SINGAPORE: A doctor at the centre of Singapore’s HIV data leak has been struck off the medical register, the Singapore Medical Council’s disciplinary tribunal said in its grounds of decision on Tuesday (Sep 1).

Ler Teck Siang, who was the former head of the Ministry of Health’s (MOH) National Public Health Unit, had helped his romantic partner Mikhy Farrera-Brochez to lie to authorities about Brochez’s HIV-positive status to gain an employment pass.

Ler was sentenced to a two-year jail term for abetting Brochez to cheat the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) and for giving false information to MOH and the police. He was also sentenced to prison last year for drug offences.

READ: Doctor in HIV data leak Ler Teck Siang jailed for drug offences

USED OWN BLOOD FOR PARTNER’S HIV TEST

Ler was in a relationship with Brochez, who was then working in Singapore on an employment pass. After Brochez was diagnosed to be HIV-positive in March 2008, Ler helped him to “conceal” the positive status from authorities.

This included submitting his blood instead of Brochez’s for testing, so that his partner could continue to work in Singapore. The blood was drawn at Ler’s clinic.

Ler lied to MOH that Brochez did not attend his clinic on Nov 22, 2013, and to police that it was Brochez’s blood that was tested.

As head of MOH’s National Public Health Unit, Ler also had the authority to access information in the HIV registry as required for his work, said MOH in January last year.

Ler, who resigned in January 2014, is believed to have mishandled the information and is suspected of not having complied with the policies and guidelines on the handling of such confidential information.

In May 2016, MOH lodged a police report after receiving information that Brochez was in possession of confidential information that appeared to be from the HIV registry.

Police searched the couple’s properties and relevant material was seized.

Brochez was jailed in 2016 for lying about his HIV status to gain an employment pass, along with other fraud and drug offences.

In May 2018, after Brochez was deported from Singapore, MOH received information that he still had part of the records. In January last year, MOH was notified by the police that Brochez may still have more information from the HIV registry, and had leaked it online.

Brochez was eventually sentenced in September last year in the US for leaking the data.

READ: HIV data leak: Mikhy Farrera Brochez sentenced to two years’ jail in US

In October last year, Ler was also convicted of intentionally aiding a former tutor and consultant to consume methamphetamine. The court heard that the tutor first got to know of Dr Ler’s “slamming” services – slang for the intravenous injection of drugs – through a sex buddy who showed him Dr Ler’s profile on a dating app in 2017.

STRUCK OFF BY DISCIPLINARY TRIBUNAL

The prosecution argued that the nature of Ler’s offences included fraud and dishonesty and that it “necessarily implied a deficit in character”.

Ler had demonstrated “reprehensible conduct” at the criminal trial and was sentenced to two years imprisonment.

“These serve to strengthen the implication that (Ler) possesses a defect in character making (him) unfit for his profession,” said the prosecution, according to the tribunal’s grounds of decision.

Ler argued that he had committed the dishonest acts “out of love, passion and compassion” for Brochez, and not out of “greed and avarice”. He claimed the acts did not imply a “defect in character”, and asked not to be struck off.

READ: US court orders Mikhy Brochez to ‘immediately’ return HIV data to Singapore authorities

READ: Mikhy Farrera Brochez, American wanted in Singapore for HIV data leak, charged in US for trespassing

He added that there was no “personal, financial or material gain” in committing the offences, but he said it was a choice “between being dishonest and being with the person that I was in love with at that time”.

But the tribunal said Ler’s arguments against his guilt were “wholly misconceived” and rejected them.

The offences Ler committed were not a “simple dishonest act” but criminal convictions involving fraud and dishonesty.

“In fact, we found (Ler’s) attempts to trivialise his repeated deceptions of government agencies, which are responsible for the safeguarding of public interests, as being akin to spousal cheating deeply disturbing and worrying,” the tribunal wrote.

They said that Ler’s claim that he made no “personal, financial or material gain” from his offences were “incorrect”, adding that Ler committed the offences so he could continue staying with Brochez.

This was entirely a personal gain by Ler, achieved by “abusing his position as a medical practitioner and sacrificing his professional responsibilities”, the tiribunal added.

He “betrayed” his role as a medical practitioner to safeguard public health and safety by assisting his partner, and had engaged in the deception of authorities four times.

These offences took place over the course of several years, and Ler’s “carefully planned, deliberate and flagrant deception” of authorities shows a “defect in character rendering him unfit for his profession”, the tribunal added.

