Tag Archives: court

Media reports on See Kee Oon’s 270-page written judgment.

26 Monday Oct 2015

Posted by in C3 & Pringles Associations, C3 Singapore Scandal

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Recent media reporting on Phil Pringle’s secrecy and culture of insecurity at C3 Church Kong Hee’s secrecy and culture of insecurity at City Harvest Church.

Today Online writes,

CHC slammed for ‘secrecy, culture of insecurity’

SINGAPORE — Criticising what he called the culture of insecurity that six City Harvest Church leaders convicted on Wednesday operated under, Presiding Judge of the State Courts See Kee Oon saved some of his strongest words for church founder Kong Hee in his 270-page written judgment released to the media yesterday.

The six leaders — Kong, his deputy Tan Ye Peng, former church accountant Serina Wee, former church investment manager Chew Eng Han, former finance manager Sharon Tan and former church board member John Lam — were found guilty on all of counts of criminal breach of trust and/or falsification of accounts.

Judge See had delivered his oral judgment, a condensed version of the written grounds, on Wednesday. He found that they had acted dishonestly and in breach of the trust reposed in them to cause wrongful loss of S$50 million to the church and to defraud auditors.

In his judgment grounds, the judge wrote that Kong capitalised on the church climate of paranoia and fear in 2003 to galvanise support for the Crossover Project — using his wife Ho Yeow Sun’s secular pop music to reach out to non-Christians. The collective fear arose after then-church member Roland Poon publicly commented that church funds had been used to promote Ms Ho’s music career.

Kong’s response to the incident revealed “both his personal dominance and deep insecurity”, said JC See. The pastor rallied the church “around the big idea that they (i.e. CHC’s leaders and by extension the entire church) were being maligned and under attack, and hence had to be discreet,” he added.

“He convinced them that if CHC’s leaders believed they had to be discreet in order for the Crossover to succeed, then they ought to simply trust them and not question their motives or reasons.”

The effort to keep the church’s financing of the Crossover discreet led to the set-up of Xtron Productions to manage Ms Ho’s career. The criminal charges in this case relate in part to sham bonds worth millions of dollars that the church bought from Xtron to channel church funds to the Crossover.

All six leaders’ committed zeal for the Crossover vision may have clouded their objectivity and judgment and obscured the need to safeguard money which was not theirs to use as they wished, said judge See. They chose to create cover stories and clever round-trips concealing their unlawful conduct, he added.

“The allure of power that can be exercised in secrecy is difficult to resist. When shrouded under a cloak of invisibility, much like the mythical ring of Gyges, persons in such positions of power have no fear of accountability and tend to become their own worst enemies,” he wrote.

The ring of Gyges is a mythical artefact that grants its owner the power to become invisible at will, mentioned in Greek philosopher Plato’s The Republic.

Judge See wrote: “It has thus been wisely said that the real tragedy is when men are afraid of the light, and if they choose not to come into the light they do so for fear that their deeds will be exposed, as they surely will in time.”

Kong would not have been able to act alone and could not orchestrate every move, and the five other leaders were both trusted and trusting, he added. They wanted to ensure their conduct and choices lived up to Kong’s expectations.

Noting that none of the six was aware of all the details, the judge said it could be because there were far too many moving parts in the plan for the Crossover to the United States, which grew more ambitious over time.

The US foray involved Ms Ho’s debut English album, which had hip-hop star Wyclef Jean roped in at one point. It led to the church’s sham bond investments worth S$24 million in Xtron and another company, and four of the leaders then misused another S$26.6 million of church funds to try to cover up the first amount.

“But this may have also been the inevitable consequence of CHC’s election to carry out its affairs and operations relating to the funding of the Crossover in a discreet fashion. This was merely a euphemism for a culture of insecurity mired in secrecy and opaqueness where asking difficult or awkward questions was taboo,” the judge wrote.

There was no way that Kong – who the judge found to have controlled Xtron – could fail to realise that once CHC had bought Xtron bonds that the bond proceeds would be “entirely within his control”.

Judge See also noted that Kong had sought to mislead a different set of auditors, Ernst & Young (since renamed EY), who were conducting a governance review of CHC on behalf of the Government towards the end of 2007. Kong helped prepare replies to questions that the auditors might ask, and the church would have told auditors that Xtron’s directors were separate and independent of the church board – which he knew was untrue, said judge See.

He also said Kong exploited Chew’s forceful personality and his determination and drive to achieve objectives, although Chew also glossed over the fact that he himself had bought Ms Ho’s Mandarin albums when he blamed Kong for deceiving him about the true measure of her success.

Separately, Kong broke his silence on the verdict yesterday, posting on Facebook his belief that God would use the outcome of the case for good. The pastor also thanked his supporters and said: “The days and steps ahead are challenging, but with God’s grace and love, I have no fear.”

The six will be back in court on Nov 20, where they could be sentenced.

Source: By Neo Chai Chin, CHC slammed for ‘secrecy, culture of insecurity’, Today Online, http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/chc-slammed-secrecy-culture-insecurity?singlepage=true, Published 11:33 PM, 22/10/2015, Updated 10:10 AM, 23/102015. (Accessed 25/10/2015.)

Ex-C3 member speaks out about leaders behaviour towards CHC trial

23 Friday Oct 2015

Posted by in C3 & Pringles Associations

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An ex-C3 member writes,

“Today, after 5 long, drawn-out years, the longest criminal trial in Singaporean history, the executive leadership of City Harvest Church, including pastor Kong Hee, were found guilty of misappropriating $50 Million worth of church funds.

Sentencing has been postponed to a later date, but already I have witnessed a flurry of Christians online all resolved to stand by Kong Hee throughout this process. And I just need to ask, for the sake of clarity, what exactly do you all mean by “stand by”?

Do you mean “pray for” Kong Hee? “Help support the distraught family of” Kong Hee? “Encourage and pray for the disappointed, also distraught church family of” Kong Hee? If that’s what you mean then that’s all fine, highly commendable, and I’ll happily join you in that, feel free to read no further.

But if you mean “Protest the Court’s ruling and insist upon the exoneration of” Kong Hee, I just need to ask, on what basis? I’ve seen a persistent narrative at play here, promoted by many Christians and even Christian leaders, in which this entire 5-year trial has essentially been dismissed as a complete smokescreen, an entirely groundless, deceitful attempt by an unbelieving nation’s Courts to act as tools of Satan and oppose Christ’s church, because of the great work Pastor Kong has been doing.

Brothers and sisters, I know this is a far more comforting way of looking at the situation, but… what if Kong Hee actually IS guilty? What if the same charming, smiling man who you’ve seen preaching at conferences, the same man who is so close and friendly with and vouched for by… certain OTHER pastors you respect, actually DID commit this awful, awful crime and awful, awful sin, of which he is still yet to repent?

