Our civil servants must be responsible for the loss of $388 million.

The government, through PSD and ISA are right in writing the letters of explanation for the process leading to the mistake of the $388m payout.

However, the government should have been proactive in disclosing the details of the "isolated" mistake, instead of doing so only after repeated calls by the public. By being proactive, the government will demonstrate that it takes its sense of public accountability seriously.

I do not agree that it world be "inappropriate to punish the review committee or any of its members" for losing $388m to a public listed company. It is disconcerting to hear from the government that by punishing them, "that would only encourage a culture where civil servants shield away from taking responsibilities, and avoid making mistakes for fear of committing mistakes."

What will happen to employees in a commercial entity if they lose $388 m due to an isolated and genuine mistake, much less in this case when the public trust is at stake?

I believe our civil servants should be held responsible and given appropriate chastisement for losing $388 m of taxpayer monies, a significant sum in the face of economic downturn, so as to create the culture whereby civil servants will " get their facts right, and to check and double-check details and assumptions." Even a rap on the knuckles is better than letting them off scott free.

We should and must give second chances to people who make mistakes, but on the other hand, we should not cultivate a culture in our civil service that one can make mistakes and not be responsible for them.