“In addition, this tribunal notes that (Ler’s) conduct at the present disciplinary proceedings in attempting to make light of his offences has only served to further illustrate his recalcitrant and unremorseful attitude in failing to appreciate the gravity of his criminal conduct, and thus the severity of the defect in character on the part of the respondent, indicating that a severe sentence is justly warranted,” said the grounds.

Besides being struck off, Ler will have to pay costs incurred during the tribunal hearings.

SINGAPORE: Opposition Members of Parliament (MPs) on Tuesday (Sep 1) called for the Government to relook at national policies on race and restore the balance of interests between Singaporeans and foreigners.

The four opposition MPs who spoke on the second day of the debate on the President’s Address also touched on reducing the reliance on foreign workers and giving more voice to youths to shape policies.

President Halimah Yacob had told Parliament in her speech on Aug 24 that multiracialism in Singapore was still a “work in progress”, with different generations bringing various life experiences and perspectives.

The Workers’ Party (WP) MP Sylvia Lim said she hopes Singapore would become a “race-blind society” and to achieve that she suggested reviews in three areas: Ethnic classifications and data; elections along ethnic lines; and the Housing and Development Board (HDB) Ethnic Integration Policy.

Ms Lim said the Government’s CMIO (Chinese, Malay, Indian and Others) model of classifying the population to safeguard minority rights is “problematic”, adding that it would be better to talk about “citizenship rights”.

“There is an opportunity here to come together as Singaporeans and contribute to a national pool, helping the less privileged on a race-blind basis,” she said.

ELECTIONS ALONG ETHNIC LINES

Moving on to elections along ethnic lines, Ms Lim pointed out that ideally, there should not be minority candidate requirements in Parliamentary and presidential elections. 

“Such requirements tend to focus on minority representation, which can put an uncomfortable spotlight on minority candidates,” she said.

As for the HDB Ethnic Integration Policy introduced in 1989, Ms Lim questioned if it has been working well, noting that it has caused “economic hardship” over the years.

The policy limits the total percentage of units in an HDB block or neighbourhood occupied by a certain ethnicity. Once the quotas are reached, buying and selling of flats can only take place within the same ethnic group.

Ms Lim said it was useful to look at neighbourhoods like Bedok where the Malay population has exceeded quotas, given that many of these families moved in before the policy was introduced.

“We should note that there did not appear to be extraordinary tensions or disorder there. It thus appears to me that some relaxation of the policy is possible,” she said.

READ: MPs call for firms to be more transparent on foreign hiring, make push to prioritise Singaporeans

BALANCE OF INTERESTS BETWEEN SINGAPOREANS AND FOREIGNERS

Another issue that should be looked at is the balance of interests between locals and foreigners, the Progress Singapore Party’s Non-Constituency MP Leong Mun Wai said.

“Noting the widespread resentment and objections of our countrymen, we recommend immediate actions be taken to restore the balance of interests between the Singaporeans and the foreigners in our country,” he said in his first Parliament speech.

READ: Manpower Ministry to review companies whose ‘Singaporean core has been weakening’: Josephine Teo

Mr Leong suggested tweaking the foreign talent model by designating companies as “offshore” or “onshore”.

Offshore companies offer products and services sold predominantly overseas, which Singaporeans do not yet have the skills to produce, said Mr Leong, adding that these companies should also satisfy minimum capital and business spending requirements.

Mr Leong said offshore companies can be given a “freer hand” in attracting talents from all over the world provided they are non-discriminatory and follow work pass salary requirements.

For the remainder of companies classified as onshore, Mr Leong said they must ensure Singaporeans are well-represented in top management, apply a foreigner-to-citizen ratio cap, create clear career succession plans for locals, and protect entry-level jobs for new Singaporean graduates.

REDUCING DEPENDENCE ON FOREIGN WORKERS

Mr Leon Perera, the WP MP for Aljunied, also touched on the importance of reducing dependence on foreign workers.

Mr Perera noted that there was a need to “take a serious look” at the entire sector of workers on work permits and set long-term targets to “substantially reduce” Singapore’s dependence on these foreign workers.

He questioned the sustainability of attracting foreign workers from less-developed countries, pointing out that they might not “remain poor forever”. He added that there is scope to redesign some of these jobs.

“There may come a day when they don’t want to come to Singapore to do such jobs, or at least not at current rates of pay. What will we do then? Low cost today may not mean low cost tomorrow,” he said.

