Moral Values And Conflicts Of Interest

In the Sunday Times of 24th December, 2006, it was reported that the ex-Emporium boss, Mr. Lim Tow Yong, threw a $150,000.00 dinner last Wednesday in appreciation of the loyalty of his ex-employees who stood by him when he was down and out after he sold the company in the late 1980s. Subsequently he was declared a bankrupt in 1996. About 1,400 people attended the dinner and they were given a hongbao of $100.00 each.

He told the Sunday Times in a feature published on 29th October that it was the dinner given to him by 800 of his ex-employees that motivated him to move on. After ten years of hard work he is a millionaire once again with stores in Sabah, Labuan and Brunei. The resurrection of his business is an eye-opener for others to emulate. It is also rare to find loyal employees and considerate bosses nowadays.

After reading this story, I can’t help reviving an unpleasant incident that happened during the same period. It involved someone very close to me ( I shall call him X) and my wife’s uncle ( I shall call him Y). X received Christian education during his formative years and later graduated from a world renowned law school abroad, and Y is a taxi driver.

Y’s son died about one month after he collapsed while digging a trench during a training session when he was serving his NS. Acting for Y, X wrote a simple letter to the competent authority seeking an explanation into the cause of the death of Y’s son. About five months later, the competent authority responded with an offer of ex gratia payment in full and final settlement of the case.

X billed Y an exorbitant sum of $2,500.00 for that simple letter. It was chickenfeed to X for his net worth at that time. I consider it most despicable of X to fleece Y during his tragic period. As fate would have it, his dreams of avarice brought him down from his ivory tower following the collapse of the property market that started around 1997.

In these two anecdotes, which of the two people (Mr. Lim or Mr. X) has better moral values?


When I reflect on the issue of moral values I tend to link them with the teachings of ethics that guide us in distinguishing between what is morally right and what is morally wrong. It is a continuous education for life. However, some may succumb to weakness in their moral fibres and cause extensive harm to others. Some of those corporate scandals caused by the misconduct of their chief executives could be taken as a good case in point.

The Code of Corporate Governance 2005 issued by the Ministry of Finance takes effect from AGMs held on or after 1 January 2007. It requires, among other things, that companies should disclose the relationship between the Chairman and the CEO where they are related to each other, e.g., sibling or husband/wife relationship in one of its guidelines. In this particular instance, the issue of conflicts of interest would likely be called into question. It is difficult to dispel such perception. The best way to avoid this issue is for one of the parties involved to step down from his position as generally, codes of ethics forbid conflicts of interest.

As 2006 fades away to be followed with the arrival of 2007, I hope that those with weak moral fibres would reflect on their misconduct and make amends, and that the corporate world would uphold the sanctity of the guidelines set out in CCG-2005 to avert further corporate scandals.