Singapore Corporation of Rehabilitative Enterprises Act 1975

“Chairperson” means the Chairperson of the Corporation appointed under section 4(1);

“chief executive officer” means the chief executive of the Corporation, and includes any individual acting in that capacity;

“Corporation” means the Singapore Corporation of Rehabilitative Enterprises established under section 3(1);

“Deputy Chairperson” means the Deputy Chairperson of the Corporation appointed under section 4(1);

“inmate” means a person who is detained in any approved institution under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1973 or in such other institution or place as may be prescribed;

“member” means a member of the Corporation and includes the Chairperson and the Deputy Chairperson;

“prison officer” means any Chief Rehabilitation Officer, Principal Rehabilitation Officer, warder or other subordinate officer;

“prisoner” means any person, whether convicted or not, under detention in any prison or reformative training centre.

There is established in accordance with the provisions of this Act a body called the Singapore Corporation of Rehabilitative Enterprises which is a body corporate with perpetual succession and with power to sue and be sued in its corporate name, and to acquire and dispose of property, movable and immovable, and to perform such other acts as bodies corporate may by law perform, and to exercise such other powers as are conferred under this Act.

The Corporation may perform any of its functions or carry out any of its duties under one or more business names as the Minister may, by notification in the Gazette, specify.

The Corporation consists of the following members, all of whom are to be appointed by the Minister:

All members, unless the Minister otherwise directs, hold office for a period of 3 years from the date of their respective appointments and are eligible for re‑appointment.

The Minister may appoint a person to be a temporary member during the absence, or incapacity owing to illness or otherwise, of any other member.

The Minister may, at any time, revoke the appointment of a member without giving any reason.

The Minister may, at any time, accept the resignation of a member.

Meetings of the Corporation must be held —

The quorum at every meeting of the Corporation is one‑third of the total number of members or 3 members, whichever is the higher.

Decisions at meetings of the Corporation are adopted by a simple majority of the votes of the members present and voting; and in the event of an equality of votes the Chairperson, or in his or her absence the Deputy Chairperson or the member presiding, has a casting vote.

The Chairperson, or in his or her absence the Deputy Chairperson, presides at meetings of the Corporation.

Where both the Chairperson and the Deputy Chairperson are absent at a meeting such member as the members present may elect presides at the meeting.

The Corporation is not precluded from holding any meeting or acting in any matter merely by reason of a vacancy in its membership.

Subject to the provisions of this Act and the Public Sector (Governance) Act 2018, the Corporation may make standing orders to regulate its own procedure, and in particular, the holding of meetings, the notice to be given of the meetings, the proceedings at the meetings, the keeping of minutes and the custody, production and inspection of the minutes.

The Minister may give to the Corporation any direction under section 5 of the Public Sector (Governance) Act 2018.

The Corporation must provide the Minister with such information or facilities for obtaining information with respect to its property and the exercise of its functions in such manner and at such times as the Minister may reasonably require.

On 1 April 1976, such vocational or industrial training institutions as were established by or vested in the Government for the purpose of training prisoners as the Minister may, after consultation with the Minister for Finance, determine are transferred to and vest in the Corporation without further assurance and such transfer includes all lands, buildings, and other property, movable or immovable, assets, rights, privileges, obligations and liabilities held or enjoyed in connection therewith or appertaining thereto.

On 1 April 1976, such moneys held by the Government for the purpose of training prisoners in order to fit them to earn their living after release as the Minister may, after consultation with the Minister for Finance, determine must forthwith be paid and transferred to and held by the Corporation for the same purpose.

All rights, privileges, obligations and liabilities which immediately before 1 April 1976 were held, enjoyed or incurred in connection with or appertaining to the vocational or industrial training institutions transferred under subsection (1) are deemed to be the rights, privileges, obligations and liabilities of the Corporation.

Where anything has been commenced for the purpose of the vocational or industrial training institutions transferred under subsection (1), such thing may be carried on and completed by, or under the authority of, the Corporation.

If any question arises as to which of the properties, movable or immovable, has been transferred to and vested in the Corporation under subsection (1), a certificate under the hand of the Minister for Finance is conclusive evidence of the vesting of the property in the Corporation.

On 1 April 1976 —

Despite subsection (1), such categories of persons who are transferred to the service of the Corporation, as the Minister may determine, must as soon as practicable be given the option of remaining in the service of the Government.

