SINGAPORE: More than 100 disabled people in need continued receiving payments under a financial assistance scheme even though they had been dead for between four and 40 months, the Auditor-General's office (AGO) said in its 2006/07 accounting report on ministries, statutory boards and Government-owned companies.

On Thursday, 10 months after the AGO made that report, the Public Accounts Committee released its findings on the remedial actions that have since been taken.

The Ministry of Health (MOH), which had made the payments to 106 people, informed the committee that S$85,200 of a total of S$178,150 had been recovered. It will not recover the remaining sum because the MOH has a policy of "not recovering payouts made up to three months upon the death of the beneficiaries". This policy would be reviewed.

The Home Affairs ministry will also provide monthly updates to the MOH on death records to prevent similar erroneous payouts.

The committee, made up of eight Members of Parliament (MP) and chaired by Mr Cedric Foo (West Coast GRC), said: "Most of the lapses, which occurred in public institutions, have been addressed."

MP Zaqy Mohamad, who sits on the committee, said that although the various ministries have "taken steps to ensure that such deficiencies do not happen again", the committee's key role is to evaluate the effectiveness of all these measures.

"We are working to see how we can give the Auditor-General's Office more authority for the long-term strengthening of the governing structure and tightening of the government framework," he said.

The AGO also found that medical expenses incurred by three overseas missions had not been claimed under an insurance policy that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) held even though the medical expenses of staff and dependent family members were covered by it.

The ministry's permanent secretary said it has addressed the problem with measures such as "raising awareness" among employees that they have to submit insurance claims and the procedures for doing so. It has also stepped up "enforcement actions to check on these claims".

As of last September, the MFA has identified S$1.56 million in unclaimed medical bills since April 2003 when the insurance cover took effect and it was in the process of filing these claims. In another recovery exercise, the Supreme Court Administration informed the committee that it had gotten back the unnecessary replacement costs for glass panels at its building in full from the contractor.

Pointing to the AGO's report that the Info-communications Development Authority of Singapore could have earned higher returns if it managed its cash reserve better, the committee also recommended to the Ministry of Finance (MOF) to consider "pooling and centrally managing the surplus funds of all statutory boards for greater efficiency and effectiveness".

The MOF said that statutory boards were responsible for overseeing their own investments because they were "better attuned to their investment needs and objectives".

From this financial year, the AGO would audit 18 statutory boards, instead of 13. Full audits will be done at least once every five years for each of the 64 statutory boards.

The AGO's report last year had spotted weak links in the Economic Development Board after its first audit of the agency in 46 years. - TODAY/fa