Officers appointed to go after alimony dodgers
Reuters file photo
SINGAPORE — Since August last year, two maintenance record officers (MROs) have been appointed to help the courts go after possibly recalcitrant defaulters, and all four cases they have dealt with concerned ex-spouses who failed to pay up because of financial difficulties.
Parliamentary Secretary Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim (Social and Family Development) gave these updates on Tuesday (April 4), as he reiterated that these officers are only deployed by the court, and should not intercede pre-emptively, as suggested by Non-Constituency Member of Parliament Leon Perera.
The MRO is a role the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) introduced in March last year, in a pilot to help the courts identify those who shirk payment to their former spouses, and impose harsher penalties against them.
The officer supports a law introduced in 2011 to give the courts the option of imposing more sanctions on defaulters by helping in the fact-finding process and obtaining information on the parties’ financial circumstances.
In cases where the ex-spouses are found to be strapped for money, the MRO will refer the parties to relevant organisations for assistance, said Dr Faishal.
Mr Perera had also asked if the MSF would consider providing an avenue for ex-spouses to request the MRO’s investigation without the need to go through a court process.
Dr Faishal said: “We need to look at any divorce or relationship issue as a case where we want to see how we can facilitate relationships to still be connected for the sake of their children. It is important for us not to jump to conclusions too early.”
In cases where people are unable to locate their ex-spouses and get maintenance, the MRO could work with other organisations to find them, he added.
