SingPost sackings: IMDA issues advisory to company to uphold proper governance, processes

SINGAPORE: The Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) has issued an advisory to Singapore Post to "uphold proper governance and processes" after the company sacked three top executives over their handling of internal investigations into a whistleblowing report.

In response to CNA's queries, IMDA said on Monday (Dec 23) that it is monitoring the situation closely.

"SingPost’s board has assured that postal service operations in Singapore are not affected," added the regulator.

The company sacked group chief executive officer Vincent Phang, group chief financial officer Vincent Yik and chief executive of the company’s international business unit Li Yu on Saturday after concluding disciplinary proceedings into their conduct.  

This comes after a whistleblowing report was filed earlier this year about the group's non-regulated international e-commerce logistics parcel business. Three other managers who were directly involved in this matter – but not identified by SingPost – were fired. 

The report alleged that there were manual entries of certain delivery status codes by SingPost's international business unit. These were for international transhipment parcels which the company had agreed to deliver under an agreement with one of its largest customers.

These manual entries were allegedly done without basis or supporting documentation and with the intention of avoiding contractual penalties under the agreement. 

IMDA said on Monday that the e-commerce shipment data falsification case was raised to the authority and SingPost in February this year.

"Regulated postal services remain unaffected as this matter concerns delivery of international e-commerce parcels overseas," IMDA added.

SingPost said that the three senior executives - Mr Phang, Mr Yik and Mr Li - were found to be "grossly negligent" in relation to their handling of internal investigations into the whistleblowing reports and renewal of the related agreement. 

They had "omitted to consider material facts that compromised their decision-making and/or failed to perform their duties responsibly and reliably", SingPost said in a filing on the Singapore Exchange (SGX).

In their handling of the whistleblowing report, they had “accorded undue weight” to the misrepresentations by some employees in the international business unit operations. 

They did so without any independent substantiation or evidence, and in turn, made various serious misrepresentations to the audit committee. 

The three top executives were found to have failed to exercise due diligence and breached their duties to the company. 

Mr Phang and Mr Yik said in a statement that their sacking was unfair and without merits, adding that they would "vigorously contest" it.