The sombre mood at the Supreme Court on Thursday was met with gasps as Judge Vincent Hoong read out the sentence for former transport minister S. Iswaran.
The 62-year-old was handed a 12-month jail term in a landmark case that saw, for the first time, a former cabinet minister being sentenced. Rather significantly, the punishment was more than the six to seven months’ jail the prosecution had sought.
Iswaran cut a stoic figure as he arrived in court at 9.20am, his eyes closed on more than one occasion as he waited some 40 minutes for proceedings to begin.
As Justice Hoong read out his sentencing remarks, the former minister – who pleaded guilty on Sept 24 to four charges of obtaining valuable items as a public servant, and a fifth charge of obstructing the course of justice – took handwritten notes.
Addressing the court, Justice Hoong said he was unable to agree with the positions of both the prosecution and the defence. The defence had sought not more than eight weeks’ jail.
The judge said he was of the view that it was appropriate to impose a heavier sentence than what both parties had asked for, which were manifestly inadequate – this drew the first round of gasps heard in the courtroom.
The sentence was meted out in front of more than 40 people in the gallery, which included Iswaran’s family, some of whom sighed audibly as the sentence was read out.
Iswaran himself exhaled in despair as he glanced into the void.
In his sentencing remarks, Justice Hoong emphasised that trust and confidence in public institutions are the bedrock of effective governance. “This can all too easily be undermined by a public servant who falls below standards of integrity and accountability,” he said.
The judge added that it was significant that Iswaran had made public statements rejecting the charges as false.
“In a letter to the Prime Minister, Iswaran said he rejected the charges and was innocent, and believed he would be acquitted. Thus, I have difficulty believing that he was remorseful,” he said.
The judge added: “Holders of high office ordinarily wield a greater degree of potential influence over significant business transactions or proceedings and have a larger resultant impact on the public interest.”
Aside from the five charges Iswaran pleaded guilty to, another 30 were taken into consideration during sentencing.
As a minister and chairman of the Formula One steering committee, Iswaran was tasked to oversee high-level decisions and collaboration between government agencies and the Singapore Grand Prix as a national project.
In the course of his role, he admitted to obtaining valuable items worth more than $400,000 in total from businessman Ong Beng Seng and Mr David Lum Kok Seng, managing director of mainboard-listed construction company Lum Chang Holdings.
He has paid back more than $380,000 to the state and will forfeit the items he received.
On Thursday, Iswaran exited the High Court at around 11.35am, almost an hour after the 40-minute court session. He told the media he had no comments at this point and walked to a waiting car.
Iswaran is to surrender himself at 4pm on Oct 7 at the State Courts. An appeal against his sentence must be done within 14 days.
