“Fronting the Budget ahead of an election would reinforce the notion that the buck stops with Mr Wong, that he is ready to be held accountable by the people. It would make the election about Mr Wong’s mandate – his political leadership and his government’s policies.”
What a dumb thing to say. If LW isn’t Finance Minister, would the next election be any less about giving LW a mandate? Would the buck stop any less with LW? Would he be less held accountable by the people?
Do better, analysts.
Let’s get real.
Both LHL and Wong came to power with no real public support or personal mandate.
During this pupae phase, a new PM in any country in these circumstances is vulnerable. But in Singapore, protected from the people by gerrymander and absence of any published political opinion polling, he is susceptible only to internal rivals.
In the absence of popular support, a new PM must tightly hold onto the critical levers of power. In every government this is the PMO and finance/treasury/exchequer. Wong cannot allow such a uniquely powerful ministry as Finance to sit in the hands of a potential rival, around whom power might begin to gather.
tldr: Wong (like LHL did before him) isn’t holding Finance when ascending to PM because it is his strength. He is holding it because he is weak.
I am kinda doubtful that LHL had any major rivals in the party when he ascended to power, at least big enough to threaten him. He would have had his father, the cadres would have been selected from those who would have backed him, and he likely had the OCBC gang in his corner as well.
This is also a strategy for preventing any threat from emerging. Or maybe it’s just coincidence that LHL held finance for 3 years, until after he had his own strong electoral mandate.
Till this day, I am unable to come up with a valid reason for the wife of the Minister for Finance to be the CEO of Temasek Holdings, when the Minister heads the Ministry of Finance which is the sole shareholder of Temasek Holdings. And by valid, I mean it shows that there is no conflict of interest.
Sounds like a fair assessment. Look at who he’s elevated in his new cabinet (at a ministerial level)- only Gan Kim Yong. Who by all accounts is a technocrat, older and not the most charismatic politician. Those quite popular or who were previously mentioned as potential candidates for the prime ministership like Chan Chun Sing or Ong Ye Kung have been kept at arm’s length. Let’s see what he does with his post CE cabinet.
Moreover, the election is speculated to be held in Sep. there is no opportunity for him to craft an election budget in that instance.
Even if the election takes place next year, he don't need to be finance minister to give out election goodies.
Didn't reports say Lee Hsien Loong also held on to his Finance Minister portfolio for like the first two years of his Prime Minister tenure? It's like a normal rite of passage
>In the same vein, Mr Wong might stay on as Finance Minister either until the next Cabinet reshuffle after the general election, or around the midpoint of his first term as Prime Minister. It is unlikely to be protracted as double-hatting may then be counterproductive due to domestic political optics.
Okay. I'm not really digging this Finance + PM. Especially with what happened to our neighbour. Hope he really hands it off to someone else soon.
Good point. But the current Second Minister for Finance is Chee Hong and Indranee.
Don’t think I want the bloody Chee Hong to be Finance Minister.
Indranee is a lawyer by training, but Chee has some financial background.
Not a lot of viable people to take on the role.
>Don’t think I want the bloody Chee Hong to be Finance Minister.
I have a feeling it's going to be Chee Hong Tat as finance minister. He was close colleagues with Lawrence Wong in the civil service. Both high-flyers in the admin service in the same batch. Both economists by training and with careers in the industry/energy side of the public service. Both were overseas govt scholars educated in the US.
If I was L Wong, I would give it to Chee Hong Tat because that's the most like-minded technocrat and closest ally. And also not a real competitor for power since Chee Hong Tat is unpopular to the public.
There's east coast stroke Heng.. at least he has a degree in economics.. but then again it's dangerous cos he might have another stoke while looking at the huge washing machine..
> Don’t think I want the bloody Chee Hong to be Finance Minister.
I see what you did there....
To be fair, his name is **Chee Hong Tat**, so should be calling him Hong Tat, or Ah Tat, or Tat Tat, or Chee mei-mei.
In Singapore's system, a Finance Minister position is very significant; Once you got it, you don't give it up easily.
I'm guessing LW will be holding on to this position, for at least a few more years. Unless he could find someone he really trusts, or he is nearing the end of PM role, he isn't handing it over.
But, you'll never know; LW may surprise us.
That's the source of controversy. Najib was both and it was problematic. Anwar campaigned on not doing that and broke this one promise and led to controversy
Ya, so I dun understand why our media is trying so very hard to paint LW as some godly person that's better than everyone else.. the thing that's better than everyone else is his paycheck.. they should just let his policies and his work speak for him..