Should secular courts not be allowed to convict Christians of crimes as long as those Christians maintain that they were doing the Lord’s work? Should Christians continue to voice unqualified public approval of men who, by their actions, demonstrate themselves to be THOROUGHLY disqualified for leadership in Christ’s church, as long as we like their preaching? No, we must be honest, and live our lives with integrity as good citizens as well as good Christians.

The Courts have spoken, and those who wish to oppose their ruling must first demonstrate a fault in their reasoning or provide evidence of corruption serious enough to support the idea that they seriously just spent 5 years of their time building a thoroughly false case on non-existent evidence.

Christ’s name has been dragged through the mud of Asia for long enough because of this trial. If you want to express an opinion on the verdict, get off the bandwagons and do some research for yourselves.”

Pringle links Satan’s hand to Singaporean Courts: “[Satan] thinks if he attacks the church it’s going to die”

21 Wednesday Oct 2015

Posted by in C3 & Pringles Associations, Phil Pringle's Connections with Kong Hee

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[UPDATE 27/10/2015: Transcript of video added]

In the below article written by Phil Pringle and in his YouTube video, Phil Pringle once again claims Kong Hee’s innocence to his church, once again insinuating that the Singaporean courts are being used by the devil.

Worse still in the video, Phil Pringle is deliberately throwing pictures out to portray Kong Hee as Christ and the Singaporean authorities as the corrupt court of the Sanhedrin, who relied on blood money and false accusation to murder Jesus. This is no different to Kong Hee’s message at Presence Conference 2012 to win blind support for his case in front of hundreds and thousands of Christians around the world.

Why is it acceptable to portray the Singaporean government as slanderous murderous men?

Furthermore, Pringle in his video also portrays Kong Hee as the Apostle Peter before governing authorities. But there is a huge difference between the Apostles and Kong Hee. They were persecuted for preaching the gospel and falsely accused because of their message.

However, Kong Hee is not in court because the government wants him to stop preaching the gospel. He is in court for mishandling church funds of up to $46,000,000 to finance his wife’s musical career. That’s a far cry from the “crimes” of the Apostles.

Phil Pringle writes,

PHIL PRINGLE COMMENT ON KONG HEE COURT CASE

This Wednesday, the CHC court case will end, and a verdict will be read over Kong Hee. Our job as fellow believers is to stand in faith with our brother.

On Wednesday 21st October, Pastor Kong Hee’s court case in Singapore will conclude and a verdict will be read. Below is video footage containing my comments on the matter. This video was recorded during our 6 p.m. service at C3 Church Oxford Falls.

When you’re building the Church, you’re never going to be found without a fight. Our job as fellow believers is to stand with each other when we are facing trouble. At the end of the day, it’s easy to stand for Jesus, but it’s more challenging to stand for one of his servants when they are facing difficulty. In this coming week, our good friend Pastor Kong Hee (Senior Pastor of City Harvest Church, Singapore) is going to be standing in a courtroom and a verdict will be passed on him after a 5 year long trial – the longest trial in Singapore’s history. I know Pastor Kong Hee to be an honest, true and faithful minister of Christ. He has also been extraordinarily effective in raising up one of the truly great churches (CHC) in the world, bringing hundreds of thousands of people to Christ. Jesus has told us this kind of advancement would not go uncontested. We must be prepared to be immovable, strong and faithful to Christ through all the challenges we face in building His Church. Ultimately, it is the Courts job to arrive at a verdict. But we are praying for victory. There is a sentiment against believers, but the devil has always got it wrong. He thinks if he attacks the church it’s going to die, he even tried it with Jesus, but He just came up out of the ground again. I believe we have a victorious Christ ruling over His house, His Church and His Kingdom.

You can find a reliable summary of the trial available here: http://www.citynews.sg/2015/09/city-harvest-church-trial-15-sep-2015-video/

See you in church!

Source: Phil Pringle, PHIL PRINGLE COMMENT ON KONG HEE COURT CASE, http://philpringle.com/blog-/phil-pringle-comment-on-kong-hee-court-case#.VibwGfmqqkr, Published 21/10/2015. (Accessed 21/10/2015.)

TRANSCRIPT

“I want to take a second, for us all just to take a minute to pray for Pastor Kong Hee.

This Wednesday he is going to be standing in a court room in Singapore after five years of trial, the longest running trial in Singapore history. And so I’m going to go up there and stand with him in the court room and ahh you know it’s not my job to judge, rights and wrongs but I do believe it is our job to stand with people who are in struggling situations.

He is one of the most pure hearted, holy men of God I know. One of the most devoted, dedicated, like rugged soldiers for Christ that I’ve ever met. There are some people that are like ‘I’m not so sure I actually want to try to stand but Kong Hee he’s impeccable in integrity in these areas and it’s just that he’s been caught up in it.

This has become a very complicated processes, the prosecution has not been able to provide one piece of evidence of him wrongfully gaining anything or the congregation wrongfully loosing anything, in terms of finances.

But as I say it’s not our part to reach that judgment, that’s in the court’s hands. And do you know Paul and Peter, a lot of these guys found themselves in very difficult situations with the Government authorities and put in predicaments that were scary for the Christians cause they were associated with them and ahh when Jesus got convicted as a criminal and was sent to the cross to die, it was pretty difficult for the disciples to say, ‘we know him, he’s a friend’ they scattered and I don’t want to be that, I want to say I’m standing, I don’t understand everything all the time but I think when we see a good brother, a faithful brother in trouble we should stand with them, in Jesus name.

So let’s pray for one minute here for him right now, Lord we pray for your hand to be upon Pastor Kong and the anointing of the Holy Spirit to be in his life, let the power of Christ rest on him, in Jesus name. Let a miracle come to pass, a miracle of deliverance and victory by the mighty power of the Holy Spirit, in Jesus name, let your presence fall now on our brother and those other defendants, let them all know the power of God on their life. In Jesus mighty name we believe God, Your presence, Your power, Your Holy Spirit falling in Jesus mighty name, our God we praise You.”

Chew Eng Han’s open letter to AR Bernard asking “[…] to account for your past words and actions”

23 Saturday Aug 2014

Posted by in C3 & Pringles Associations

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PringleAndBernardWHO IS A.R. BERNARD?

AR Bernard says on his website:

AdvisA. R. Bernard (born, 10 August 1953) is the Founder, Senior Pastor and CEO of Christian Cultural Center (CCC) located in Brooklyn, New York, United States. CCC is a ministry and not-for-profit 501c(3) organization, that currently has over 33,000+ members and sits on an 11.5-acre (45,000 m2) campus. He is also the President of the Council of Churches of the City of New York representing 1.5 million Protestants, Anglicans and Orthodox Christians. He sits on the NYC Economic Development Corporation Board, served on NYC School Chancellor’s Advisory Cabinet and Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s 2001 Transition Team.
Source: http://www.arbernard.com/#main (Accessed 23/08/2014.)

