Appointment of Executive Secretaries and other employees
Open ↗14.—(1) The Board must appoint one or more Executive Secretaries on such terms and conditions as the Board may determine.
(2) Each Executive Secretary —(a)
is known by such designation as the Board may determine; and
(b)
is responsible to the Board for the proper administration and management of the functions and affairs of the Board in accordance with the policy laid down by the Board.
(3) If any Executive Secretary is temporarily absent from Singapore or temporarily incapacitated by reason of illness or for any other reason temporarily unable to perform his or her duties, another person may be appointed by the Board to act in the place of the Executive Secretary during that period of absence from duty.
(4) The Board may, from time to time, appoint and employ on such terms and conditions as the Board may determine such officers and employees as may be necessary for the effective performance of its functions and discharge of its duties under this Act or any other written law.
Protection from personal liability
Open ↗15.—(1) No suit or other legal proceedings shall lie personally against any member, officer or employee of the Board or any other person acting under the direction of the Board for anything which is in good faith done or intended to be done in the execution or purported execution of this Act or any other written law conferring or imposing a function or power or imposing a duty on the Board.
(2) Where the Board provides a service to the public by which information is supplied to the public pursuant to any written law, neither the members of the Board nor any of its officers or employees involved in the supply of the information shall be liable for any loss or damage suffered by any member of the public by reason of any error or omission of any nature appearing therein or however caused if made in good faith and in the ordinary course of the discharge of the duties of such member, officer or employee.
Public servants
Open ↗16. All members, officers and employees of the Board are deemed to be public servants for the purposes of the Penal Code 1871.
Preservation of secrecy
Open ↗17.—(1) Except for the purpose of the performance of his or her duties or the exercise of his or her functions or when lawfully required to do so by any court or under the provisions of any written law, a person who is or has been —(a)
a member, or an officer, employee, adviser or agent, of the Board; or
(b)
a member of a committee of the Board,
must not disclose any information relating to the affairs of the Board or of any other person which has been obtained by the person in the performance of his or her duties or the exercise of his or her functions under this Act.
(2) Any person who contravenes subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $2,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or to both.
Bank accounts
Open ↗18.—(1) The Board must open and maintain one or more accounts with any bank or banks that the Board thinks fit.
(2) Every such account must be operated by such person or persons authorised to do so by the Board.
Annual estimates
Open ↗19.—(1) The Board must, in every financial year, prepare or cause to be prepared and must adopt annual estimates of income and expenditure of the Board for the ensuing financial year.
(2) Supplementary estimates may be adopted by the Board at any of its meetings.
(3) A copy of all annual estimates and supplementary estimates must, upon their adoption by the Board, be sent immediately to the Minister.
(4) The Minister may approve or disallow any item or portion of any item shown in the estimates, and must return the estimates as amended by him or her to the Board, and the Board is bound thereby.
Investments
Open ↗20. The Board may —(a)
invest the Fund in any manner that it thinks fit; and
(b)
engage in any financial activity or participate in any financial arrangement for the purpose of managing or hedging against any financial risk that arises or is likely to arise from the investment.
Financial provisions
Open ↗21. The financial provisions set out in the Third Schedule have effect with respect to the Board.
Annual financial statements, etc.
Open ↗22.—(1) The Board must, as soon as its accounts and financial statements have been audited in accordance with the provisions of this Act, send to the Minister a copy of the audited financial statements, signed by the Chairperson and an Executive Secretary, together with a copy of the auditor’s report.
(2) Where the Auditor‑General is not the auditor of the Board, a copy of the audited financial statements and any report made by the auditor must be forwarded to the Auditor‑General at the same time they are submitted to the Board.
(3) The Minister must, as soon as practicable, cause a copy of the audited financial statements and of the auditor’s report mentioned in subsection (1) to be presented to Parliament.
Annual report
Open ↗23.—(1) The Board must, as soon as practicable after the end of each financial year, cause to be prepared and transmitted to the Minister a report dealing generally with the activities of the Board during the preceding financial year and containing any information relating to the proceedings and policy of the Board that the Minister may direct.
(2) The Minister must, as soon as practicable, cause a copy of every such report to be presented to Parliament.
Source: Singapore Statutes Online (Attorney-General's Chambers), © Government of Singapore.
