Governance Statement
The LKH Executive Committee (“ExCo”) of Ling Kwang Home for Senior Citizens (“LKH”) is the governing body that provides strategic direction and oversight of LKH’s programmes and objectives, and steers LKH towards fulfilling its vision and mission through good governance. The ExCo has put in place certain measures and practices to ensure good governance, including:
ExCo Composition
LKH recognises that having knowledgeable, and dedicated ExCo members with a broad complementarity of skill-set is essential to guide the Home towards its mission to serve the needy elderly in the community. LKH members are recommended by the Nominating Committee to stand for ExCo elections and re-elections based on their personal attributes, requisite skills, experience, competencies, knowledge and expertise.
In recognition of the principle in the Code of Governance for board renewal, LKH has actively sought to renew and refresh its ExCo composition whilst appreciating that those who have served extended terms bring with them a wealth of experience, deep institutional knowledge and understanding of the long-term care sector’s complexities and evolving dynamics.
As part of its ongoing commitment to sound governance and leadership renewal, the ExCo has adopted a succession planning strategy to progressively refresh the composition of the ExCo by reducing the number of members who have served for 10 or more consecutive years. Since 2019, the proportion of ExCo members who have served less than a decade has increased from 55% to 70%. During this period, 2 new ExCo members were elected while 3 ExCo members who had served for the extended period retired. The progressive approach to stagger retirement is to ensure continuity and smooth transition of the ExCo leadership whilst ensuring a good mix of skills, expertise and experience. Outgoing ExCo members are also able to pass on their knowledge and experience to incoming members, thereby maintaining stability amid renewal. The reasons for retaining the following ExCo members who have served more than 10 consecutive years are set out as follows:
- Honorary Chairman Mr Lam Kwok Chong has served in both LKH ExCo and some of its sub-committees since 2008. Mr Lam has extensive corporate experience, having served in leadership capacity in large corporations and on the boards of both public and private companies as well as in voluntary welfare organisations. With strong commitment to the social service sector, and deep institutional knowledge of LKH, Mr Lam continues to play a pivotal role in shaping the organisation’s strategic direction. His leadership remains instrumental not only in steering the long-term vision of LKH but also in guiding and mentoring newer members of the ExCo. As Chairman of the ExCo, Mr Lam continues to provide continuity, stability, and a depth of insight that are indispensable to the organisation’s continued progress and impact.
- Honorary Vice-Chairman Mr Albert Ang is the Founder of Alberton Management Institute, a well-known training consultancy company. Mr Ang holds a Master of Science in Management and is a Certified Public Accountant, Chartered Secretary, a Member of The Governance Institute of Australia and a Fellow Chartered Financial Practitioner. His well-rounded experience through having been on the boards of many professional bodies and non-profit organisations, and in addition to his decades-long dedication to LKH has been crucial to sustain LKH. As part of the succession planning process, Mr Ang will be retiring at the upcoming Annual General Meeting.
- Honorary Secretary Mr Foo Thiam Fong, Wellington previously held the position of Chief Financial Officer/ Group Company Secretary in a public listed corporation. He is a fellow of the Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants and CPA Australia, and is an associate of both the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants and the Chartered Secretaries Institute of Singapore. His experience in senior management and finance, in addition to his committed service in various roles in LKH ExCo and sub-committees since 2013 is invaluable in steering LKH in the area of financial sustainability.
ExCo Evaluation: Periodic self-evaluation of its performance and effectiveness is conducted. ExCo members are invited to individually evaluate the ExCo’s performance of its core responsibilities and effectiveness. Results are collated and reviewed by the Nominating Committee who then presents it to the ExCo.
ExCo Committees (“Sub-committees”): The Sub-committees set out below are appointed and authorised by the ExCo for the proper management and administration or in furtherance of the objects of LKH. The purpose of each Sub-committee is set out in their respective Terms of Reference, and briefly described hereunder:
1. The Additions & Alterations (“A&A”) Committee is authorised to make decisions and provide advice regarding LKH’s A&A Project;
2. The Audit Committee assists the ExCo in providing independent review of LKH’s financial reporting process and material internal controls;
3. The Human Resource (“HR”) Committee oversees LKH’s HR and talent management;
4. The Investment Committee oversees all investment activities at LKH;
5. The Medical & Services Committee provides oversight of LKH’s programmes and services and also evaluate new services and programmes recommended by LKH’s management;
6. The Nominating Committee is responsible for the general affairs relating ExCo composition and service tenure, recruitment and nominations of ExCo members, and taking the lead in ExCo evaluations and succession planning of Exco and CEO positions. The NC also conducts the CEO's performance evaluation.
Conflict of Interest: ExCo members do not receive remuneration as they serve on an honorary basis. Staff are also not involved in setting their own remuneration. The LKH Conflict of Interest Policy governs the procedures for ExCo members and staff to declare conflict of interest(s) on a regular and need-to-basis.
Human Resource Management: LKH does not have paid staff who are close family members of the CEO or ExCo members. Neither are there paid staff who also serves on the ExCo. Volunteers are recruited and managed by LKH’s Community Engagement team who matches volunteers’ interest and availability with the needs at LKH.
Financial Management & Internal Controls
1. LKH has in place documented procedures for financial matters including procurement procedures and controls, receipting, payment procedures and controls as well as
delegation of authority and approval limits.
2. The Reserves Policy adopted by LKH can be referred to in the Notes to the Financial Statements. The purpose of LKH’s reserves is to provide financial stability and to provide for
the Additions and Alterations (A&A) project as well as to meet increases in operating expenses in the care for the well-being of residents and clients. The reserves ratio is 1.66
based on the accumulated funds against operating expenses in the financial year ended 31 March 2025.
3. More details about the restricted funds in the financial year ended 31 March 2025 can be referred to in the Financial Statements. Restricted funds received are utilised/or will be
used according to the purpose that the funds were raised for. No fund-raising events were conducted in FY2024/2025. Fundraising in the following financial year to support LKH’s
work and service objectives include donor recruitment and renewal through appeal letters and crowdfunding. There is currently no fundraising event planned.
Privacy Policy
LKH respects the privacy and confidentiality of the personal data of clients, residents, volunteers, donors, sponsors, visitors and others whom the organisation interacts with in the course of providing its services. LKH is committed to implementing policies, practices and processes to safeguard the collection, use and disclosure of personal data, in compliance with the Singapore Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) 2012. More information regarding LKH’s Data Protection Policy on how personal data is collected, used, disclosed, processed and retained, may be found at https://lkhsc.org.sg/policies.
Whistle Blowing Policy
The Whistle Blowing Policy was developed in order that any possible impropriety in LKH can be reported, in good faith and without fear of reprisal. All LKH officers and employees along with volunteers and vendors are responsible to report any improprieties to the ExCo. This policy includes processes on the reporting of concerns of misconduct and how the report is handled. LKH does not tolerate harassment and retaliation of the whistle blower.