We have in the past exposed A. R. Bernard’s immoral behaviour as a pastor.

Don’t Mess With CHC’s Advisory Pastor A.R. Bernard – He’ll “Honestly” Deal With You Too

Chew Eng Han mentioned an event that we may have covered on C3 Church Watch. Read here:

At Least The Guilty King Saul Repented ‘Apostle’ Bernard…

And now Chew Eng Han recently wrote the following public letter to AR Bernard,

Open Letter to Dr Bernard (From Eng Han)

Dear Dr Bernard,

I, a servant of God in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, am writing an open letter to you to inform you that you have failed in your spiritual duties as the Advisory Chairman over the Board of City Harvest Church and as an Apostle over the church.

You will recall that on 1 Aug 2013,  I along with a CHC elder and a board member, had a conference call with you to arrange a meeting with you. On 16 Sept, we met at a hotel in Singapore, joined by that elder and board member.

I asked if I could tape our conversation for future reference but you declined, and so I didn’t. I am now describing from my handwritten notes what happened.

You first asked what was my objective in meeting you, and I said my hope was that through you, Kong and Sun and some of his leaders would come to repentance, and that you would help awaken the church to the truth as to what was really happening in the church leadership.

I subsequently described to you some of Kong’s wrongdoings, from a moral and spiritual perspective. I related how I had a four and a half hour meeting with Kong and Sun which produced no fruits. You listened patiently and at the end of the meeting assured me that you believed I came to you without malice and in truth.

You said that I had placed a heavy responsibility upon you and you would ensure that you would discharge that responsibility by having a “good talk” with them, including the board,  and that they would have to be “honest at the table.” You also said if they did not heed discipline, you may have to reconsider your relationship with them. I left the meeting assured that you would carry out your duties.

On the 21 Sept Saturday service at the church, you spoke from the pulpit against me instead. You alleged that I had used you for my personal agenda and had committed gossip and slander against and dishonored Kong and Sun.

You then got Kong on stage and made a show of ‘repentance’ by asking if he had committed silly mistakes before, and had he repented to God, to which he said “all the time.” To that, you got the congregation to endorse him with a roaring applause. There is a huge difference between “silly mistakes” and “conscious deception” and you allowed the people to believe it was the former. It would have been far better for that staged show never to have taken place.

Dr Bernard I am taking you to task in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ for acting in a manner that’s unbecoming of an apostle, and for doing the very opposite of what His Word requires of a man of God that’s placed in a position of spiritual authority.

You abused the pulpit and instead of helping to wake up the people, you turned Kong into a brave and humble hero in their eyes, and with your open endorsement on stage, the people believed even more in Kong and Sun thereafter.

You also accused me of not complying with Matthew 18 because I did not confront the sinner but committed gossip and slander instead. You obviously had forgotten that I had told you about the four and a half hour meeting and how it failed to bear fruits of repentance. And how I had to try multiple times before that to speak to them and how protracted were the circumstances leading to that meeting with them.

It seems to me that subsequent to my meeting with you on 16 Sept, Kong and Sun had probably told you certain things about me which shifted your mind about my true intentions. The right thing you should have done then, according to Matthew 18,  was for you to meet me again to clarify. Instead you misused the pulpit to tear me down for not complying with the very verses that you have failed to obey. The result of your actions on stage was that evil became good and good became evil.

In our meeting you said you believed in unity based on truth, humility and repentance, and emphasis on the flock and not on the man. You claimed also that you believed in a structure that forces the man of God into accountability to avert compromise and sin. None of your words translated into the right actions and today the church is in confusion as the truth unfolds and the man whom you are responsible for correcting continues in his ways uncorrected and unrestrained.

I warned you of the consequences if the matters of Kong and Sun are not properly dealt with in the House of God first. There was no biblical discipline and instead the wrongdoer got off with a resounding applause of endorsement.

One of my specific concerns which I brought to you was the falsified attendance figures, which was claimed to be 33,000 instead of the actual twelve to thirteen thousand. After what I revealed to you, you yourself went on to TBN (Trinity Broadcasting Network) and told a story of how the “church in Singapore” which you had been ministering to with your Cultural Mandate message had grown from 3,000 in 1998 to 38,000 today. You further exaggerated that that particular church has influence over 1,000 churches worldwide.

Not only have you failed to correct Kong but you yourself have perpetuated the lie about CHC’s size and influence. You owe an explanation to the body of Christ. I am publishing this open letter on Mrs Light n Friends blog and Facebook so that we can have an open discussion before the whole body of Christ internationally. Whatever reply you send to me will be published on the same platform so we both have an EQUAL opportunity to be scrutinised for our words and action. This is right because Matthew 18 says :

“Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother. But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that ‘by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.’ And if he refuses to hear them, TELL IT TO THE CHURCH. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector.”

The church is in a state of drastic and violent shakeup and confusion. As a man of God who had been given what in your own words you termed “heavy responsibilities”, I am asking you now to account for your past words and actions which are totally unfit and unbecoming of a person who claims apostleship over the church.

In the Lord’s name
Chew Eng Han

Source: Chew Eng Han, Open Letter to Dr Bernard (From Eng Han), Mrs Light and Friends, http://mrslightnfriends.com/open-letter-to-dr-bernard-from-eng-han, Published 23/08/2014. (Accessed 23/08/2014.)

If you’re a C3 member, read Pringle’s endorsed CityNews coverage of CHC court case

18 Monday Aug 2014

Posted by in C3 & Pringles Associations

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“I think it’s great you’ve got City News […] — they still do a pretty good job.”

Phil Pringle will often tell you as C3 members to not read news that is making CHC look bad. According to your pastor, any news critical of C3 or CHC are bad and purposely spreading things that are not true of C3 or CHC.

However when asked about the media in relation to Kong Hee’s court case, Phil Pringle encourages church members that, “it’s worth knowing what the mainstream press is saying”.

“I think it’s worth knowing what the mainstream press is saying—I certainly stay abreast of it (CHC case).” – Phil Pringle, An Interview With Phil Pringle: On Goals, Victory, Truth & The Ultimate Breakfast Partner, CityNews, 07/03/2014. (Accessed 26/03/2014.)

To C3 readers visiting our site, have you been reading what Singapore media are reporting on?

In fact, Pringle thinks Kong Hee’s CityNews group does a “pretty good job” covering the events on Kong Hee’s court case.

So to all our C3 readers, with Pringle’s endorsement of CityNews, we would encourage you to not only read these “pretty good” CityNews articles but pass them on to your C3 friends. You may as well be informed as much as your pastor.