READ: MAS will ensure ‘fair hiring practices’ in financial services sector, create opportunities for Singaporeans: Ong Ye Kung

GIVING YOUNG SINGAPOREANS “A BETTER DEAL”

In her first speech in Parliament, the WP MP for the newly formed Sengkang Group Representation Constituency (GRC) Raeesah Khan stressed the importance of providing equal opportunities among Singaporeans, noting that meritocracy has contributed to this.

“But in this midst of this pursuit, we have inevitably left many behind, short-changed and sadly, made to believe they deserve their stations because they were simply, ‘not good enough’,” she said.

Ms Khan said the Government has to tackle three areas in order to give young Singaporeans “a better deal”.

The three areas are: Youths should have accessibility to opportunities in education and the workforce; maximise the opportunities available for this group to succeed; and put an end to job discrimination to create an inclusive job market.

“If we want young Singaporeans to triumph in our next phase of development, we need to enable them to have a seat at the table,” said Ms Khan. 

“These young people are more than willing to start the conversation and contribute their ideas.”

SINGAPORE: The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) intends to review the hiring practices of companies whose “Singaporean core has been weakening”, as well as those whose Employment Pass (EP) and S Pass workforce are “overly concentrated” from a single foreign nationality source, said Manpower Minister Josephine Teo.

The move comes amid a heightened sense of insecurity about jobs, in an economy battered by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Announcing the move in Parliament on Tuesday (Sep 1), Mrs Teo said MOM will work with other agencies to actively intervene and help such companies reshape their workforce profiles.

The ministry will also engage the human resources community to “do more”, she added.

READ: Minimum qualifying salary to rise by S$600 for Employment Passes and S$100 for S Passes, higher requirement for financial services

Mrs Teo was responding to several Members of Parliament (MPs), who had posed the issue of job competition between Singaporeans and work pass holders. 

She pointed out that work pass policies have been regularly adjusted, slowing down the growth of Employment Pass and S Pass holders.

Between 2014 and 2019, the number of Employment Pass and S Pass holders grew on average by fewer than 9,000 annually, compared with the average annual growth of 30,400 in between 2009 and 2014.

In comparison, the number of locals in professionals, managers, executives and technicians (PMETs) jobs rose by an average of about 35,000 annually between 2014 and 2019, said Mrs Teo.

With COVID-19, the number of Employment Pass and S Pass holders have also come down sharply, she said, adding that this group of workers dropped by 22,000 between January and July this year.

RETRENCHMENTS

Singapore’s overall unemployment rate has risen to its highest level in more than a decade, with retrenchments more than doubling because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the second quarter, retrenchments more than doubled to 6,700, from 3,220 in the previous quarter.

Mrs Teo said that MOM actively monitors retrenchment exercises, and that the vast majority have so far been conducted fairly and responsibly.

“By and large, there has also not been a weakening of the Singaporean core,” she said.

Notwithstanding these “reassuring observations”, said Mrs Teo, MOM will work with businesses and unions to “advance sound practices” – such as by updating the Tripartite Advisory on Managing Excess Manpower and Responsible Retrenchment, or through the Fair Retrenchment Framework proposed by the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC).

READ: MPs call for firms to be more transparent on foreign hiring, make push to prioritise Singaporeans

FAIR TREATMENT FOR LOCAL JOBSEEKERS

The ministry will also intensify other efforts to ensure fair treatment of locals applying for jobs, Mrs Teo said.

For example, in evaluating Employment Pass and S Pass applications, MOM will place additional emphasis on whether a business has kept up its support of local PMETs in its employment. 

“Among other things, an employer’s record in how it handles retrenchment exercises will certainly have a bearing,” she said. 

“For example, is an EP or S Pass applicant a replacement for a local who was only recently retrenched? If so, MOM will ask why and turn down the application unless there are very good reasons.”

MOM will also look at whether businesses have been responsive to government efforts to help them recruit and train local PMETs, she said. 

“Therefore, in specific areas of skills shortages and where there is strong interest from locals, we will also assess if agencies like WSG (Workforce Singapore), MAS (Monetary Authority of Singapore) and IMDA (Infocomm Media Development Authority) have been able to get an employer on board their many programmes to strengthen the development of local PMETs,” said Mrs Teo.  

This will have a bearing on their Employment Pass and S Pass applications, she added.

