The Straits Times, 18 Jun
Forum, Pg A17
We thank Mr Neo Lin Chen (Unable to access CPF statement, June 1; and Having procedures doesn’t mean error-free execution, June 8), Ms Margaret Lee (Transparency, accountability needed when handling CPF money; Forum Online, June 6) and Mr Young Pak Nang (Will CPF Board release detailed statement to all nominated beneficiaries?; Forum Online, June 9) for their letters.
The letters have highlighted some areas of concern and provided useful suggestions on how we can improve our current practice when disclosing Central Provident Fund (CPF) information of deceased members.
We will review our procedures to better meet the needs of members.
Currently, the CPF Board discloses a deceased’s CPF information to his nominees only if he had given the Board prior instructions to do so. If he had not provided such instructions, the CPF Board takes a prudent approach and will seek the consent of all nominees before acceding to requests for information regarding the deceased’s CPF account.
We assure CPF members that the CPF Board has strict controls in place to ensure that the deceased’s CPF savings are paid accurately to the nominees. Our processes and payments are independently checked and audited regularly by external auditors to ensure that they remain robust.
We should have been more prompt and clearer in explaining to Mr Neo on how we were handling his request, and have contacted him to apologise.
We have also contacted Ms Lee to clarify the matter.
Irene Kang (Ms)
Group Director (Communications)
Central Provident Fund Board