To read the original articles on City News, click the links below and scroll down to the bottom of the articles to access the URLs.

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COURT 04/08/2014

CityNews:

CHC Trial: John Lam Explains Building Fund Refunds To Court

CHC Trial: Prosecution Questions Existence of Personal Guarantee

COURT 05/08/2014

CityNews:

John Lam: “False” Entries Not What Prosecution Makes It Out To Be

COURT 06/08/2014

CHC Trial: Personal Guarantees Are Meant As A Last Resort, Says Defendant Lam.

CHC Trial: Prosecution Questions “Scenario Planning” Efforts By Accused

CHC Trial: DPP Questions Ex-Board Member’s Interest In Protecting The Church

COURT 07/08/2014

CHC Trial: Defense Objects To “Unfounded” Insinuation Of Fresh Exhibit

COURT 08/08/2014

Rubber Stamps, Unsold Albums And Phantom Guarantees Explained

COURT 11/08/2014

Kong Hee Takes The Stand; Reasons For And Sequence Of Crossover Project Established

CityNews reports CHC dropped church funds but used Hanafis funds for Crossover

COURT 12/08/2014

CHC Trial: Kong Hee: The Budget Of The US Album Had To Be Sound And Reasonable

Kong Hee Said No to 50-50 Profit Share With US Execs; Church Must Not Lose “A Single Dollar”

COURT 13/08/2014

Defendants Worked Out Budget To Ensure Xtron Recouped Its Investment

Why Sun Ho Was Managed By Xtron Instead Of Another Company

COURT 14/08/2014

Kong says Sun would have gotten away with it too, if it hadn’t been for those meddling CADS

CHC Trial: Kong Hee: Spiritual Mentors’ Endorsement Of Crossover Project A “Big Factor”

COURT 15/08/2014

City Harvest Trial: Church Not To Directly Fund Crossover

Chew Eng Han grills Kong…

COURT 16/08/2014

What did Sun Ho get up to in the Beijing Olympics?

What did you say Pringle? (Part 1) Isn’t this what Kong did at CHC?

15 Friday Aug 2014

Posted by in C3 & Pringles Associations

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This piece is a follow up from our previous article:

Another CityNews interview with CHC Advisory “Pastor” Phil Pringle

Phil Pringle said:

‘That’s one of the greats [sic] difficulties in church life, because you have unscrupulous people who say, “Trust me, I’m a Christian, gimme $100,000, I’ll invest it for you.” So the person gives him $100,000 and he doesn’t [sic] invest the money but does something else with it, and then he comes back and says, “I’m sorry, I’ve lost it.” And those people get very hurt and leave the church. As pastors, we say to people, “Whenever you’re doing business together, make sure you’ve got contracts signed.” Don’t just say “He’s a Christian, I’ll trust him.” Some people have no shame. How can you take so much money and lose it, and say you’ll fight the person you owe?’

Has anyone else spotted what Phil Pringle has done here? Has Phil Pringle described to City News what Kong Hee has done?

1. “Trust me, I’m a Christian, gimme $100,000, I’ll invest it for you.”

Kong established a building fund with the understanding, naturally enough, that money contributed to that fund would be used to purchase a building for CHC. Then he importuned his congregation to give him money “until the tears [ran] down [their] face[s]”.

Kong Hee Is Not About “Building Buildings” But “Building People”? Really?

It’s sad if you think about it.

2. “So the person gives him $100,000 and he doesn’t invest the money but does something else with it […]”

Kong’s followers gave him buckets of money, and it appears he took SG$24,000,000 and spent it on “something else”, namely his wife’s pop-star fantasies.

And those fantasies where indulged to the very utmost, and in the most obscenely profligate manner. For example, Sun Ho lived the high life in Hollywood, staying in a mansion that cost $28,000 per *month* to rent – and this while Kong’s faithful sheep were downsizing their own housing in order to give him more money!

The House Of The Rising Sun

Of course, Kong missed his wife, so he just had to fly over to the U.S. to see her on a regular basis – and he clocked up airfares to the tune of $700,000, all paid for with hard-earned money that was given to him by the trusting and sincere members of CHC.

An Insightful Analysis To The CHC System (Part 5)

(Apparently Kong even took money from children: he wanted the contents of their angpows – red packets containing money that are given as gifts on special occasions in Chinese and other Asian societies. Obviously, when a jet-setting “pastor” has big bills coming in, no gift is too small – could a so-called “man of God” possibly stoop any lower than to do such a thing?)

3. “[…] and then he comes back and says, “I’m sorry, I’ve lost it.”’

Kong hasn’t got around to admitting his guilt yet, much less apologising to his thousands of victims; however he may well crack as the trial continues and the pressure on him builds. Nonetheless, Kong has certainly lost all the money – there is nothing to show for it other than a handful of tacky and tasteless “music” videos by his talentless partner, Sun Ho.

4. “And those people get very hurt and leave the church.”

A lot of people have left CHC, and many are extremely angry that they have been duped by Kong Hee, and understandably so.

5. ‘As pastors, we say to people, “Whenever you’re doing business together, make sure you’ve got contracts signed.” Don’t just say “He’s a Christian, I’ll trust him.”

So, according to Phil Pringle, we should be thinking along the lines of “Don’t just say ‘Kong’s a Christian, I’ll trust him'”. That’s excellent advice, “pastor” Phil – it’s just too bad that you didn’t give the good people of CHC that warning *before* Kong Hee and his accomplices took that money from them.

6. ‘”Some people have no shame. How can you take so much money and lose it, and say you’ll fight the person you owe?’

It’s true: Kong has no shame. Firstly he has the hide to stand in front of his followers and tell them that he “maintains [his] integrity” (as though he has ever shown any). Then he attempts to deflect the blame for his conduct onto his associates and underlings in a cowardly and pathetic attempt to save his own skin.

How indeed could Kong misappropriate such a huge amount and then turn around and swear blind that he is innocent? How could he be so shameless as to throw his fellow staff under the bus when it is plain as day that he and his wife were the principal beneficiaries of this outrageous scam?

Phil’s words raise an interesting question: was his oblique enumeration of events at CHC deliberate, or was it something unconscious?

Maybe the scriptures can help us answer this question.

“But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. In their greed these teachers will exploit you with fabricated stories. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.” 2 Peter 2:1-3

“For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.” Philippians 3:18-21

Judge not lest Hee be judged…

13 Wednesday Aug 2014

Posted by in C3 & Pringles Associations

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The Straits Times has set up their own tweet stream reporting on what Ps Kong Hee says in court on the stand. Kong Hee has said some very interesting things worth looking into.

