For leaders, the subject of succession is gentle and occasionally violent. Succession planning in Singapore is quite the opposite; it highlights the dependability and consistency of the People’s Action Party( PAP ), which is in power at the time. & nbsp,
However, it seems to be a particularly challenging task for the current prime minister, Lee Hsien Loong. Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore’s first prime minister and regional leader, announced that Goh Chok Tong, his lieutenant, had been unanimously chosen as his son by the second generation of PAP government officials after 31 years in office. & nbsp,
Despite Lee’s distinct preference for Tony Tan over Goh and Ong Teng Cheong among his three delegates, this was the case. Later, Ong and Tan both held the office of leader.
The selection of Goh’s replacement went even more smoothly. Over a working lunch, the third-generation leaders of the PAP decided that Lee Hsien Loong, Lee Kuan Yew’s son, would be the new princeling-in-waiting & nbsp in 2004.
Lee, who has served as prime minister for nearly 20 years, has publicly discussed his retreat, announcing that Heng Swee Keat, the finance minister, was chosen as his lieutenant in 2019 by the third generation of PAP cabinet ministers. However, when Lee cited the need for security and delayed stepping down during the Covid – 19 pandemic, sequence was halted.
Lee’s succession plans suffered greatly as a result of the A & nbsp, an incredibly weak electoral victory in the 2020 general election, and an opposition Workers’ Party gain in an important Group Representation Constituency. & nbsp,
Heng declined the election for the position of son due to health reasons. The smooth automation that characterized Singapore’s earlier moves was in question. Lawrence Wong was chosen by the PAP’s fourth-generation rulers to succeed Lee as finance minister and deputy prime minister in late 2022. & nbsp,
Wong was subsequently named chairman of the Monetary Authority of Singapore & nbsp as well as the Investment Strategies Committee for the government’s Singapore Investment Corporation, the largest sovereign wealth fund in the city-state.
But, just as a succession strategy was beginning to take shape, Lee’s most difficult obstacle already materialized. A & nbsp, a string of scandals, shocked parliament in July.
The Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau started looking into allegations of corruption involving the rent of state-owned history houses by Ministers for Home Affairs K Shanmugam and Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan. & nbsp,
This problem arrived at a particularly delicate day when ordinary Singaporeans were dealing with rising home prices. The studies damaged the PAP’s reputation even though the allegations were proven to be false.
Senior Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam announced his resignation from the Malaysian congress on July 7 in order to run for president. The death of Tharman dealt Lee’s case yet another blow, despite not being a scandal. & nbsp,
In connection with a Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau problem research, Minister for Transport S Iswaran was detained on July 11 and released on bail. & nbsp,
Since 1986, this was the first day a secretary had been detained. In Singapore, where political leaders are among the highest paid in the world, Lee gave Iswaran the go-ahead to resign and take a leave of absence while his monthly salary was cut by 82 % to S$ 8, 500 ( US$ 6, 200 ), or the lower end of the base ministerial salary of S$ 46, 750.
The same day, Tan Chuan Jin, a former speaker of parliament, publicly apologized for calling opposition Member of Parliament ( MP ) Jamus Lim” a fucking populist.” This signaled the PAP’s additional separation from the concerns of the majority of Singaporeans and undermined Tan in ways that go beyond unparliamentary language. & nbsp,
Lim, on the other hand, called for more assistance for lower-income Singaporeans in his statement. Tan left Parliament within the year for a unique purpose: he had an inappropriate partnership with other PAP MP Cheng Li Hui, who had also resigned.
The July controversies add to a plethora of well-known issues. Even though each of these issues may not be particularly important on its own, the PAP’s status as an uncorruptible organization is tarnished by their combined appearance.
This comes in response to worries about PAP MP Tin Pei Ling’s appointment as head of government relations at Grab, one of the biggest tech companies in the area, to the legislative committee that oversees the communications and information sector. Additionally, there was the guilty & nbsp, charge, and later appeal of PAP MP Christopher de Souza for professional misconduct while he was representing clients.
Potential votes may be impacted by new PAP volatility if Lee’s inheritance planning depends on stability.
Tharman’s personal popularity, however, was limited by the fact that a 2016 survey & nbsp showed that 69 % of Singaporeans would support him as prime minister, limiting the extent to which the 2023 presidential election served as the litmus test for the PAP. Only 10 % of respondents preferred Lee’s newest successor Wong, according to the same survey.
Only in the following two years, when the scheduled standard election is to take place no later than November 2025, does a reliable assessment of the PAP’s help be made.
Lee acknowledged that Covid-19 and” several controversial issues” that” have drawn Singaporeans’ attention” disrupted his succession planning in his & nbsp, National Day Rally.
Given the recent scandals surrounding his team’s & nbsp, highest-ranking members, his request for trust in Wong and his PAP team is a particularly difficult one. Lee will need to tidy up his side’s work and come up with a stronger sense of morality than to” ownself check oneself.”
Kazimier Lim is a common policy analyst based in Sydney who works for an international management consultancy. He also writes about politics in aviation, foreign relations, and Asia.
This andnbsp, post, and was initially published by East Asia Forum and are being reprinted with permission from Creative Commons.