READ: Union leader urges tougher measures to tackle hiring bias, including EP quotas and ending tax breaks

MOM will also consider whether an employer has discriminated against qualified local PMETs, she noted.  

“Of all possible infringements, this is what offends Singaporeans most – that they have the qualifications but lost out to a foreign candidate who did not appear to be better,” she said. 

MOM regularly takes companies to task for practices such as pre-selecting a foreign candidate and disregarding qualified local candidates, Mrs Teo said. 

She noted that this year alone, 90 employers have had their work pass privileges suspended because of infringements under the Fair Consideration Framework.

Mrs Teo gave the example of a multinational company in the healthcare sector that did not shortlist or interview any of the 26 local candidates who had applied for a position advertised on MyCareersFuture.gov.sg.

“This company was clearly not serious in considering local applicants. As a penalty, it will not be able to hire or renew EP holders for 12 months,” she said. “To stay in business, they will have to recruit more locals, something they should have done all along.”

READ: Foreigners keep Singapore ‘economically relevant’, but pay attention to the Singapore worker: Pritam Singh

Mrs Teo noted that since 2016, more than 1,200 employers have been scrutinised under the Fair Consideration Framework (FCF), which requires firms to assess Singaporeans fairly for all job openings.

While these firms did not flout any rules, they were singled out for their “unusually high reliance” on foreigners in their PMET headcount, compared to others in the same industry. 

“Until they improve, we will reject or hold back their work pass applications,” she said. “At the same time, TAFEP engages them to understand their problems and help them strengthen their hiring practices.”

“In all, 3,200 EP applications have been rejected or withheld by MOM, or withdrawn by employers while they were being scrutinised,” said Mrs Teo. 

“But these employers have hired more than 4,800 Singaporean PMETs as a result,” she noted.

“In other words, this targeted approach has helped to keep and expand local PMET employment in these firms.”

NTUC assistant secretary-general Patrick Tay, who is the MP for Pioneer SMC, had last month called for such errant companies to be named, so as to deter unfair hiring practices. 

However, Mrs Teo said on Tuesday that a “name-and-shame” approach would be counterproductive and frustrate the companies’ efforts to expand local hiring.

“Our alternative approach of scrutinising and engaging employers is highly resource-intensive but in fact, a more effective way to get businesses to reshape their HR practices.”

READ: 47 employers added to watchlist for suspected discriminatory hiring practices: MOM

NEW PROGRESSIVE WAGE MODEL MARK 

While Singapore has not legislated a single minimum wage across the board, features of a “minimum wage plus” have been implemented through a Progressive Wage Model, said Mrs Teo, noting that the model  currently benefits about 80,000 workers in the cleaning, security, and landscaping sectors.

Workers in Progressive Wage Model sectors have seen cumulative wage growth of around 30 per cent compared in the last five years, she noted. 

However – with businesses still trying to find firmer footing and great uncertainty in the labour market – any attempt to expand the Progressive Wage Model into new sectors “carries higher risk”, Mrs Teo said. 

“While it may be too risky to mandate PWM in more sectors right away, we can still promote its voluntary adoption by progressive employers that are able to do so,” she said, adding the Government would work with its tripartite partners to introduce a new Progressive Wage Model Mark.

This Progressive Wage Model Mark would recognise companies that voluntarily pay progressive wages and provide job progression pathways to their lower-income workers, she said, noting that sectors such as food services and retail trade had the potential to come on board.

“For the PWM Mark to work, there must however, be a broader movement involving society at large. As consumers, we must be prepared to pay slightly more, and intentionally support such progressive companies by purchasing their products or services,” said Mrs Teo. 

“This will spur more companies to be progressive and adopt the PWM Mark, which in turn will benefit our lower-income workers.”

“I hope MPs will agree with me, that we must have it in our hearts to consider this a small price to pay for better jobs and income security for those among us who need it most.”

Tearing as she concluded her speech, Mrs Teo said that just as workers care for their families and loved ones, the manpower ministry also has the best interests of workers in mind. 

“Please know that you too are always in our hearts. However long this storm lasts, MOM will walk the journey together with you. However tough it may be, we will help you bounce back,” she said. 

“Our mission is to help each one of you emerge stronger, by never giving up hope and by working with employers in Singapore to treat you fairly, to make your hard work bear fruit,” she said. 

“Our work is not yet done. We have taken firm steps forward, and we will press on whatever the challenges – with you, for you, for Singapore.”