Straits Times reports,

City Harvest trial: Kong Hee takes the stand

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong Hee takes the stand for the third day. Insists that he kept a close eye on the budget for Sun Ho’s first English album.
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4h

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong Hee takes the stand for the third day. Insists that he kept a close eye on the budget for Sun Ho’s first English album.
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20h

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong Hee wanted to recoup church’s investment in wife’s music career http://bit.ly/1q6qOZa pic.twitter.com/veuOvooXZE
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12 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong says fellow defendants Tan & Chew informed him of plans to buy bonds to fund album; he told them to ensure it was legal
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12 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Efforts made to lower budget for Ms Ho’s US album project, producers like Wyclef Jean dropped if they asked for too much – Kong
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12 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong Hee also insists budget for Sun Ho’s foray into the US music scene was overseen “rigorously”
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12 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Hip hop artist Wyclef Jean wanted an “Asian reggae” sound. It was successful “but not in sync with the image Sun wanted” – Kong
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12 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC: Sun Ho sounded ‘too white’ so Wyclef Jean suggested an Asian-Reggae fusion: Kong http://bit.ly/Vhuw9Q pic.twitter.com/vgCBKCyZRe
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12 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong Hee says both he and his wife Sun Ho were “uncomfortable” with her English single China Wine.
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12 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: The singles topped US dance charts and Hertz suggested Sun produce an English album in 2005, says Kong pic.twitter.com/Zwc2THcCfK
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12 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: This pastor later introduced Sun Ho to US music producer Justin Herz, who helped her produce two English singles in 2003 & 2004
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12 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: A pastor in Florida asked Sun Ho for her music videos as it might appeal to Americans, says Kong.
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12 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong Hee takes the stand again for the second day to explain how his wife Sun Ho launched her music career in the US
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Founder Kong Hee said he did his part to ensure church funds used properly http://bit.ly/1sGz4C6 pic.twitter.com/X9P4oDdobm
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Proceedings have ended for today, with Kong Hee expected back on the stand tomorrow
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Mr Foong assured Kong many times that if something was wrong, he would be informed. He even checked Kong’s media responses.
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong says Mr Foong never refused him advice, praises the auditor for providing “impeccable” services
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong says he is not a trained accountant and can’t evaluate Mr Foong’s advice, but calls him a “respected elder”
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: One church member wanted Xtron to be audited by different, cheaper firm, but Mr Foong urged Kong to use the same auditor
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong says “Bro Foong” was his sole confidante in financial matters, church staff asked to consult him when issues surfaced
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Ms Ho not in court as she is on the witness list, not allowed to listen to testimony
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong says special audit carried out after Mr Poon’s allegations. Auditors looked at how Mr Hanafi paid for Ms Ho’s albums
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Judge says Kong should clarify what exactly the auditors and lawyers hired by the church were asked to do
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Mr Foong had previously testified that he could not recall details of advice he gave or the meetings he held with those accused
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Mr Yin, along with auditor Foong Daw Ching, looked through meetings of church meetings to make sure there was nothing untoward
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Senior counsel brought in to boost governance at the church was Jimmy Yin. He was asked to look at transactions involving Xtron
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong claims that Mr Poon had told another pastor he had been hearing voices and wanted to make restitution for the allegations
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong has no idea what Mr Poon, who later retracted his allegations and apologised, looks like to this day
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Roland Poon incident was a “wake-up call” for the church, says Kong. A senior counsel was hired to ensure better governance
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Church called Mr Hanafi, who promised to fund Crossover Project, to ask if he’d pay for Ms Ho’s first two albums. He agreed.
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong says there was a lot of hate mail coming in, and generally a lot of unrest in the church
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong says church had paid for Ms Ho’s first two albums, but the board decided henceforth not to support her album expenses
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong was busy that weekend counselling members, but says there was an informal board meeting to discuss the allegations
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong says members traumatised the next day after being questioned by family and friends
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Four allegations – (3) I forced members to vote for her at an awards and (4) we were using building funds to sponsor her album
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: The four allegations – (1) I’m making the church worship my wife before god (2) I’m forcing members to buy her albums
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong replies “I was on my home when one of my staff asked me to watch CNA, there were four allegations.”
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial resumes with Kong asked about the time in 2003 when member Roland Poon alleged that funds were used for Ms Ho’s music career
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
City Harvest trial: I went from ‘shepherd’ to ‘rancher’ as church grew, says Kong Hee #CHC http://bit.ly/1lO0Usa pic.twitter.com/nwggQZrMoI
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
“Privileged” exhibits Chew Eng Han was warned against using were correspondence between him and investment firm that dealt with #CHC funds
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Court tells church board’s lawyer “you have been put on notice that you may have to make your submissions in open court”
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: The letter said all communications between Chew and the church were privileged
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC lawyers had sent one accused, Chew Eng Han, a letter warning him about some of the exhibits he was going to use when questioning Kong
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
Before trial breaks for lunch, prosecution suggests #CHC’s lawyer raise objections in open court over which exhibits can’t be presented
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong tells the court that 280,000 people went, and 100,000 filled out cards wanting to know more about Jesus
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong says his wife’s concerts for her first album were City Harvest’s “best evangelism tool” then
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: The board believed the Crossover Project should be expanded to the “whole world”, Kong says
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong tells the court that the church’s board supported the decision to expand Ms Ho’s music career to the United States
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: In the video, Mr Hanafi’s daughter said the family had donated to support the project.
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: The video was screened to tell the church and its members where the expenses for Ms Ho’s first two albums came from
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: She said in the video that the Hanafi family “is very proud of what Sun is doing”
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC: Kong’s lawyer Edwin Tong reveals video transcript in which Mr Hanafi’s eldest daughter offers to donate to project on behalf of family
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Mr Hanafi, who was in charge of the 2 firms that managed Sun Ho’s music career, allegedly helped the defendants to misuse funds
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: In tears, the Indonesian told Kong that he would pay for the project, the pastor tells the court
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Indonesian businessman Wahju Hanafi and his family helped out during earlier concerts, says Kong
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Sun Ho had her own full-time manager only from the second album, Kong says.
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong says his role in the project was as its “leader and visionary”. He was Sun Ho’s personal manager for the first album.
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Members also supported the Crossover Project financially, Kong says
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: A survey of 1,700 members was carried out – and 90% said she should continue, Kong tells the court
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC: When his son was born, Kong says he asked the church whether his wife should continue with the project, since she had become a mother
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: More than 1,600 members volunteered to help with Ms Ho’s 80-concert tour, adds Kong
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: City Harvest Church members were very excited about the project when they were told about it, Kong says
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: After a short break in court, Kong continues talking about the Crossover Project
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: So they signed with another firm for a two-album deal
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong did not want Ms Ho to sign with Sony as it kept a tight rein on artists. Kong was afraid she would not be allowed to preach
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: That was when Kong though his wife could “engage the world of MTV” and preach to the world. He told the church, who supported it
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong says a Sony executive told him that Ms Ho had the potential to be a pop artist
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: In 2001, Kong tells the court, work was started on a pop album. They also made some music videos
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong says he was later asked by a music producer, why not get Ms Ho to do a pop album? Since youth no longer listen to gospel
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: The reception was great, says Kong. “I thought this is the way to go”
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: On another trip to Taiwan, they did it again – singing secular songs and tweaking the lyrics
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong says he tested this at an international church conference and the young people loved it
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom

