The executive pastor of City Harvest Church has responded to recent developments which saw five of its leaders charged in court on Wednesday for alleged misuse of church funds.

Mr Aries Zulkarnain said in a statement on Thursday evening that the church stands by the five, which includes founding pastor Kong Hee, 47.

He added that Kong, who faces three charges of criminal breach of trust as an agent, and deputy pastor Tan Ye Peng, 39, who faces similar charges, will continue to preach at the church.

Speaking on behalf of the church board, Mr Bobby Chaw, the pastor in charge of missions at the church, said City Harvest had over the last two years taken action to comply with the code of governance set out by the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS).

'We replaced 50 per cent of our Board with new members. We engaged RSM Chio Lim to do a full internal audit and we have been putting their recommendations into action, and will continue to do so,' said Mr Chaw. 'We appreciate the need to maintain good corporate governance, and we are continuously working with MCYS to do so.'