SINGAPORE — The two ministers who rented out black and white colonial bungalows at Ridout Road have been cleared of all wrongdoing after two separate reviews into the matter were initiated last month by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
It was announced in May that there would be an independent review led by Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean into the rentals of 26 Ridout Road and 31 Ridout Road by Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam and Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan respectively.
Speaking to the media last month, Mr Shanmugam had said that he had spoken to a “senior colleague” when he wanted to rent the properties, and it was revealed on Wednesday that this colleague was Mr Teo. The one at 31 Ridout Road was leased to Dr Balakrishnan from October 2019 and the tenancy was renewed three years later.
This was after he had visited some properties since 2017, all of which had a “For Lease” sign displayed prominently on their gates. However, SLA’s view was that the tenant’s responsibility would not extend to maintain the area beyond the tenant’s property boundary, and so if Mr Shanmugam were to maintain the adjacent land at his own cost, the adjacent land then had to be included into the tenancy of 26 Ridout Road.
As for the guide rent, Mr Shanmugam and his agent were unaware of it. Instead, his agent studied the rental of comparable neighbouring properties and independently determining and valued the rent. After the tenancy was first renewed in 2021, the rental of the second term was maintained at S$26,500, as determined by SLA based on prevailing market considerations.
This included a declaration made by SLA made to the permanent secretary at MinLaw, that the processing of the rental transaction was properly done with no conflict of interest.Dr Balakrishnan’s spouse, Mrs Balakrishnan, came across a “For Lease” sign at the 31 Ridout Road. She contacted the SLA’s appointed managing agent on Sept 11, 2018 and they negotiated a rental price.
The asking rent for 31 Ridout Road was independently determined and valued by the managing agent, with neither Dr Balakrishnan nor Mrs Balakrishnan being aware of the guide rent. The tenancy agreement for the property was initially over seven years, starting with a three-year tenancy, followed by two two-year blocks, and this was signed by Mrs Balakrishnan in October 2019.
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