By Chinasaokwu Helen Okoro
A Singaporean former minister, Subramaniam Iswaran, was sentenced on Thursday to 12 months in prison for obstruction of justice and accepting illegal gifts in the city-state’s first political graft trial for nearly half a century.
The ex-transport minister, known for helping bring Formula One to the financial hub, was hit this year with 35 charges mostly related to graft in a nation often cited as one of the world’s least corrupt.
Iswaran’s sentence was more severe than the six to seven months requested by the prosecution, which High Court Justice Vincent Hoong said would have been “manifestly inadequate” given the impact of the case on public trust.
“Trust and confidence in public institutions are the bedrock of effective governance, which can all too easily be undermined by the appearance that an individual public servant has fallen below the standards of integrity and accountability,” Hoong said Thursday when he delivered the sentence.
