This is an incident that has never been in Singapore's history: a government minister is charged with corruption and was sent to court.
Minister of Transportation, S. Iswaran, was officially charged with bribery on Monday, including accepting a private aircraft travel, and votes to watch musical Hamilton and football games in the UK.When he appeared in court on Thursday, he had resigned.
Singapore's cleanliness and integrity has always been known.However, in recent months, Qingyu, the ruling people's action party, and even the entire country, has been defiled by multiple scandals.
The allegations of the improper behavior of Yi Huaren were made public in July.At that time, Prime Minister Li Xianlong ordered him to take a vacation and wait for the authorities to investigate his exchanges with a billionaire, and the latter participated in the event that he brought the F1 event to Singapore.Public allegations include two crimes of corruption and one hindering judicial allegations.He also faced 24 allegations of "receiving valuables as a civil servant", and the amount involved was hundreds of thousands of dollars.
"I have to say that this is a heavy blow to the DAP, the government, and even Singapore," said Chen Qingwen, an associate professor of Law of Singapore Management University."This is a system that has always been proud of public officials and integrity. Now a minister faces a series of corruption allegations, which will indeed cause serious concerns."
In addition to Yi Huaren, two ministers were accused of increasing real estate transaction issues involving government houses involving government houses last year, as well as the extramarital affairs scandal of Congress Speaker and another member of the parliament.In terms of housing, the government did not find evidence of improper behavior or corruption, but in Singapore, which has a high living cost, the preferential treatment of the ministers still caused doubts.
Singapore's clean government has always been highly praised.In the 2022 transparent international cleanliness index, it ranked fifth and was the only Asian country to enter the top 10.
Li Xianlong said that the government had dealt with the Yi Hua Ren case "strictly in accordance with the law" and will continue to do so in the future.
"I am determined to maintain the integrity of the party and the government, and the reputation of our integrity and honesty," Li Xianlong said in a statement."Singaporeans also expect this."
Voters can express their views in the next election, and this election will be held by the end of 2025.The votes of the DAP have declined in the elections in recent years. The challenges of the opposition party have become more and more severe. The DAP's one -party rule has been criticized for decades.
In addition, after 10 months, the DAP will also usher in an important leadership personnel. At that time, Prime Minister Li Xianlong will step down and hand over power to the so -called 4G, that is, the "fourth generation" leader,This includes Yi Huaren.
Huang Xuncai, who will take over as the post of prime minister, emphasizes the party's attitude towards corruption.
"The People's Action Party's position on corruption is not shaken. This is part of our party's gene," Huang Xuncai told reporters."No matter what political costs are paid, you will not make any compromise and relaxation on the problem of corruption."
Yi Huaren said that he would refund all the income during the investigation as a minister and parliamentarians in July.During this period, the government reduced his monthly salary as the Cabinet Minister to S $ 8,500 (about 45,000 yuan), which was far less than S $ 55,000 a monthly salary of 55,000.(Singapore's ministerial salary level is at the forefront of the world. The reason given by the government is to help prevent corruption.)
On Thursday, the government announced a letter written by Yi Huaren to Li Xianlong, saying that he would resign as "concentrated energy to clear the crime."
The allegations of Yi Huaren almost all originated from the exchanges between him and the real estate tycoon Wang Xing. In 2008, Wang, who brought the F1 event to Singapore, is currently under investigation.There were 24 allegations from November 2015 to December 2021. According to the introduction of Singapore's anti -corruption agency, Yi Huaren was charged with "valuables" from Wang Mingxing during this time, with a total value of about 160,000Dollar.
Local media reports include votes from the Book of Mormon, Hamilton and the Premier League.The media stated that he was also accused of accepting tickets at F1 Singapore Station, and a private jet of Wang Xingxing to Qataroha, one night of accommodation at the Four Seasons Hotel in Doha, and a business class ticket from Doha to Singapore.
According to anti -corruption agencies, two corruption charges said that Yi Huaren accepted Wang Mingxing's bribery in September and December 2022, totaling $ 124,000.The money is said to have thanked him to take care of the commercial interests of the tycoon, including F1 Singapore Station and the Singapore Tourism Bureau.
If he is convicted, Yi Huaren may face imprisonment.However, most people think that he will not be sentenced to a long imprisonment -the judge may decide that all the sentences should be implemented at the same time and give a sentence that is commensurate with the crime.
Translation: Du Ran
