Town council handover: MND replies

Sep 19, 2015

We refer to the letter by Mr Yeo Chee Kean (“Ensure proper town council handover”, 16 Sep 2015).

2. The Town Councils Act provides for continuity before and after a parliamentary election, where a Town Council (TC) handover may be necessitated by changes in electoral boundaries, reconstitution of Towns, or a change in political parties.

3. First, when Parliament is dissolved and all Members of Parliament (MPs) cease to hold office as Town Councillors, the TC will appoint from its non-MP Town Councillors an Acting Chairman to oversee the operations of the TC. The Acting Chairman will hold office, until the new MP(s) is elected. A newly-elected MP will assume office as Town Councillor immediately after the election.

4. Second, the validity and enforceability of a TC’s contracts are not affected by a handover, and these contracts remain valid and enforceable by the successor TC until, by the terms of the contracts themselves, the contracts expire or are terminated through mutual agreement. This covers all contracts, including contracts for managing agent services, cleaning, estate maintenance, cyclical works and computer and financial systems.

5. Third, there are established processes for the transfer of property between TCs due to electoral boundary changes and/or reconstitution of Towns. These include proper accounting of assets and liabilities, which are audited by an independent auditor to ensure that the statements declared by the handing over TC are true and fair, and that receipt, expenditure, investment of monies, acquisition and disposal of assets are, and proper accounting and other records are kept, in accordance with the provisions of the Town Councils Act.

6. All TCs have a duty to their residents to carry out the handing and taking over in a professional, fair and timely manner, to ensure continuity of services.

Christine Yap (Ms)
Senior Director
Corporate Communications
Ministry of National Development