GEIS-新闻详情

The gist: MPs vote on motion on Iswaran, discuss polling day issues

2023-09-24 00:00:00.0 海峡时报-新加坡原网页

SINGAPORE – MPs on Tuesday voted against a motion to suspend Transport Minister S. Iswaran as an MP, which was moved by Progress Singapore Party Non-Constituency MP Hazel Poa. They also discussed polling issues during the presidential election.

The key takeaways:

1. House rejects motion to suspend Iswaran

Remote video URL

A motion proposed by Progress Singapore Party (PSP) Non-Constituency MP Hazel Poa to suspend Transport Minister S. Iswaran did not pass, with People’s Action Party and Workers’ Party MPs voting against it.

Leader of the House Indranee Rajah, meanwhile, had also filed a motion proposing that Parliament consider the case when the outcome of the investigations against him is known.

This was passed by the House after about two hours of discussion on both motions.

Why it matters:

Ms Poa said she was asking for Mr Iswaran’s suspension as she felt he should not be paid his MP allowance while he was being investigated for corruption and was on a leave of absence.

According to her, this was not a prudent use of taxpayers’ monies, and was unacceptable for many Singaporeans.

However, Ms Indranee said that suspension is meant to serve as a punishment, with cutting of pay a consequence, and, in this case, the threshold to suspend had not been met based on Parliament’s rules.

Most of the MPs who spoke agreed that there was no basis for suspension under existing laws, adding that it was important to observe the presumption of innocence.

Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh also warned that the PSP’s motion could set a precedent for a scenario where a future government could fix opposition MPs by way of politically motivated investigations.

Significantly, he said, a suspension at this point would overturn the electoral mandate given to Mr Iswaran by the people.

READ MORE HERE: PAP and WP MPs reject PSP’s call to suspend Iswaran as MP amid CPIB probe

2. Voting system had been stress-tested

Singaporeans who have landed on the non-voter list, for whatever reason, will be individually informed through mail and the Singpass app to verify their status and restore their names on the list in future, said Education Minister Chan Chun Sing, who spoke on behalf of the Prime Minister.

He was replying to questions about polling issues related to the recent presidential election in September, which included some voters’ names inadvertently being left out even though they had voted in the 2020 General Election.

Mr Chan said the electronic system used in GE2020 required officials to press an “okay” button after scanning NRICs, resulting in some names not being captured when the button was not pressed. This system was simplified for the recent presidential election, which means the same issue would not arise in the next election, he added.

Why it matters:

Voting on Sept 1 got off to a rocky start after long queues were reported at several polling stations at 8am, sparking criticism from voters.

This followed the news that some 1,093 Singaporeans did not receive their poll cards even though they had voted in GE2020. They informed the Elections Department (ELD) of this between Aug 11, when the writ was issued, and Sept 1, Polling Day.

Seeking to reassure voters of the reliability of the systems, Mr Chan said the surge of early voters could have caused a 30 per cent loss in device connectivity in the e-registration system in the first hour of polling, but the situation had improved by 10am. He added that the voting system had been stress-tested prior to the presidential election.

He also said that the ELD would work to eliminate any error, but noted that the margin of error this time round was small.

READ MORE HERE: S’poreans who have been struck off voter rolls will be individually notified by mail, Singpass app

If you have a few more minutes: MOH may factor in complaints about insurers

Insurance providers are expected to deal fairly with their customers, and the Ministry of Health (MOH) will consider taking into account people’s complaints about their health insurers to improve conditions for the insured, said Senior Minister of State for Health Janil Puthucheary. His remark came amid MPs’ concerns about residents being denied coverage due to mental health conditions. He said all Singaporeans and permanent residents are covered under MediShield Life regardless of pre-existing conditions, and insurers whose practices are in breach of regulations will have action taken against them.

Higher CPF withdrawals not ruled out

Manpower Minister Tan See Leng said the Government is not ruling out relooking the amount that eligible Central Provident Fund (CPF) members can withdraw unconditionally upon turning 55 years old, but cautioned that higher withdrawals would result in lower payouts in future. He was responding to Non-Constituency MP Leong Mun Wai, who asked if the $5,000 limit could be upped in line with inflation. Dr Tan said CPF is meant for retirement needs, while there are short-term schemes and government initiatives to help people cope with higher inflation and the rising cost of living.