Singapore Civil Service's IT procurement process to be strengthened

24 Nov 2010

Source: Today Online
The Singapore Auditor-General will pay greater attention to IT services procurement and contracts for future audits.
This comes after the alleged $12.47 million fraud at the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) and the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore.

Acknowledging that IT procurement was "more specialised" than others, the Infocomm Development Authority (IDA) will also help draw up the scope of audit for procurement. The Ministry of Finance (MOF) - which holds the Civil Service's purse strings - will also encourage the rotation of officers with procurement responsibilities. A rotation of IDA officers in SLA exposed possible irregularities.

During yesterday's 20-minute debate, Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam assured the House that there are appropriate rules and safeguards for public sector procurement. He said "There was human failure - first in supervision and second in audit. There is no reason to believe human failure is widespread but we are alert."
The MOF had also reminded all government agencies to be vigilant in their supervision of procurement operations to minimise opportunities for fraud.

Each year, the Auditor-General's Office (AGO) carries out audits of all 15 ministries in Government, all nine organs of state and around 18 other entities - mainly statutory boards.

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