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Graft buster CPIB reviewing how to better recruit and retain talent

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To better recruit officers and retain experienced ones, the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) is reviewing the scheme of service for its officers, said President Halimah Yacob at the organisation's 70th anniversary on Wednesday.

This may involve aligning the retirement age of its officers with that of the public service and strengthening professional development of CPIB investigators.

Currently, the retirement age for CPIB officers is 56. The retirement age for public officers is 63.

To enhance its capabilities, CPIB is also leveraging technology and has been developing a new platform since July to let it better manage and evaluate corruption complaints it receives from the public.

Called Command (Complaints Management Digital), the platform will assign a corruption risk score to all the complaints CPIB receives from the public.

This score is determined using natural language processing and the platform's machine-learning capabilities.

CPIB said of Command: "Through enhanced insights by leveraging past complaints, it allows for better decision-making and data-led recommendations."

The platform can also recommend which officers are best suited to be deployed to each case, to follow up on investigations if necessary.

This will provide faster resolution to the complaints it receives, CPIB said.

On Wednesday, CPIB also launched a new history book which documents Singapore's anti-corruption journey and the bureau's contributions.

The 472-page book, called Scrupulous, Thorough, Fearless – The CPIB Story, is divided into six parts, and traces how Singapore attained its status as one of the least corrupt nations in the world.

The book also examines how the CPIB cracked some of the most high-profile cases of corruption in Singapore, such as one in the 1990s involving Ah Long San, Singapore's most notorious loan shark who cultivated a network of police officers.

The officers would tip him off on impending police raids, and in exchange, he entertained them at nightclubs and paid for their holidays.

In October 2001, Ah Long San was jailed for 10 years and the policemen involved were fined, jailed or both.

The book will be available across select bookstores from Sept 24 at $39.59 (inclusive of GST) in soft cover.

CORRUPT PRACTICES INVESTIGATION BUREAU (CPIB)Halimah Yacob