Singapore's Indian-origin ex-minister pleads guilty in graft case

Singapore's former Transport Minister S Iswaran has pleaded guilty to receiving gifts while in office, local media reported, as proceedings began on Tuesday in a rare graft trial involving a state official in this Asian financial hub.

The case has gripped the wealthy city-state which prides itself on having a well-paid and efficient bureaucracy as well as strong governance. Iswaran, who joined the cabinet in 2006, is the first Singaporean minister to be tried in court.

The 62-year-old was arrested in July last year and was accused of taking kickbacks worth hundreds of thousands of dollars from property tycoon Ong Beng Seng, partly to advance Ong's business interests. Ong has not been charged with any offence.

Iswaran had previously rejected the allegations when he resigned from the cabinet.

In court, he had pleaded guilty to the charges of obstructing justice and of a public servant accepting anything of value without payment, or with inadequate payment, from a person with whom he is involved in an official capacity, Channel News Asia (CNA) reported, instead of the charges that include corruption.

Prosecutors also reduced the charges facing Iswaran to five from 35, CNA said. The remaining 30 charges will be taken into consideration for sentencing, it added.

The charge of accepting gifts carries a jail term of up to two years and a fine. For obstructing justice, Iswaran can be sentenced to jail of up to 7 years and a fine.

The last corruption case involving a Singaporean minister was in 1986, when the national development minister was investigated for allegedly accepting bribes. The minister died before he could be charged in court.

According to charge sheets in January, the alleged favours Iswaran received included tickets to English Premier League soccer matches, musicals, a flight on Ong's private plane and tickets to the Singapore Formula 1 Grand Prix.

Iswaran was advisor to the Grand Prix's steering committee, while Ong owns the rights to the race.

Singapore was among the world's top 5 least corrupt countries last year, according to Transparency International's corruption perception index.