The new RM20 (S$6.60) levy on Singapore-registered cars entering Malaysia, which was rolled out yesterday, will be matched “in some form” by Singapore.

Labelling the road charge scheme “discriminatory”,

the Republic’s Ministry of Transport said it is biased against Singapore-registered vehicles, as the fee is applied only at Malaysia’s checkpoints with the Republic.

“We will match it in some form,” the ministry said in a statement issued yesterday evening.

It added that details will be announced in due course.

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Failures in governance at Aljunied-Hougang Town Council (AHTC) exposed millions of dollars in public funds to improper use and application, and could amount to criminal conduct if deliberate, independent auditor KPMG said in a report on the town council’s accounts released yesterday.

Payments with a value of at least $23 million were approved by town council members with a conflict of interest, raising questions on whether they were fully justified.

Improper payments totalling some $1.5 million were also identified, of which at least $600,000 ought to be recovered, KPMG added.

The 68-page report KPMG submitted to AHTC and the Housing Board on Monday detailed how the Workers’ Party-run town council, formerly known as Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council was exposed to serious conflicts of interest.

The direct owners of two companies appointed as its managing agent, as well as providers of essential maintenance services, held key management and financial control positions in the town council at the same time.

The two companies are FM Solutions and Services (FMSS) and FM Solutions and Integrated Services (FMSI).

For instance, six shareholders of FMSS, which from 2011 to 2015 was engaged by the town council to be its managing agent and provider of essential maintenance services, held various positions in the town council during that period, including the posts of secretary, general manager and finance manager.

This meant that FMSS shareholders working in the town council effectively approved and made payments to themselves when they paid FMSS, said KPMG. Payments totalling $23,299,483 were approved by people in conflicting positions, it added.

The KPMG report is part of its ongoing audit of AHTC following lapses in governance flagged by its own auditors as well as by the Auditor-General’s Office in February last year, which was debated in Parliament.

The town council appointed KPMG to look into its books following an order by the Court of Appeal.

AHTC, in a statement yesterday evening, said it is studying the report in detail.

leepearl@sph.com.sg

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The labour movement will launch a department next year to identify work opportunities of the future to help better match workers to up-and-coming jobs.

From Jan 1, it will open a Future Jobs, Skills and Training department to gather data on specific companies and industries where new investments and jobs will be over a three-year timeframe.

It will work with unions, professional associations, government agencies, consultancies and educational institutes to identify these opportunities, said National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) assistant secretary-general Patrick Tay yesterday.

The research will then be disseminated to training providers and institutes of higher learning where it can be used to develop more relevant skills and training courses for Singaporeans.

The NTUC Education and Training Fund can be used to support training programmes if national funding is not available, said Mr Tay, who will head the new department.

The first five sectors the unit will start pilot projects in by 2019 are financial services, infocomm technology and media, precision engineering, healthcare and education, said Mr Tay, who also heads the Government Parliamentary Committee for Manpower.

He added that ongoing work in this area is mainly in matching people who are unemployed with available jobs, but the new department will be more forward-looking.

“Everybody is vulnerable because of the rate of job obsolescence,” Mr Tay said at a media briefing about the initiative.

“We have lots of jobs but how we can minimise the mismatch of people to jobs will be a challenge for a long time to come.”

joseow@sph.com.sg

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