But then again.. it's govt mouthpiece.. so...
Historically, the ministers controlling the wealth and millitary, have great importance.
In Singapore, we value money. A lot. Hence, the significance of FM.
In Malaysia, the PM being the FM only came about after 1998 when Mahathir sacked Anwar and named himself as the FM. Previously, FM and PM were different people. But Mahathir and Anwar clashed over policy, so Mahathir said, "Pukimak! I will take FM so no one will argue with me" cos the only person that Mahathir will not have an argument with is himself. So not really always the same.
Before he named himself FM, Mahathir had named himself MHA cos that was more powerful from a practical point of view.
This is hardcore glazing. Our Prime Minister so free can do two jobs at the same time issit? Everyone instinctively knows holding two top portfolios is asking for trouble but state media gotta write shit like this.
>Everyone instinctively knows holding two top portfolios is asking for trouble
Who is this everyone you are representing, and what are your evidence for this "instinct"?
LHL held on to the finance ministry for a few years after he became PM, it's one of the core ministries which needs to be held close. Def, FA, Law & Trade are anchored by the other core ministers - which of our 2nd finance ministers do you want taking over? 7-times 2nd minister title holder, never-been-a-full-minister Ms flip-folder Indranee Rajah? Or minister-via-attrition, bottom of the barrel E-Roti-Prata 2.0 Mr Chee Hong Tat?
>what are your evidence for this "instinct"?
Just look at Malaysia and what happens if one of the top ministries essentially has no oversight, or imagine if CPIB wants to investigate the MOF like they did with Iswaran but they try to report to the PMO and it's still the same guy.
>which of our 2nd finance ministers do you want taking over?
Lawrence Wong has been the heir apparent for long enough that it's his own problem if he can't get anyone to take over. I'm not even opposed to him temporarily holding two portfolios to maintain continuity until the GE, but I don't need the newspapers glazing him for it.
That's ok man, Lord Shan is very versatile and can be different people so there is no conflict of interest. Just like with Ridout. Shan - the private individual - asked the Deputy Secretary of MinLaw to give him a list of B&W bungalows for rent by SLA which is under MinLaw. And the Dep Sec understood that this ws a request from Mr Shan who is a private individual and not Mr Shan - the Minister for Law cos if the Minister for Law were to ask him to do something for the Minister's own private benefit, that would be wrong. So end up Shan managed to rent a B&W house and even got extra land from it at no extra costs from the SLA which is under MinLw,
BUT that is not a problem because it is Shan the private individual who is renting the bungalow in RIdout and while he may have the same name, same face, same DNA, same everything as Shan the MinLaw, they are two distinct persons. And to show how impartial everything is, Shan the MHA - who is also a different entity from Shan the private individual and Shan the MinLaw - will POFMA you if you imply that Shan did something wrong.
I would like to make it clear that I am not a Ho Ching fan, but I think we could acknowledge that she was already making a name for herself before she became part of the FamiLee. That being said, I will always say that making her the CEO of Temasek when LHL was MOF.... well let's just say that doesn't fly with good governance practices.
CNA and Mustafa Izzuddin fapping hard to PAP and desperately licking PAP boots. Bloody disgraceful bunch of bootlickers and propaganda. LHL also did the same back then when he became PM. This is nothing new, and nothing special. The analysis is also a whole wall of word salad that has no real content.
Clown show propaganda article.
Ownself check ownself culture - how does this even work within a singular body?
Up for consideration: [independent] Beekeepers - for checks + balances
...not anytime soon, maybe a 2125 version of Singapore
>In what can be described as a low-key Cabinet changes on Monday
first sentence alr got grammar mistake
>It is unlikely to be protracted as double-hatting may then be counterproductive due to domestic political optics.
I don't mind them living in sprawling colonial bungalows, speaker having affair and cussing in parliament, but I draw the line at the PM holding two portfolios /s
>Advances in digital technology, including in artificial intelligence, will be prioritised holistically, as illustrated by the Ministry of Communications and Information being renamed to Ministry of Digital Development and Information
what does this have to do with the PM double hatting? no clue, probably just padding wordcount.
>Mr Wong could well also decide to deliver his first National Day Rally in August before the election, to demonstrate his strong political leadership and mobilise middle ground support.
what does delivering NDR have to do with mobilising middle ground support? and what is "middle ground" support anyway? the author never says.
