I presumed would be taken care of by
    the recording company, deeming the expenditure as a business
    investment.

    And we know that proceeds from her album sales go to charities, so
    that takes care of that. Except that one has to bear in mind that her
    album sales cannot be as close as that of Lady Gaga's, Taylor Swift's,
    or Shakira's.

    So, as far as one can tell, her income seems to be coming from her 2
    clothes shops in Marina & Orchard & her pastor hubby. Are they enuff
    to pay for her estimated $50K per month expenses based on reports
    about her rent for the big house in Beverly Hills, the butler/chauffer/
    maid/nanny the Merc & the SUV, food, shuttling between LA-s'pore for
    her & relatives, etc. You be the judge.

    Or as Freakie seems to suggest, she may have made some money when they
    sold their condo in River Valley. But then, how much of of it was
    saved, when they upgrade to an Orchard Rd Condo? She may own property
    and stocks but how fast can she turn them into liquid? Asset rich but
    cash poor. So how?

    It's no surprise then that a lot of people are interested to know the
    answers to these questions. The motive for Commie xiaoren like us is
    that we may want to follow her footsteps and be a big capitalist
    tuaren like her. CAD wants to make sure she did not break any laws.
    IRAS wants to make sure that the taxes she pays commensurates with her
    income.

    Even her fans want to know simply so that they can admire her even
    more.

    So far the only ones who claim to have no desire to know, are you and
    those brainwashed folks at that McChurch.

    Why is that, ah? Paiseh izzit?

    ROTFLOLMAO!!!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Hi Sensitive Frankie,

    Can't understand why you are so peeved by our curiosity on the rather curious circumstances surrounding the City Harvest saga! I for one would like to know how the matter unravels itself. Don't be so ready to cast aspersions on others. For all you know, they may be right. So why don't we wait for the outcome of the official investigation to see whether you will be vindicated or that the rest of us have a right to be suspicious!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Can't find the True Stories of CHC and Sun Ho that I posted last month. To summarise what happen around 8 years ago;

    1) Stingy colleague of mine ask me to "help" him buy a Sun Ho CD which he never listen to at all. He bought around 10 pieces of that junk.

    2) Cousin from poor single-parent family bought 5 Sun Ho CDs due to peer pressure from her "group". My Aunt, sole-breadwinner work 2 shifts factory work to earn $2k a month. Cousin had to lied to get the $100 to buy the CDs.

    3) An expert Sales Trainer was hired to teach the CHC Members how to "Sell" the CDs to people they know. (Technique similar to pyramid selling. Each buy at least 5 - 10 CDs, ask people to "help" them buy...)

    4) The following year, she won the best selling female artiste and best selling album of the year...

    "Using people's goodwill donations to buy career, success and luxuries is an NOT an achievement, but a shameless denial of the presence of GOD".

    ReplyDelete