In his parliamentary speech today July 3, Minister K Shanmugam addressed the ongoing Ridout Road controversy – from his decision to rent a house to whether there was any conflict of interest.
Usually, Kakak won’t bother about parliament sessions, but today I took early lunch just so I would be in time to catch it online. I’m so invested in this ongoing Ridout Road drama because it is more delicious than that “Perempuan Itu” story on TikTok tau!
The five key points from Minister Shanmugam speech:
- Renting a House: Minister Shanmugam explained he rented a house because he had decided to sell his family home, as he had too much of his savings tied up in a single asset. He emphasized that his decision was not driven by financial need but by the desire to diversify his savings. Furthermore, he made it clear that he did not regret leaving his previous earnings as a Senior Counsel, as he considers it a privilege to be in public service.
- Making Money through Rent: He does not profit from the rental difference between their family home and the Ridout house rented from the State. In fact, after factoring in property tax and income tax on the rental proceeds, there is a net deficit that he tops up.
- Size of the Land: Minister Shanmugam explained that he did not want the extra land to be part of the lease but offered to maintain it at his own cost. However, the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) insisted that the surrounding land had to be part of the lease if he wanted to maintain it. He expressed his willingness to give up the extra land if SLA agrees to take it back while he continues to pay for its maintenance.
“Indeed, I offered to maintain that land outside of the house boundary, at my own cost because if the outside land was not properly maintained, there would be serious problems for me. But I did not want it as part of the lease. My reason: If you own a landed property, you want a large land area, you benefit from the capital appreciation. But if you are a tenant any land under your lease becomes your responsibility. And thus, additional land area of 150,000 sq ft means additional legal responsibility. For example, there are large trees in the property. If any of them fell, it could be serious.”
- Description of the Ridout House: To dispel speculation about the condition of the Ridout house, Minister Shanmugam shared photographs of the property before he moved in, highlighting the repairs and improvements done by SLA and himself. He revealed that he had spent over $500,000 on renovations, which he knew he would not benefit from since it would go back to the state at the end of the lease.
“I did work on the house to the extent that was allowed. It is a conservation property, so there are limits on what you can do.”
“The money that I put in I knew that I would not benefit from it, after my lease is over it would all go back to the State. That is the deal when one rents a Black & White, and I knew that.”
- Conflict of Interest: Minister Shanmugam emphasized that there was no conflict of interest regarding the tenancy. He recused himself from any decision-making process related to the tenancy and took steps to ensure that any perceived or potential conflicts were dealt with appropriately. He also informed relevant authorities and established a chain of command to ensure proper handling of any related issues.
“There is some confusion on this…Actual, potential or perceived conflict can only arise where:
I have an interest in the matter… I make a decision on the matter, that will be actual conflict. If I have an interest, and I remain able to make a decision… even though I do not actually make any decision, then there is potential or perceived conflict of interest. But once I recuse myself, I can’t make a decision, nor am I potentially able to make a decision”.
Overall, Minister Shanmugam refuted the allegations and clarified his actions regarding the Ridout tenancies, emphasizing transparency and adherence to rules and regulations.
Renting a house is a personal and private matter but because he is a public figure, Singaporeans see no issue to press him for answers. In fact, Minister Shanmugam mentioned this in the opening of his speech-
“As a member of the Government, it is important that I am held accountable to Singaporeans, and to subject myself and this matter to scrutiny. This is how our system works and must continue to work. No one is above the law.”
