By Theresa Tan

THE new captain of Ren Ci Hospital and Medicare Centre has tightened his ship, putting in place new checks and controls.

He has even set up a system for people to report wrong-doings.

Mr Chua Thian Poh, the property developer who took over Ren Ci's chairmanship last September, has steered the charity towards greater transparency and accountability after a probe into its books was opened.

The probe resulted in Ren Ci's former chairman and chief executive, Buddhist monk Ming Yi, being charged in court on Tuesday with 10 counts of fraud, forgery and giving false information, among other things.

On Thurday, the Ren Ci board acknowledged the charity's 'lapses' in a statement: 'In our effort to achieve our humanitarian mission, coupled with our lack of exposure and experience in corporate governance, the signs of trouble were not picked up fast enough.

'We acknowledge the lapses. We are committed to providing the best possible service and full accountability to the public.'

In the charity's first press conference since the probe began last year, Mr Chua gave a run-down on the new measures to improve its operations.

Read the full story in Friday's edition of The Straits Times