Murali Pillai on amendment bills for tougher laws to tackle money mules, Singpass abusers

The bills represent a "decisive step" in equipping the Home Team with the necessary legal tools to combat the scourge of scams, said MP Murali Pillai in Parliament on Tuesday (May 9). Turning to the proposals, he raised concerns that an account holder would be criminally liable if he was negligent. He said the reality is that account holders have different levels of knowledge and experiences. He said an objective standard may operate unfairly against some of account holders who do not have sufficient knowledge and experience. He suggested that account holders may not be held criminally liable if they lodge a police report soon after they had received monies which they believed had come from ill-gotten gains. Mr Murali also urged the Monetary Authority of Singapore and banks to do more to ensure that even if a person has a criminal past or is a subject of investigation, he or she would be able to open an account to have access to basic banking services. Turning to the risk of Singpass abuse, Mr Murali urged the Government to further bolster the steps to prevent the unauthorised disclosure of credentials.