fuyumi

HIS REPLY: Sorry, but...

THERE'S no doubt that TT Durai turned the National Kidney Foundation (NKF) into a profitable success. It was slick, professional and looked to be ahead of its time.

Hundreds of kidney patients benefited from the programmes he set up. But the success came at a price.

Durai took many liberties with the truth, particularly about the way he used funds from public donations.

And there was one burning question that he still hasn't responded to.

How does he feel about misleading the public?

He said: 'Sorry. I don't wish to talk about that.'

Critics say Durai was a hard man. He sued those who dared to criticise him. He was aloof with the media.

But was he a good man?

Interior designer David Tan was the man whom Durai paid $20,000 to.

Forensic accountants found the payment dubious.

Mr Tan then became the key prosecution witness.

Yet Mr Tan said: 'Poor thing. Durai has done a lot of good work for Singapore. He's not a wicked man.

'I still regard Durai as a good friend and I wish him well.'

Durai himself had no doubt.

He said he gave kidney patients a better quality of life through subsidised dialysis.

'I set out to build the best dialysis programmes in the world and I've achieved that.

'Today, kidney patients can live 15 to 20 years longer on dialysis. Of course, the best solution is still a kidney transplant.'

He spoke of a patient, Ms Bernadette Png, who had dialysis at NKF before undergoing a transplant in 1999.

Ms Png was just 16 when her kidneys failed.

Durai said: 'Her younger brother had kidney failure too. Poor things.'

Few would deny that Durai did help. Charity groups wanted to emulate NKF's slick fund-raising machinery at its height.

MACHIAVELLIAN

But his approach was always almost Machiavellian: The end justifies the means.

To help hundreds, he betrayed thousands.

He raised millions for charity and expected to be highly paid.

He blurred the lines and appeared to have muddled his objectives.

But his woes are far from over. On Wednesday, he will be in the High Court. NKF lawyers will grill Durai about his assets and liabilities.

They want to know if he can pay more than $700,000 in damages and costs.

As for yesterday's guilty verdict, the judge decided his silence was a big factor in reaching his decision. Durai's silence cost him dearly

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