Until such time as schemes and terms and conditions of service are drawn up by the Corporation, the regulations relating to salaries and terms and conditions of service in the Government continue to apply to every person transferred to the service of the Corporation under subsection (1).

Despite the provisions of the Pensions Act 1956, a person who is transferred to the service of the Corporation under section 11 is not entitled to claim any benefit under the Pensions Act 1956 on the ground that he or she has been retired from the service of the Government on account of abolition or re‑organisation of office in consequence of the establishment and incorporation of the Corporation under this Act.

In every case where a person has been transferred to the service of the Corporation under section 11(1), the Government is liable to pay to the Corporation such portion of any gratuity, pension or allowance payable to that person or his or her dependants on his or her retirement, death or otherwise leaving the service of the Corporation as the same bears to the proportion which the aggregate amount of his or her pensionable emoluments during his or her service with the Government bears to the aggregate amount of his or her pensionable emoluments during his or her service under both the Government and the Corporation.

The Corporation may appoint from among its own members or other persons who are not members such number of committees as it thinks fit consisting of members or other persons, or members and other persons, for purposes which, in the opinion of the Corporation, would be better regulated and managed by means of those committees.

The Corporation may, subject to such conditions or restrictions as it thinks fit, delegate to any such committee, the Chairperson, any member or the chief executive officer all or any of the powers, functions and duties by this Act vested in the Corporation, except the power to borrow money.

Any power, function or duty delegated under subsection (2) may be exercised or performed by that committee, the Chairperson, member or the chief executive officer (as the case may be) in the name and on behalf of the Corporation.

The Corporation may, subject to such conditions or restrictions as it thinks fit, delegate to any employee of the Corporation all or any of the Corporation’s powers, functions and duties by this Act vested in the Corporation, except the power to borrow money or to raise or grant loans or advances to or subscribe to or underwrite the issue of stocks, shares, bonds or debentures of industrial enterprises.

Any power, function or duty delegated under subsection (4) may be exercised or performed by the employee in the name and on behalf of the Corporation.

There must be a chief executive officer of the Corporation, whose appointment, removal, discipline and promotion must be in accordance with the Public Sector (Governance) Act 2018.

The Corporation may, subject to the Public Sector (Governance) Act 2018, appoint an individual to act temporarily as the chief executive officer during any period, or during all periods, when the chief executive officer —

The Corporation may, with the approval of the Minister, make regulations for the establishment of a scheme or schemes for the payment of pensions, gratuities, provident fund or other superannuation benefits to such employees or classes of employees of the Corporation as it may determine, or to their legal personal representatives or dependants, on the death or retirement of those employees from the service of the Corporation or on their otherwise leaving the service of the Corporation.

Where any person in the service of the Corporation, who does not come within the scope and effect of any pension or other schemes established under this section, retires or dies in the service of the Corporation or is discharged from that service, the Corporation may grant to him or her or to such other person or persons wholly or partly dependent on him or her as the Corporation may think fit such allowance or gratuity as the Corporation may determine.

A copy of all annual estimates of revenue and expenditure and supplementary estimates must, upon their adoption by the Corporation, be sent without delay to the Minister.

The Minister may approve or disallow any item or portion of any item shown in the annual estimates or supplementary estimates.

The Minister must return the annual estimates or supplementary estimates as amended under subsection (2) to the Corporation, and the Corporation is bound by the Minister’s decision.

The estimates as approved by the Minister must be published in the Gazette.

The Corporation must have a common seal and the seal may be broken, changed, altered and made anew as the Corporation thinks fit.

All deeds, documents and other instruments requiring the seal of the Corporation must be sealed with the common seal of the Corporation and every instrument to which the common seal is affixed must be signed by a member and must be countersigned by the chief executive officer or by some other person duly authorised by the Corporation for the purpose, and the signing is sufficient evidence that the seal was duly and properly affixed and that the seal is the lawful seal of the Corporation.

The Corporation may by resolution or otherwise appoint an officer of the Corporation or any other agent, either generally or in a particular case, to execute or sign on behalf of the Corporation any agreement or other instrument not under seal in relation to any matter coming within the powers of the Corporation.

Section 11 of the Registration of Deeds Act 1988 does not apply to any instrument purporting to have been executed under subsection (2).

The Corporation may, with the approval of the Minister, make such regulations as are necessary for carrying into effect the provisions of this Act.

Without limiting subsection (1), the Corporation may, with the approval of the Minister, make regulations not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act regarding the appointment, promotion, dismissal, disciplinary control and terms and conditions of service of all employees of the Corporation.