Singapore MP Tiong calls criticism of SIA's investment in Air India purely commercial
In Singapore, Workers’ Party Member of Parliament Kenneth Tiong said that his criticism of Singapore Airlines’ (SIA) investment in Air India is exclusively commercial in nature. He also stressed that racism has no place in Singaporean society, Channel NewsAsia reports.
Tiong was responding to comments by Senior Minister K. Shanmugam, who condemned racist and xenophobic statements online related to the Nepal-Tibet disaster and SIA’s investment in Air India. The MP said he condemns attacks on a person’s motives based on their ethnic origin and that the financial discussion should not be mixed with racist comments.
Request for additional funding
Earlier, Tiong expressed concerns about Singapore Airlines’ stake in Air India after Reuters reported that the Indian carrier had asked its owners — Tata Sons and SIA — for an additional $1.5 billion. According to Reuters, this came several months after Air India reported record annual losses.
In a Facebook post, Tiong again asked how many times Air India could turn to shareholders for additional funding and who would cover the costs if SIA could not do so. He stressed that his concerns were and remain purely commercial.
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Shanmugam’s and Temasek’s position
Shanmugam, who is also Minister for Home Affairs and Coordinating Minister for National Security, said that the decision on further investment in Air India belongs to Singapore Airlines. According to him, Temasek, as a shareholder, together with other shareholders, expects the airline to make investment decisions responsibly.
The minister noted that Temasek is accountable to the government for its overall portfolio and long-term results, but not for individual investment decisions by companies in its portfolio. He added that political interference in individual investment decisions could weaken commercial discipline and politicize such decisions.
Shanmugam recognized the right of Tiong and other Singaporeans to ask questions about SIA and Temasek, but stressed that politicians’ views should not replace the commercial judgment of the airline’s management and board of directors.
