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Singapore’s corruption watchdog said it had arrested one of the city-state’s most high-profile property tycoons, expanding a rare operation that has embroiled a minister and dented its reputation as a clean place to do business.
The Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau confirmed on Friday that both hotelier Ong Beng Seng and transport minister S Iswaran had been arrested on Wednesday before being released on bail. Both had their passports impounded as a condition of their release, though the CPIB has allowed Ong to travel overseas and surrender his passport on his return.
Hotel Properties Limited, of which Ong is managing director, earlier said he was providing information to the CPIB about his interactions with Iswaran. No charges had been filed against Ong, whose bail was set at S$100,000 ($75,500), the company added.
The CPIB on Wednesday said Iswaran was assisting its investigation into a case, without giving further details. The probe is Singapore’s most serious involving a cabinet minister in more than three decades.
Singapore’s officials are some of the best paid in the world and the government touts its reputation for a zero-tolerance approach to graft. The country is ranked the fifth-least corrupt country in Transparency International’s latest Corruption Perception index.
“The ruling PAP [People’s Action party], which has governed Singapore since 1959 have always prided themselves on good governance and incorruptibility, among other virtues,” said Eugene Tan, associate professor of law and political commentator at Singapore Management University.
“Domestically [the probe] has certainly got many tongues wagging.”
Ong, who founded Hotel Properties in 1980, is known for his role in helping to strike a deal with Formula One mogul Bernie Ecclestone to bring a grand prix to the country in 2007. The tycoon and his wife Christina’s net worth was valued at $1.75bn last year, according to Forbes.
Shares in Hotel Properties, which has interests in hotels and properties in 15 countries under brands including the Four Seasons and Intercontinental, shed as much as 7 per cent on Friday morning, hitting their lowest level in about a month before closing 2.6 per cent lower.
Singaporean prime minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Wednesday that he had asked transport minister Iswaran to take a leave of absence until the investigation was concluded. Lawrence Wong, deputy prime minister, added on Thursday that Singapore had “always upheld a clean and incorrupt system of government”.
The investigation comes ahead of an expected handover of power between Lee and Wong and elections that must be held no later than November 2025.
An email sent to Iswaran’s government account returned with a message that he was on leave. The transport ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Hotel Properties said Ong was “co-operating fully with CPIB and has provided the information requested”. It added that the company’s nominating committee had assessed that Ong could continue in his role as managing director while the investigation was under way, but would “continue to reassess [his] suitability”.
A spokesperson for Ong declined to provide further information.
