Tiong Seng Holdings announced that its CEO and executive director Pek Lian Guan and the director of Tiong Seng Contractors Pay Teow Heng were charged in court on July 24, 2020.
The charges were in relation to alleged offences under Section 6b of Chapter 241 of the Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA) in Singapore.
Pek and Pay were each charged on two counts of bribery in the form of loans to former Land Transport Authority (LTA) deputy director Henry Foo Yung Thye to advance the business interests of Tiong Seng Contractors.
See: Tritech, Tiong Seng executives charged with bribing former LTA official
In a statement on July 24, Tiong Seng Holdings says Pek and Pay are currently on bail, and have both denied the alleged offences.
Both said they would be taking “rigorous steps” to defend the charges.
Pek and Pay will step down from their executive roles in the group with effect from July 31.
Pek will remain, however, as adviser to the group, and Pay, as operational consultant to Tiong Seng Civil Engineering for one year.
Referring to the step-downs, Tiong Seng Holdings emphasised that it is not “reliant on any particular individual” for its continued success and growth.
The company has appointed Pay Sim Tee, who is currently an executive director at the company as well as Tiong Seng Contractors, as its new CEO and managing director of Tiong Seng Contractors with effect from August 1.
Tiong Seng first requested for a trading halt on July 24 before market hours, and requested for lifting of the halt after the close of market.
Prior to the trading halt, shares in Tiong Seng were trading at 15.2 cents.