‘Misperception’ that government ‘blessed’ Income-Allianz deal before reversing decision: Shanmugam

SINGAPORE: The government had no prior knowledge of a proposed deal between&nbsp, Income Insurance and German insurer Allianz, said&nbsp, Minister for Law K Shanmugam on Wednesday ( Nov 6 ).

Mr Shanmugam, who is also Minister for Home Affairs, said this in answer to what he termed “misperceptions” that the state had at first “blessed” the offer, but reversed its decision following common suggestions. &nbsp,

Tan Suee Chieh, the former NTUC Income CEO, who had previously credited the minister with playing a “pivotal function” in the administration’s blocking of the deal, which would have resulted in Allianz acquiring a lot interest in Income, responded to his comments on Facebook. &nbsp,

Mr Tan “has probably overestimated my position and influence”, Mr Shanmugam wrote. &nbsp,

The minister continued, adding that the majority of the government and the Ministry of Culture, Community, and Youth (MCCY ) were unaware of the deal until it was made public in mid-July.

Deals of such commercial sensibilities cannot be disclosed to third parties, except to regulatory bodies, because doing so would be illegal, because NTUC Enterprise ( NE), the parent company of NTUC Income, is a private company and Allianz is a listed company.

” In this case, both NE and Allianz respected and followed the law”, he said.

The package, announced on Jul 17, &nbsp, triggered a public protest, with worries over how Allianz, a big foreign firm, would not be completely aligned with the unique mission of NTUC Income, which is to serve the needs of low-income workers. &nbsp,

Politicians discussed the offer in parliament in August, before Culture, Community and Youth Minister Edwin Tong&nbsp, announced in October’s sitting that the state was stopping the deal.

” At the time ( in August ), it was made clear, that the deal was still under consideration and subject to regulatory approval. That was repeated at the following October sitting- that the package has not been approved”, said Mr Shanmugam.

” There was no’ turnaround’ of any choice- no decision had been made in the first place”, he said.

Mr. Shanmugam continued, adding that even though relevant organizations had immediately expressed a favorable opinion, it was before full details were made known to them.

” When the details were distinct and had been shared, as part of the decision-making method, the decision was that the offer may come through”, he said.

” Therefore, the assumption and opinions that the government as a whole must have known and blessed the package, before reversing its selection- these are all speculations, based on a misinterpretation of what the law is and how a proper system works, with security, and ignores the facts that have been set out in Parliament”.