SingPost's former execs say some shipments in whistle-blowing report linked to conflict zones

Singapore Post's former chief executive officer and chief financial officer have released a joint statement two days after the company on Dec 29 outlined further details and a timeline of the matter right up to their sacking.

- Sue-Ann Tan

Former group CEO Vincent Phang and former CFO Vincent Yik, who were both fired on Dec 21 over a whistle-blowing report, said in the statement released on Dec 31 that the management was not part of the investigation after receiving the report, in line with the company's whistle-blowing policy.

The two executives said they were asked for their views on March 11 and April 3, and that they responded based on the facts they had at the time.

Mr Phang and Mr Yik said in their statement: "Full facts came to light to us only after the external forensics team's investigations established the causative correlation on April 27.

"A significant majority of the shipments in question were linked to destinations where there were known issues - such as conflict zones (for example, Israel).

"It was therefore important to establish the financial impact prior to communicating with the customer as well as determining any wrongdoing by junior staff members."

They added that the management was briefed on the conclusive report and findings after the external forensics team's investigations. The management agreed with and followed the board's instructions, they said.