CHC meeting minutes amended to create correct impression, says prosecutor (Today: 3 Feb 2015)

SINGAPORE — To create the impression that everything in City Harvest Church was in good order, meeting minutes were amended and sometimes even made up for church committee discussions that did not happen, the church’s former investment manager Chew Eng Han testified yesterday.

“I still remember Kong Hee cracking a joke ... that he doesn’t believe in committees. And these committees were just there to sort of ... comply or make it look well-structured,” Chew told the court, adding that church committees had no power to make decisions and often deferred to the board.

Chew and church founder Kong are among six church leaders accused of misusing S$24 million in church building funds to buy sham bonds to boost the music career of Kong’s wife Ho Yeow Sun. Another S$26.6 million were allegedly misused to cover up the first sum.

Citing minutes from an annual general meeting in 2002, the prosecution yesterday argued that Kong had told executive members that about S$231,000 in church funds were used to finance Ms Ho’s secular music career. But after church member Roland Poon alleged the following year that church funds were being misused, Kong declared that no church funds went into promoting Ms Ho’s career or boosting her album or ticket sales.

The minutes from the 2002 meeting were even amended to create “the correct impression ... to protect the church from criticism”, contended Deputy Public Prosecutor Christopher Ong. “So in 2003, when Roland Poon made his allegations, something that in 2002 had no need to be hidden ... suddenly became this serious allegation that had to be refuted,” said the prosecutor.

Chew also told the court that Kong had control over the budget and financing of the Crossover Project, which sought to use Ms Ho’s pop music to evangelise. When DPP Ong brought up Kong’s testimony last August, when he claimed he did not have overall control over Ms Ho’s music production, Chew said: “That’s a lie.”

He added that the church’s board had trusted Kong. “The monies were being used to finance a vision, so the owner of the vision held the authority to the budget and financing ... Because the board trusted him (and) believed in the vision, I can’t see any situation where the board would say no.”

(blogger's note: as someone who considered himself part of City Harvest, it is somewhat refreshing to hear someone finally tell a version of facts that is, IMO, more believable. but also saddening that it has taken this long. 
no one will say no to Pastor Kong.)