PART 3 | Disciplinary proceedings against SAFVC volunteer |
| 6. An SAFVC volunteer who is alleged to have committed an offence specified in the Schedule to the Act is liable to be dealt with summarily under the provisions of these Regulations instead of being liable to be dealt with under Part IV of the Act. |
| No summary disposal of charges for offences not specified in Schedule to Act |
| 7. No charge made against any SAFVC volunteer in respect of any offence that is not specified in the Schedule to the Act is to be dealt with summarily under these Regulations. |
8.—(1) Before an allegation against any accused that the accused has committed an offence under the Act is further proceeded with, the allegation must be reported in the form of a charge to an SAFVC disciplinary officer and dealt with in accordance with the provisions of these Regulations. | (2) If the accused is an SAFVC volunteer of or above the rank of SAFVC Volunteer 3, the charge must, within the time specified in regulation 29, be brought before an SAFVC senior disciplinary officer. |
| (3) If the accused is an SAFVC volunteer of or below the rank of SAFVC Volunteer 2, the charge must, within the time specified in regulation 29, be brought before an SAFVC junior disciplinary officer. |
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| Powers of SAFVC junior disciplinary officer when dealing with charge |
9. An SAFVC junior disciplinary officer when dealing with a charge may — | (a) | dismiss the charge, if the SAFVC junior disciplinary officer is of the opinion that the charge ought not to be proceeded with; | | (b) | try the accused summarily; or | | (c) | if the SAFVC junior disciplinary officer is of the opinion that the charge should not be dealt with by the SAFVC junior disciplinary officer — | (i) | refer the charge to an SAFVC senior disciplinary officer for disciplinary proceedings; or | | (ii) | refer the charge to an SAFVC senior disciplinary officer recommending that the accused be tried by a subordinate military court. |
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| Powers of SAFVC senior disciplinary officer when dealing with charge |
10. An SAFVC senior disciplinary officer when dealing with a charge may — | (a) | dismiss the charge, if the SAFVC senior disciplinary officer is of the opinion that the charge ought not to be proceeded with; | | (b) | try the accused summarily; or | | (c) | if the SAFVC senior disciplinary officer is of the opinion that the charge should not be dealt with by the SAFVC senior disciplinary officer —| (i) | refer the charge to the SAFVC Commander for disciplinary proceedings; or | | (ii) | refer the charge to the SAFVC Commander recommending that the accused be tried by a subordinate military court. |
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| Powers of SAFVC Commander when dealing with charge |
11. The SAFVC Commander when dealing with a charge referred to the SAFVC Commander under regulation 10(c)(i) or (ii) may —| (a) | direct that the charge be tried by the SAFVC senior disciplinary officer who referred the charge or by any other SAFVC senior disciplinary officer; | | (b) | dismiss the charge, if the SAFVC Commander is of the opinion that the charge ought not to be proceeded with; | | (c) | try the accused summarily; or | | (d) | if the SAFVC Commander is of the opinion that the charge should not be dealt with by the SAFVC Commander, refer the charge to the Director, Legal Services of the Singapore Armed Forces. |
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| Restrictions on power to dismiss charge |
12.—(1) An SAFVC disciplinary officer must not dismiss a charge unless the SAFVC disciplinary officer is satisfied that — | (a) | the charge is groundless; or | | (b) | there are special circumstances which justify its dismissal. |
| (2) An SAFVC disciplinary officer must record the reasons for the dismissal of a charge. |
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| Powers of punishment of SAFVC junior disciplinary officer |
13. An SAFVC junior disciplinary officer may, upon conviction of an accused of or below the rank of SAFVC Volunteer 2, impose any one of the following punishments: | (a) | a fine not exceeding a sum of $300; | | (b) | reprimand; | | (c) | the minor punishment of admonition. |
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| Powers of punishment of SAFVC senior disciplinary officer |
14.—(1) An SAFVC senior disciplinary officer may, upon conviction of an accused, impose any one of the following punishments: | (a) | reduction in rank; | | (b) | reversion in rank; | | (c) | a fine not exceeding a sum of $500; | | (d) | reprimand; | | (e) | the minor punishment of admonition. |
| (2) In addition to or in lieu of any other punishment, the SAFVC senior disciplinary officer may order that the accused suffer any deduction from the accused’s ordinary pay authorised by the Act. |
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| Powers of punishment of SAFVC Commander |
15.—(1) The SAFVC Commander may, upon conviction of an accused, impose any one of the following punishments: | (a) | reduction in rank; | | (b) | reversion in rank; | | (c) | forfeiture of seniority of rank and forfeiture of all or any part of the accused’s service for purposes of promotion; | | (d) | a fine not exceeding a sum of $1,000; | | (e) | reprimand; | | (f) | the minor punishment of admonition. |
| (2) In addition to or in lieu of any other punishment, the SAFVC Commander may order that the accused suffer any deduction from the accused’s ordinary pay authorised by the Act. |
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| Referral to Director, Legal Services of the Singapore Armed Forces |
