S'pore politician faces injunction and tax check

S'pore politician faces injunction and tax check

SINGAPORE (Reuter): Counsel for an opposition politician said yesterday they were considering how to deal with a court injunction that could force him and his wife to set aside up to $11.2 million (US$7.94 million).

In a separate move, tax authorities said they had seized documents belonging to the politician, lawyer Tang Liang Hong.

The injunction relates to defamation actions brought against Tang by Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong, Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew and nine other ruling People's Action Party (PAP) members.

Joshua Jeyaretnam, Tang's counsel, told Reuters he was consulting with other lawyers on the best way to deal with the injunction granted against Tang and his wife, Teo Siew Har.

Jeyaretnam, leader of the Workers' Party for which Tang stood in the Jan. 2 general election, said he was considering applying to the court to set aside the injunction.

Tang, defeated in his bid in a hotly contested constituency in the election, is currently out of the country.

The injunction aims to block the disposal of assets belonging to Tang and Teo worldwide unless they set aside up to S$11.2 million for possible damages and legal costs, the daily Straits Times newspaper said yesterday.

The paper said it received a statement about the injunction late on Monday from lawyers acting for the PAP members.

"Justice Lai Kew Chai has given his approval today to an order of court dated Jan. 27 for a worldwide Mareva injunction and ancillary action up to the value of S$11.2 million," the newspaper quoted the statement as saying.

A Mareva injunction is designed to freeze assets and prevent their dissipation, a lawyer told Reuters.

Lawyers acting for Goh and the other plaintiffs could not immediately be reached for comment.

Separately, the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) said yesterday it had seized documents on Tang's tax matters from his home and office.

The IRAS said its computer system monitors the reported income of all taxpayers to detect cases with significant variations for detailed examination.

"IRAS has been monitoring (Tang's) case for some time, especially since he stated in the press that he had landed properties in Singapore and Malaysia," the IRAS said in a statement.

It said the documents were seized after IRAS officers observed large boxes of papers being moved from Tang's office to his residence. The documents "may be relevant for the purposes of our examination", the IRAS said.

The PAP members had filed defamation suits against Tang for calling them liars during the election campaign.

He faces other suits from PAP leaders, including action by Deputy Prime Minister Lee, Lee Kuan Yew's oldest son, over a report lodged with police during the campaign.

During the campaign Goh had called Tang a "Chinese chauvinist" dangerous to Singapore's racial harmony. Tang denied the charges and filed police reports saying the allegations were groundless and intended to harm his reputation.

Tang left Singapore after the election saying he had received death threats, but has said he intends to fight the lawsuits and eventually return to Singapore.