Are we Too Soft on Strata Commissions?

Singapore has tough laws and strict policing. Just try to drop litter, jaywalk or chew gum and see what happens.

It seems that Singapore is also tough on strata buildings, strata managers, and associated businesses, as they’re not concerned with esoteric contractual disclosures and fiduciary duties. Instead, they go straight to criminal charges.

As this article in CNA International ‘4 Family Members in Construction Services Firm Charged over Giving Bribes to Condo Property Managers’ reports, 12 people were charged over allegedly bribes to managers of properties, including condominiums, including people associated with a construction business for paying the bribes and others with property management roles who received them.

If convicted of corruption, a person can be jailed for up to five years and fined up to S$100,000, or both.

Since Singaporean strata laws and systems are modelled on and very similar to Australian strata title, and there are Federal and State Crimes Act provisions about secret and corrupt commissions, I wonder whether that’s possible and a better approach to the problem here?

Read the full CNA International article here.