16. The Director, Legal Services of the Singapore Armed Forces, when dealing with a charge under these Regulations, may —| (a) | direct that the charge‑sheet be submitted to the appropriate convening authority; | | (b) | with the approval of the Armed Forces Council, direct that the charge be tried by the SAFVC Commander or by any other SAFVC disciplinary officer; or | | (c) | with the approval of the Armed Forces Council, direct that no action be taken against the accused either by way of disciplinary proceedings or by a subordinate military court. |
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17.—(1) Where an accused is convicted by an SAFVC disciplinary officer, the SAFVC disciplinary officer may, in addition to any other punishment but subject to paragraph (2), order the accused to pay compensation to the party who suffered damage or loss by reason of the offence. (2) The amount of compensation that may be ordered — | (a) | by an SAFVC junior disciplinary officer must not exceed a sum of $500; and | | (b) | by an SAFVC senior disciplinary officer or the SAFVC Commander must not exceed a sum of $5,000. |
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| 18. An order for payment of compensation made under regulation 17 does not prejudice any right to any civil remedy for the recovery of damages beyond the amount of compensation paid under the order. |
| Power to quash finding of SAFVC disciplinary officer |
19.—(1) The Armed Forces Council may, upon the advice of the Director, Legal Services of the Singapore Armed Forces —| (a) | quash any finding, sentence, order of dismissal of a charge or award of compensation of an SAFVC disciplinary officer; | | (b) | substitute any new finding for any finding of guilty made by an SAFVC disciplinary officer that is illegal or cannot be supported by the evidence if the new finding could validly have been made by the SAFVC disciplinary officer on the charge and if it appears that the SAFVC disciplinary officer was satisfied of the facts establishing the offence specified or involved in the new finding; or | | (c) | substitute another punishment or a lesser punishment where the sentence of an SAFVC disciplinary officer is invalid or unduly excessive but so that the punishment substituted must not in any event be greater or more severe than that awarded by the SAFVC disciplinary officer. |
| (2) Any substituted finding or sentence under paragraph (1) is to be treated for all purposes as a finding or sentence of the SAFVC disciplinary officer. |
(3) Where the Armed Forces Council has in any case quashed the finding, sentence, order of dismissal of a charge or award of compensation of an SAFVC disciplinary officer under paragraph (1)(a), it may —| (a) | refer the case to be retried by the same or another SAFVC disciplinary officer; or | | (b) | if it is of the opinion that the case should be retried by a subordinate military court, refer the charge to the Director, Legal Services of the Singapore Armed Forces. |
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| (4) The Armed Forces Council may at any time suspend the execution of any sentence passed by an SAFVC disciplinary officer for such period as it thinks fit. |
| (5) The Armed Forces Council may delegate the exercise of its powers under paragraph (1) to any one of its members or to its secretary. |
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| Inapplicability of law of evidence |
| 20. An SAFVC disciplinary officer is not bound by the laws of evidence and must act in such manner as seems to the SAFVC disciplinary officer most expedient for the disposal of the charge. |
| Right of accused to elect for trial by subordinate military court |
21.—(1) An SAFVC disciplinary officer who has proceeded to deal with a case summarily and is satisfied on the evidence as to the guilt of the accused must, before proceeding to conviction and punishment, other than a reprimand or minor punishment, afford the accused an opportunity of electing to be tried by a subordinate military court.(2) If the accused so elects, the SAFVC disciplinary officer must forward the documents specified in regulation 40(1) to the Director, Legal Services of the Singapore Armed Forces who may —| (a) | direct that a charge be submitted to the convening authority; or | | (b) | with the approval of the Armed Forces Council, direct that no action be taken against the accused either by way of disciplinary proceedings or by a subordinate military court. |
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| Time limits for disciplinary proceedings |
22.—(1) Subject to this regulation, no person is to be tried under these Regulations —| (a) | in any case where the person has been released or discharged from service within 6 months after the commission of the offence, after the expiry of 3 years from the date of the commission of the offence; or | | (b) | in any other case, after the expiry of 6 months from the date of the commission of the offence. |
| (2) Despite paragraph (1), the Armed Forces Council or any person authorised by the Council, may by order in writing direct a person to be tried after the expiry of the period of 6 months or 3 years referred to in paragraph (1) where the circumstances of the case so warrant. |
| (3) No person is to be tried after the expiry of any time limit specified in section 111 of the Act for the trial of any offence referred to in that section. |
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| 23. Every SAFVC disciplinary officer must keep a record of proceedings conducted by that SAFVC disciplinary officer under these Regulations and, upon the conclusion of the proceedings, must forward the record to the Director, Legal Services of the Singapore Armed Forces. |
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