N環球 
Singapore refers 8 officers' MRT-area property deals to police
Parliament told: 191 officers' property deals reviewed after an academic study on home purchases near unannounced MRT stations; 8 cases go to police.
Why it matters
Singapore's government has moved a statistical claim about civil servants buying homes near future MRT stations into real-world consequences: 8 officers' cases are now with the police.
Full report
Coordinating Minister for Public Services Chan Chun Sing told Parliament on October 6 that the Public Service Division has reviewed the property purchases of 191 public officers in rail-planning-related agencies, and referred eight cases to the police for further investigation.
The review followed a working paper by academics from Columbia University, Stanford University and the University of Hong Kong, which claimed a statistical correlation between public officers and purchases of private homes near as-yet unannounced MRT stations. The Public Service Division cautioned that statistical patterns do not establish misconduct.
The review covered transactions from 2007 to 2011, later extended to 2014. The eight cases were deemed to warrant further examination due to individual factors or a lack of information to dismiss them. The minister stressed that a police referral is not a finding of guilt and that the investigation will be separate and independent.
The government is also reviewing whether current rules governing the misuse of confidential information should be strengthened.
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