#CHC trial: In June 2000, Kong had the idea to get his wife to do pop routines, instead of singing “I love you”, to sing “I love you, Jesus”
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: When he was on the way home, Kong says he heard God tell him to evangelise to the youth in Taiwan
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: But City Harvest Church here was filled with young people, says Kong
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: A Taiwan missionary told Kong the church had lost its appeal there, and that people were interested in sports and entertainment
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong says that he was invited to Taiwan for the first time in 1999. There, he says, the Christian population was ageing
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong explains to the court how the Crossover Project was started
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong adds that the church’s “organisational structure” was good, and that he trusted the church’s lawyers and auditors
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Still, Kong had a “general sense that everything was going well”. He left the details to the board, was alerted for big issues
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
#CHC trial: Kong says that as church president, he relied a lot on the church board as he was mostly overseas
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
City Harvest trial: Kong began by going through his past, saying he wanted to be a missionary in 1989 when he felt god speaking to him.
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11 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
City Harvest trial: Church founder Kong Hee has taken the stand in the trial over the alleged misuse of church funds.
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9 Aug

The Straits Times ✔ @STcom
City Harvest trial: Purchase of CDs ‘doesn’t mean they weren’t doing well’ http://bit.ly/1ssyiIS
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Source: City Harvest trial: Kong Hee takes the stand, The Straits Times, http://www.straitstimes.com/news/singapore/courts-crime/story/city-harvest-trial-kong-hee-takes-the-stand-20140811, Published on Aug 11, 2014 10:25 AM. (Accessed 13/08/2014.)

Kong in court: The Lord is my rancher?

12 Tuesday Aug 2014

Posted by in C3 & Pringles Associations

≈ 6 Comments

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THE RANCHER AND THE RAUNCHY

It is interesting reading how Kong Hee stated in court that he “was once a “shepherd”” but then, “evolved into that of a “rancher”. However, Kong Hee had the audacity to stand up to tell his congregation that he maintains his integrity before the trials started. We know that there is a biblical church role of a shepherd (pastor). Where in the bible does it teach that pastors are to be ranchers?

Speaking frankly, Kong Hee has publicly confessed in court he is no longer a pastor.

Furthermore, the title ‘Rancher’ is fitting for impastors like Kong Hee, Phil Pringle and Brian Houston. Truly, truly, they herd believers into their corral and brand them with their company name.

Asia One reports,

We took MTV route to preach gospel: Kong

He said he was once a “shepherd”. Then, as the chief missionary of the City Harvest Church, his role evolved into that of a “rancher”.

Yesterday, for the first time since the trial started in May last year, church founder Kong Hee took the stand as a defendant accused, along with five others, of misusing church funds to further the music career of his wife, Ho Yeow Sun, and then covering it up.

The evolution from home-bound shepherd to jetsetting rancher with overseas missionary commitments meant that he had to depend on his team of lawyers and auditors, including his confidant, auditor Foong Daw Ching, to look into the church’s transactions.

He insisted he did this to make sure that the use of church funds was above board.

But Deputy Public Prosecutor Christopher Ong pointed out it was unclear what the professionals had been asked to review in several instances, as e-mail evidence – which Kong’s lawyer, Edwin Tong, had referred to as examples of this diligence – was missing the relevant attachments.

“We don’t even know what the lawyers were asked to look at in the first place,” said Mr Ong.

Unlike the hysteria that greeted the start of the trial, the courtroom was not even full yesterday. The 49-year-old pastor, dressed in a smart black suit, strongly defended the Crossover Project, which was fronted by his wife to spread the gospel through pop music.

Kong said the inspiration for this came from a 1999 trip to Taiwan, when he was told young people were more interested in sports and pop entertainment than religion.

So, on the opening night of a June 2000 event organised by City Harvest to train church pastors and leaders in Asia, he asked Ms Ho to tweak pop song lyrics to include gospel messages.

“Instead of saying, ‘I love you’, she would sing, ‘I love you, Jesus’,” Kong explained. The response among the young was “overwhelming”, he said.

When they tried this again in a Taipei church two months later, he claimed “hundreds” accepted Christ.

Kong said he decided that the church would “engage the world of Music Television (MTV) and, through it…preach the gospel of Jesus”.

The Crossover Project, using Ms Ho’s albums, kicked off in 2002. By 2007, she had released five Mandarin albums.

“If not for the Crossover, we would be just another neighbourhood church. The Crossover Project doubled, tripled our congregation size,” he told the court.

While the church had paid for Ms Ho’s first two albums, the board members decided to call on long-time church member and wealthy Indonesian businessman Wahju Hanafi to reimburse the costs, as he had pledged to support the Crossover Project.

Kong said the church consulted both Drew and Napier lawyers as well as Mr Foong on various transactions to ensure they were above board.

“Mr Foong is my friend, confidant and mentor in financial matters, and he took it upon himself to keep an eye on all our accounts,” said Kong. “In fact, he made me a promise that, if something was wrong, he would contact me.”

Source: By Feng Zengkun and Ian Poh, We took MTV route to preach gospel: Kong, AsiaOne, http://news.asiaone.com/news/singapore/we-took-mtv-route-preach-gospel-kong#sthash.LfnaoLNa.dpuf, Tuesday, Aug 12, 2014. (Accessed 12/08/2014.)

Phil’s phoney friends

05 Tuesday Aug 2014

Posted by in Uncategorized

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More disturbing news has surfaced against Kong Hee and his wife. We bring you these two articles that we are sure Phil Pringle does not want you to read.

Channel News Asia reports,

CHC spent half a million dollars buying Sun Ho’s unsold CDs

These and other details surfaced as the prosecution sought to highlight inconsistencies in the testimony of ex-church board member John Lam, who cited Ms Ho’s success as a reason CHC should invest in bonds issued by her artiste management company.

SINGAPORE — Ms Sun Ho was not the successful singer City Harvest Church had made her out to be. Evidence showed that the church had spent about half a million dollars buying her unsold CDs.

The profitability of her artiste management company Xtron was also called into question as the trial involving the church’s leader Kong Hee and his five deputies resumed yesterday.

The six church leaders are accused of misusing more than S$50 million of church funds to buy sham bonds to bankroll Ms Ho’s music career.

