National Gallery Singapore: Says No Fraud in Its Contract Waivers
On Monday, Culture, Community and Youth Minister Grace Fu told Parliament that the National Gallery Singapore (NGS)’s decision to waive certain contractual provisions was clean and clear—no fraud or shady dealings involved. The waivers were mainly about time‑related penalties that the contractor, Takenaka‑Singapore Piling Joint Venture, faced for slow progress on the big development project.
What the Waivers Actually Amount to
The total of all waivers and contract variations handed over to the contractors topped $12.4 million. The figure had already popped up in last month’s Auditor‑General’s Office (AGO) report. But Ms Fu assures us it’s not an overpayment, so the ministry isn’t looking to chase back huge sums.
“We expect lots of changes in a project of this scale, so it was natural to have variations,” she added.
Keeping Things on Track – The AGO’s Findings
- 142 contract variations, totaling $12.4 million, were approved only after work had already been underway—or finished.
- Some variations were approved up to nearly four years late, ranging from 30 days to almost four years.
- In one case, seven variations over $100,000 were approved by the wrong authority, and a contractor was overpaid by $150,300 because costs for work that hadn’t been done weren’t deducted.
The AGO warned that poor management of variations could mean MCCY misses out on full value from the public money spent. Ms Fu pointed out that giving the Gallery the funds to manage directly was meant to boost efficiency and save money.
“NGS executed all the contracts it was responsible for to deliver the project on time and under budget,” she said. “Throughout the project, we tackled all findings from MCCY’s progressive audits. MCCY will work with the Gallery to tighten financial processes and procurement policies.”
Optimizing the Gallery’s Systems
She highlighted that the Gallery’s approval mechanisms are under review, and the Ministry is moving forward with changes. “After combing through AGO’s reports multiple times with NGS, we’re confident the claims and variation orders have solid ground. There’s no reason to expect major recoveries,” she insisted.
In a back‑channel email reply to The Straits Times, the Gallery revealed that its management, audit committee, and board had already reviewed policies on everything from governance to contract management. This includes handling waivers, approvals, valuations of contract variations, and pulling in “star rates” – the rates used to value variations not covered in the original contract.
NGS is collaborating with the Ministry on a final, fifth audit of the project, slated to finish by the end of the year. “We’ll tighten our processes and rectify any lapses if needed,” the Gallery spokesman noted.
Published originally in The Straits Times—permission required for reprinting.
