Latest SMRT Corruption Scandal 2017

In a media release today, three employees with Singapore state-owned public transport operator SMRT were found to have engaged in corruption by awarding S$9.8 million worth of contracts to a company where they have vested interests. From SMRT, line manager Zulkifli Marwi, 52, former manager Jamalludin Jumari, 61, and assistant engineer Zakaria Mohamed Shariff, 59, were revealed to have conspired to award various contracts ranging from S$3,700 to S$3.9 million to a company called Enovation Industries.

The fourth person to be charged is the director of Enovation Industries, Akbar Ali Tambishahib, 60. One of the four guilty, Jamalludin Jumari, absconded and left Singapore in 2013, but was found in Malaysia and extradited to face charges in Singapore.

CPIB made the announcement without explaining how did the contract award process resulted in the corruption:

“Three of them were each charged with four counts of conspiring with each other to cheat SMRT Trains by dishonestly concealing the fact that they had an interest in Enovation Industries (EI), resulting in SMRT being deceived into awarding contracts worth S$3,900,000 to EI. Jamalludin absconded in 2013, but was found recently in Malaysia and brought back to Singapore to face charges. The CPIB had worked closely with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission who acted expeditiously on our request for assistance.”

The four accused face up to 10 years jail and a fine.

This is the second high profile corruption case involving state-owned companies in recent months, following the conviction of Keppel. Keppel was fined S$567 million for bribery in Brazil.

Singaporeans charged over $7 mn metro scandal

Four Singaporean men were Friday charged over a scandal involving contracts for the metro worth almost Sg$10 million ($7.4 million), the latest problem to hit the financial hub's train network.

The prosecution of the group, which included former and current employees of metro operator SMRT, came after a series of breakdowns on the train system and a collision that injured dozens.

The accidents have caused anger in the city-state where public transport is usually efficient and most have to rely on buses and trains as car prices are among the highest in the world.

Three of the four men caught up in the latest scandal failed to disclose their interest in two engineering companies which had been awarded contracts from SMRT totalling Sg$9.8 million, the anti-corruption bureau said.

The offences allegedly happened between 2007 and 2012, the bureau said, adding that the men have been charged under a law that prohibits cheating.

Two of the men, Jamalludin bin Jumari, 61, and Zakaria bin Mohamed Shariff, 52, are former employees of SMRT and face 28 charges each.

Zulkifli bin Marwi, 52, still works at the rail company as a line manager and faces 24 charges. Akbar Ali bin Tambishahib, 59, a director of the companies awarded the contracts, faces 28 charges.

If convicted, they face up to 10 years jail on each charge.

"The Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau takes a serious view of any corrupt practices and will not hesitate to take action against any party involved in such acts," the bureau said in a statement.

In October, rail services on a main line were stopped for 20 hours when an underground tunnel flooded. Last month, 36 people were injured in a train collision.

State investment giant Temasek took full ownership of SMRT last year, delisting it from the Singapore stock exchange, in a bid to overhaul the company.