Although she had been touted as a big commercial success, lead prosecutor Mavis Chionh said the financial statements told a different story.

In 2004, City Harvest Church spent about half a million dollars buying at least 32,000 of her unsold Mandarin CDs to give to ministries and churches overseas.

These details surfaced as the prosecution sought to highlight inconsistencies in the evidence given by former church board member John Lam.

Lam had cited Ms Ho’s success as a reason for the church’s investment in bonds issued by Xtron. He pointed out that the junk bonds were not necessarily bad ones and added that he had believed Ms Ho’s album sales in the United States would be good enough to cover the obligations of the bond.

However, the prosecution said that as former director of Xtron, Lam would have known it was not a profitable company. For example, its only asset was a laptop and all its other assets were loaned from the church. It did not even have the budget to pay a S$46,000 freight services bill.

The prosecution also pointed out that Xtron was not the independent entity it had been made out to be. For one, Lam and fellow accused Chew Eng Han had agreed to stamps being made of their signatures to be used on Xtron’s invoices.

Ms Chionh said the two were “happy to rubber stamp decisions”, knowing that they were made by Kong and the church and were happy to go along with those decisions.

The court also heard that the bulk of Xtron’s funding came from the church’s members. For example, Indonesian businessman Wahju Hanafi’s donations to the church’s building fund were refunded to him and channelled to Xtron. The building fund pledges and tithes of some other members, including Lam’s, were also diverted to Xtron.

The trial continues.

Source: By Kimberly Spykerman, CHC spent half a million dollars buying Sun Ho’s unsold CDs, Channel News Asia, http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/chc-spent-half-a-million/1296604.html, Published 23:49 AM 04/08/2014. (Accessed 05/08/2014.)

Yahoo! Singapore reports,

City Harvest case resumes: S$500,000 used to buy Sun Ho’s unsold music CDs

City Harvest Church (CHC) spent $500,000 to buy Sun Ho’s unsold CDs. This was revealed in court on Monday as the trial involving the church leaders resumed.

According to Today newspaper, lead prosecutor Mavis Chionh said the financial statements of the church revealed that at least 32,000 of Ms Ho’s unsold music CDs were purchased by the church for a sum of S$500,000 to give away to ministries and churches overseas. Sun Ho is the wife of CHC co-founder and pastor Kong Hee. A former student of  Anglican High School and Victoria Junior College, Ho — previously known as Ho Yeow Sun when she was a successful Mandopop singer — began to eye the US pop market in 2003 and had plans to use A-list music stars to launch her career in Hollywood.

Ms Ho’s “commercial success” was also cited as a reason for the church’s investment in Xtron-issued bonds. Xtron was Sun Ho’s artiste management agency although its profitability and who controlled it is currently under question.

Church founder Kong Hee, his wife Sun Ho and former finance manager Serina Wee are among six senior church leaders accused of misappropriating more than S$50 million worth of church fundsto finance Sun Ho’s career as part of a “Crossover Project” — a church mission started in 2002 designed to reach out to non-Christians through music.

Former City Harvest treasurer and board member, John Lam Leng Hung also took the stand on Monday, claiming he had “mistakenly” pumped S$1.2 million into a church-building fund, which was later withdrawn and channeled into funds to develop the musical career of Sun Ho.

Clad in shirt and blazer, Lam, 46, was the first of six leaders to take the stand in the fifth tranche of the mega church’s trial, which  resumed on Monday.

During court proceedings, prosecutor Mavis Chionh produced a 2002 email suggesting that Lam’s “error” was part of a deliberate plan to muddy the paperwork trail before the eventual channeling of funds into the Crossover Project.

In the email between Lam and another accused church leader, Chew said, “We will need to do more withdrawals of BF [building fund] (this time, probably Wahju and myself), and put into Xtron, and Pst Kong will put in some personal cash also…”

This “merry go round” funds as claimed by Lam in another email was initially excluded in meeting minutes submitted to auditors because he was “scared” that the public would “object” the withdrawing from the building fund. It was later added into the minutes signed by Lam. In response to this, prosecutors suggested that Lam had “falsified” the document.

The court also heard that the bulk of Xtron’s funds came from City Harvest church members.

For example, the $1.2 million in question was donated by church member, Wahju Hanafi, the owner of company Attributes Pte Ltd. Lam had initially explained that he had made an “error” when depositing $1.2 million worth of donations, which was originally intended for Sun Ho’s career from the start.

Lam allowed rubber stamping of his signatures

Lam also admitted to allowing stamps to be made of his signature for invoices under Xtron as he would not be “the best person” to verify some of them.

He admitted to this after prosecutor Chionh showed an email from the church’s human resource and administration manager Wong Foong Ming requesting to make signature stamps.

Lam added that Wee was in charge of processing those invoices and had trusted her verification.

The trial continues on Tuesday.

Source: By Nurul Azliah Aripin, City Harvest case resumes: S$500,000 used to buy Sun Ho’s unsold music CDs, Yahoo! Singapore, https://sg.news.yahoo.com/city-harvest-church-leader-john-lam-in-spotlight-for-s-1-2-million–error–100459301.html, Published 04/08/2014. (Accessed 05/08/2014.)

EDIT 09/08/2014 Here are more articles relevant to the case:

CHC leaders accused of doctoring paperwork to back investments

But church board member says backdated meeting minutes were ‘a mistake’

SINGAPORE — The leaders of City Harvest Church (CHC) had planned to falsify paperwork and deceive auditors that the church had assessed Xtron’s bonds to be a good investment, charged the prosecution as the high-profile trial resumed yesterday.

Church founder Kong Hee and his five deputies are being accused of using millions in church funds to buy sham bonds from Xtron and Firna in order to bankroll the secular music career of Kong’s wife, Ms Sun Ho.

Yesterday, the prosecution said the leaders doctored documents so auditors would think the church had considered in July 2008 whether the Xtron bonds could be recovered before the auditors raised the issue on Aug 1, 2008.

For example, the minutes of a church board meeting dated Aug 3, 2008, reflected that CHC’s investment committee had already reviewed and approved the Xtron bonds. But the investment committee only met two days later, on Aug 5.

Similarly, the minutes from that investment committee meeting were backdated to July 29.

A spreadsheet reflecting Xtron’s ability to redeem the bonds, which had allegedly been presented at the Aug 5 meeting, was only created a few days later on Aug 8.

When these anomalies were highlighted to one of the accused, former church board member John Lam, who had seen both sets of minutes and signed off on the church board minutes, he said they were simply “a mistake”.

Lead prosecutor Mavis Chionh disputed that and called it a “deliberate act” to present a certain picture to the church’s auditors — that CHC had considered the recoverability of the bonds before the issue was raised.

Lam had been fully aware of the falsification and deception, argued the prosecution.

