PAP engaged in 'half-truths' on matters of significant public interest: Pritam

The People's Action Party (PAP) has "engaged in half-truths" on matters of significant public interest, Workers' Party (WP) chief Pritam Singh said in Parliament on Wednesday (July 2).

His comments came after Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's statement on the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau's (CPIB) probe involving S Iswaran, and the extramarital affair between former Speaker of Parliament Tan Chuan-Jin and MP Cheng Li Hui.

Singh also brought up the issues about how information about the police being able to access TraceTogether's data in 2021 were not disclosed earlier, and the CPIB's Ridout Road investigations this year. 

On Iswaran's case, Singh said that there is "considerable public disquiet" over CPIB's statement on July 12 that stated Iswaran was assisting in investigations.

The statement however, omitted "to disclose the fact" that the transport minister had been arrested the day before, he added.

"In a parallel universe, there is a perception that if a Singaporean or a Singaporean company took such a cavalier and breezy approach with critical facts under today's PAP, they can expect to receive a Pofma direction from a PAP minister for perpetuating false statements or facts," said Singh.

He added that CPIB's "course of action" brought unnecessary attention to their processes, and "by extension their impartiality".

The issue has revealed how the PAP "engages in half-truths on matters of significant public interest," Singh said.

"This behaviour goes a long way to explain why there is a real disquiet among Singaporeans today when the PAP invokes the memory of pioneer generation PAP leaders and talks about trust," he added.

Singh suggested that the government consider the appointment of an ethics adviser.

"Can I invite the Prime Minister to reconsider his position in view of the PAP's pattern of behaviour in this term of government, especially when a potentially embarrassing issue comes up," he said.

"In view of the complexity of government and governance today, it would not be embarrassing for the government to consider the appointment of an ethics adviser."

CPIB does not reveal its investigations

Responding to Singh's lengthy clarification in a packed Parliament House, PM Lee said the issue of TraceTogether was aired extensively in Parliament in 2021 and "that matter is done". 

On Iswaran's case, he said that the CPIB does not investigate someone unless there is a very serious reason to do so.

The bureau also does not reveal its investigations until it has reason to believe the investigation has to carry on, according to PM Lee.

"Therefore in general, CPIB investigations are not in the first instance announced at all...and when I ask the CPIB to investigate, it is my prerogative, I don't have to tell anybody," said PM Lee.

"What is important is that I did conduct an investigation and the investigation results were published."

In the case of the July 12 statement about Iswaran's arrest, PM Lee said that CPIB had to say what it felt justified to say at that point for operational reasons, and to be fair to the people involved.

"The ministers, unless we have strong reason to do otherwise, will go along and we will not go beyond what the CPIB needs and is able to say," said PM Lee.

He added that Singh's questioning of PAP's "transmission of information" is a red herring.

The prime minister then said they could, for example, also ask how Singh had known about the affair between senior members Leon Perera and Nicole Seah years ago, before their eventual resignations on July 19, and what he did about them. 

"But those are matters which the WP will have to decide and will have to account to Singaporeans. And the PAP, we establish our own standards and we establish our own practices," PM Lee said.

And replying to questions on why he took so long on the affair of Tan and Cheng, PM Lee said that both parties were counselled and agreed to stop, but did not. 

"I do not wish to go beyond that and delve into the ins and outs of how it happened. But suffice to say they didn't stop and they had to go," he added.

ALSO READ: PM Lee reveals Tan Chuan-Jin and Cheng Li Hui were in a relationship

chingshijie@asiaone.com