Lawrence Wong led the Singapore delegation to UNESCO for the heritage award for the Singapore Botanic Gardens. Together with the ministerial team, he kept Singapore safe so that we could live life normally.
There’s another side of Lawrence that few know. He plays the guitar and sings and loves animals.
While there may be bumps in the road to leadership renewal – ultimately it is not about speed, but coming to the best decision for the country.
And there remain four worthy “contenders” in Chan Chun Sing, Ong Ye Kung, Lawrence Wong and Desmond Lee, each with their own strengths. Not forgetting – with age on their side to take the country forward into greater decades to come.
The 4G Team describes the unexpected turn of events as a setback for succession planning. They said in a statement, "We recognise that Singaporeans will be concerned. We seek your support and understanding, as we choose another leader for the team. We will continue working as a team to serve our people, and to earn the confidence and trust of all Singaporeans."
The Team is glad that DPM Heng will remain a member of their team, and will continue in his roles as DPM and Coordinating Minister for Economic Policies. "We have all benefited from his experience and expertise, and we look forward to his continued advice and contributions as we navigate our recovery and chart Singapore's path forward."
We need a leader who will not only rebuild Singapore post-COVID-19 but also lead the next phase of our nation-building effort. Having worked with you, ESM Goh Chok Tong and MM Lee Kuan Yew, I know that the top job imposes exceptional demand on the officeholder. In a very different post-COVID-19 world, the demands will be even more exacting. While I am in good health today, it is in the best interests of the nation for someone who is younger to tackle the huge challenges ahead.
After careful deliberation and discussion with my family, I have decided to step aside as leader of the 4G team, so that a younger leader who will have a longer runway can take over. It will be for the 4G team to choose this person, and I stand ready to support the next leader.
I appreciate the support of Singaporeans and have made this decision with the best interests of Singapore and Singaporeans at heart.
It is irresponsible of the Workers' Party Faisal Manap to raise the issue in Parliament.
His approach is divisive and clearly political. It's meant to stir the angst of people. One must remember that Faisal also famously declared in Parliament that politics and religion cannot be separated. Just imagine if believers of every other religion adopt the same stand in Parliament and freely mix politics with religion on every occasion.
This precarious harmony that we have so diligently and conscientiously built, that is the envy of the world, will be fragmented in no time.
While discussions behind closed doors had been ongoing for many years, Faisal chose to raise it in Parliament to score political points and claim credits when change has in fact evolved.
It's easy to make a popular call for smaller class size but a politician must imagine himself implementing his own policies. For example, if Jamus is implementing his own policies, he will reduce class size while also reducing funding for popular primary schools. Think of the implications for the students and teachers in these primary schools.
What has the religious beliefs of top civil servants got to do with detention of a teenage Christian boy, that prompted Pritam's question? Absolutely nothing. Pritam's attempt to make insinuations and cast doubts on civil servants is sadly divisive and unprogressive.
Jamus' simplistic call for a high carbon tax to hasten the exit of brown industries fails to take important things into consideration, like jobs displacement.
A day of politics in the House as Pritam Singh and PSP Leong Mun Wai put politics above Singaporeans' interests in the TraceTogether saga.
Who is Kirsten Han?
She needs no introduction. She relishes every opportunity to write to the foreign press to tarnish Singapore's reputation to the international community.