She also asserted that the church leaders had not always painted a full picture to its executive members and had sometimes given them misleading impressions.

That was because they did not want members to discover that money that had been meant for church-related matters had, instead, been spent on the Crossover Project. Fronted by Ms Ho, the project was the church’s way of evangelising through pop music.

The court also heard that the leaders had not told the church board that proceeds from the Firna bonds would be used to fund the project, leading them to believe that the bonds were genuine investments that were made purely to gain financial returns.

It was clear Firna, like Xtron, was merely a “conduit” to channel funds to the Crossover Project, charged Ms Chionh. CHANNEL NEWSASIA

Source: Today Online, CHC leaders accused of doctoring paperwork to back investments, http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/chc-leaders-accused-doctoring-paperwork-back-investments?singlepage=true, Published 4:03 AM, 07/08/2014. (Accessed 09/08/2014.)

Channel News Asia reports,

Five City Harvest Church leaders on trial met to discuss their defence

An email chain highlighted by the prosecution in court shows five of six church leaders on trial had met to discuss their defence and later raised concerns on whether they were on the same page about round-tripping charges.

SINGAPORE: Five of the six City Harvest Church leaders had met at least once in 2013 to discuss their defence, according to an email chain highlighted by the prosecution in court on Thursday (Aug 7). The court heard that church founder Kong Hee was not present at the meeting. The leaders are accused of using monies from the church’s building fund to buy sham bonds in Xtron and Firna to fund the secular music career of Sun Ho – the wife of church founder Kong Hee.

In an email, the church’s former investment manager and co-accused Chew Eng Han says he is “convinced” that they are not on the same page regarding the substance of their defence and some of them had shifted their position on what the bonds were actually for.

He adds that he is “disturbed” by this, and that these differences should be discussed when they next meet. Chew was also the one who brought the email chain to the court’s attention. It was admitted after a closed-door hearing on Tuesday.

Another email also revealed that his co-accused – John Lam, Serina Wee, and Sharon Tan had also raised concerns about whether they were all on the same page about the round-tripping charges.

In an email to Chew dated Feb 3, 2013, John Lam wrote: “The 2 girls have a concern. If on the bond issue there seem to be a “different page”, how about the round trip? Are we having the different view as well. Obviously we rather not.” He then suggests a meet-up to discuss this. When initially questioned by the prosecution, he had denied talking to the other accused persons about what should be said at trial.

The prosecution then questioned Lam about why – if he was truly honest – would he be worried about his co-accused taking a different view of the charges.

Lead Prosecutor Mavis Chionh asked: “Do you agree that if you are an honest accused person who is going to go to court and tell the truth… you would not be trying to meet up with your co-accused persons and worrying about their taking a different view from yours on the charges?”

In wrapping up her cross-examination on Lam, Ms Chionh also said that Lam had placed the interests of the Crossover Project over and above his duty as a church board member to ensure proper stewardship of the church’s Building Fund. She also pointed out that Lam knew using the Building Fund monies to finance Ms Ho’s career was an unauthorised use of the funds, and that his keen awareness of this was why he had desperately tried to claim ignorance during the trial.

“It is also because of this guilty knowledge that you are now trying to disassociate yourself from the transactions and instead to push the blame to some of your co-accused, from blaming Sharon Tan, for example, for wrongly recording minutes, to blaming Chew Eng Han, whom you say was responsible for feeding you information,” she said.

Ms Chionh also gave a scathing assessment of Lam’s defence saying that it has essentially been one of “I don’t know, nobody told me, and if they did tell me, they didn’t ask me for advice”. She said given his status within the church, financial expertise, and documentary evidence, his defence is not only “untenable” but “deeply cynical”.

Source: By Kimberly Spykerman, Five City Harvest Church leaders on trial met to discuss their defence, Channel News Asia, http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/five-city-harvest-church/1302222.html, Published 07/08/2014 22:25, Updated 07/08/2014 22:26. (Accessed 09/08/2014.)

The lyin’ and the Lam

21 Monday Jul 2014

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Read our article here how the secular news reported the recent CHC case:

Chew Eng Han on Lam’s “Stew”……

Look how CHC’s propaganda agency reports the case. Do you notice what’s missing?

John Lam: Crossover Was CHC’s Call To Fulfill The Great Commission.

‎Former City Harvest Church board member John Lam took the stand this morning as the CHC trial resumed. Explaining how the Crossover Project was part of the church’s purpose to fulfill the Great Commission, Lam told the court that in 1995, CHC launched a movement called Church Without Walls, which sent members outside the four walls of the church to reach non-believers. Church Without Walls led to the start of City Harvest Community Services Association, the church’s non-religious social arm that helps the underprivileged and meets community needs.

Church Without Walls is based on the Great Commission, which is, as stated in Matthew 28:18-20 of the Bible, to “go therefore and make disciples of all the nation’s, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you.”

Lam explained that in the early 2000s, CHC’s senior pastor, Kong Hee, also caught a vision to reach youth in Asia with the Gospel, particularly in cities like Taiwan and Hong Kong, where youth and young adults found pop culture and entertainment more relevant than the church.

The condition set in the Great Commission is to go preach the Gospel to the ends of the earth, but Lam pointed out, these young people had not heard the Good News. In order to reach these youth, the church had to be relevant; hence the birth of Crossover Project. Sun Ho was sent out to become a commercial success in the entertainment industry, ‎and in the process, influence the young and fulfill the Great Commission.

Lam took the court through the different bodies that managed Ho, beginning with City Harvest Pte Ltd, which was set up to keep the Crossover Project separate from the church. The name “City Harvest” became an issue and so management came under Attributes Pte Ltd, and after that, Xtron.

Lam explained why Xtron was not mentioned in the Jun 30, 2003 board meeting minutes as Ho’s new artiste management. Lam told the court this took place just after the “Roland Poon incident” and that he, among others in the board and the church, had been “traumatized” by it. In January 2003, CHC church member Roland Poon went to the press to accuse the church of financially supporting Ho’s music career. Lam told the court it had never occurred to him that the public and other Christians would object to such a project to reach the secular world through pop music.

The City Harvest Church trial resumed this morning with Senior Counsel Kenneth Tan presenting key points of his argument to support his client Lam’s case.

Lam is a chartered financial analyst and also a fellow certified public accountant. He was the treasurer in the CHC board and was involved in the financial and audit committee—all positions he held were as volunteer. He is a pioneer member of the church and is also a cell group leader.

Court resumed at 2.15pm.

Source: The CityNews Team, John Lam: Crossover Was CHC’s Call To Fulfill The Great Commission., CityNews, http://www.citynews.sg/2014/07/john-lam-crossover-was-chcs-call-to-fulfill-the-great-commission/, Updated on July 14, 2014 at 3:07 pm. (Accessed 17/07/2014.)