POFMA Correction Direction Issued To Ex-GIC Economist For Saying Govt Can Sell State Land At Lower Cost

Ex-GIC Economist Yeoh Lam Keong Issued POFMA Correction Direction

Former GIC chief economist Yeoh Lam Keong and The Online Citizen (TOC) were issued with Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA) Correction Directions over two Facebook posts Yeoh made on 4 Oct.

TOC had written about the posts.

The Ministry of National Development (MND) refuted Mr Yeoh’s claims that the state land purchased for the Central Weave @ AMK BTO project was bought at a minimal or much lower cost.

This is the second POFMA Correction Direction issued by MND after The Alternative View suggested that HDB was profiting from the AMK BTO project.

“Disingenuous & misleading analysis” of S$270 million loss: Yeoh Lam Keong

In the Facebook post, Mr Yeoh called the S$270 million loss made by HDB in the Ang Mo Kio BTO project “a rather disingenuous and misleading analysis”.

He claimed that the Government had acquired the land at a minimal or much lower cost.

“The true cost price should be the original book value of the land plus construction costs, which on average is much lower than BTO prices before subsidy,” Mr Yeoh concluded.

MND refuted the claim and said the losses incurred are real in the Factually article.

“State Land is part of the Past Reserves,” they said. “It is not part of the assets that the Government can use as it wishes.”

They further said the land had to be taken out of the past reserves, after which, HDB will pay for the land at “fair market value”, which then goes into the past reserves.

The estimated land cost for Central Weave @ AMK is about S$500 million.

Government cannot sell state land at lower cost without president’s approval

The president must approve any request to sell state land at a nominal cost as it would draw from past reserves.

They are protected by the Constitution for current and future generations’ benefit, and are invested. The Government can use the investment income to meet Singapore’s needs.

The Constitution prevents the Government from consuming past reserves by selling state land at a nominal or much lower value as it would be “populist and irresponsible”.

Neither the Government nor the past reserves profit from land sales, MND noted. When state land is disposed of at fair market value, there is no addition to the past reserves.

Instead, there is a conversion of one type of asset to another, this being land to cash.

HDB prices flats at lower cost to keep them affordable

MND further stated that HDB does not price new flats to recover costs for land and construction.

Instead, the flats are priced “significantly below market value” with subsidies to ensure affordability.

MND said HDB would continue to use allocated resources to provide good and affordable houses.

POFMA direction issued to Yeoh Lam Keong & TOC

The Minister for National Development has instructed the POFMA Office to issue correction directions to both Mr Yeoh and TOC.

Both must insert a notice against their original posts with a link to the Government’s clarification, which they have done.

Mr Yeoh added in another post:

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Featured image adapted from Gov.sg.