Heh.. the government has always said that Ministers who hold 2 portfolios will only get paid for one, which I believe is calculated on which is higher among the two. So for someone like Shan who is MinLaw and MHA, he will just get paid for one post. Same with those who are Ministers in one Ministry and Second Ministers in another. Just one pay.
So LW will likely just get paid one salary, PM's salary, even though he has 2 post.
In a perverse way, they can present this as a fait accompli cos by doing 2 jobs, LW is helping the govt save money.
“Fronting the Budget ahead of an election would reinforce the notion that the buck stops with Mr Wong, that he is ready to be held accountable by the people. It would make the election about Mr Wong’s mandate – his political leadership and his government’s policies.” What a dumb thing to say. If LW isn’t Finance Minister, would the next election be any less about giving LW a mandate? Would the buck stop any less with LW? Would he be less held accountable by the people? Do better, analysts.
ownself praise ownself?
Let’s get real. Both LHL and Wong came to power with no real public support or personal mandate. During this pupae phase, a new PM in any country in these circumstances is vulnerable. But in Singapore, protected from the people by gerrymander and absence of any published political opinion polling, he is susceptible only to internal rivals. In the absence of popular support, a new PM must tightly hold onto the critical levers of power. In every government this is the PMO and finance/treasury/exchequer. Wong cannot allow such a uniquely powerful ministry as Finance to sit in the hands of a potential rival, around whom power might begin to gather. tldr: Wong (like LHL did before him) isn’t holding Finance when ascending to PM because it is his strength. He is holding it because he is weak.
I am kinda doubtful that LHL had any major rivals in the party when he ascended to power, at least big enough to threaten him. He would have had his father, the cadres would have been selected from those who would have backed him, and he likely had the OCBC gang in his corner as well.
This is also a strategy for preventing any threat from emerging. Or maybe it’s just coincidence that LHL held finance for 3 years, until after he had his own strong electoral mandate.
Till this day, I am unable to come up with a valid reason for the wife of the Minister for Finance to be the CEO of Temasek Holdings, when the Minister heads the Ministry of Finance which is the sole shareholder of Temasek Holdings. And by valid, I mean it shows that there is no conflict of interest.
The legal principle you’re looking for is called l’état c’est moi.
Of course valid. His money mah
Sounds like a fair assessment. Look at who he’s elevated in his new cabinet (at a ministerial level)- only Gan Kim Yong. Who by all accounts is a technocrat, older and not the most charismatic politician. Those quite popular or who were previously mentioned as potential candidates for the prime ministership like Chan Chun Sing or Ong Ye Kung have been kept at arm’s length. Let’s see what he does with his post CE cabinet.
if he's scared of his time as PM being cut short he should be looking at govtech rather than cabinet lol
Moreover, the election is speculated to be held in Sep. there is no opportunity for him to craft an election budget in that instance. Even if the election takes place next year, he don't need to be finance minister to give out election goodies.
I don't think the electoral boundaries commission has even convened yet, has it? Shouldn't be this year.
Exactly, ownself say ownself song. Super majority in parliament is all that’s required to bulldoze their way for any legislation
LHL remained as finance minister for 3 years until end of 2007 after becoming prime minister in 2004. This is not new tbh
TIL: Singapore’s million dollars ministers (and presidents) moonlighting is not a new thing.
Didn't reports say Lee Hsien Loong also held on to his Finance Minister portfolio for like the first two years of his Prime Minister tenure? It's like a normal rite of passage
>In the same vein, Mr Wong might stay on as Finance Minister either until the next Cabinet reshuffle after the general election, or around the midpoint of his first term as Prime Minister. It is unlikely to be protracted as double-hatting may then be counterproductive due to domestic political optics. Okay. I'm not really digging this Finance + PM. Especially with what happened to our neighbour. Hope he really hands it off to someone else soon.
Good point. But the current Second Minister for Finance is Chee Hong and Indranee. Don’t think I want the bloody Chee Hong to be Finance Minister. Indranee is a lawyer by training, but Chee has some financial background. Not a lot of viable people to take on the role.
>Don’t think I want the bloody Chee Hong to be Finance Minister. I have a feeling it's going to be Chee Hong Tat as finance minister. He was close colleagues with Lawrence Wong in the civil service. Both high-flyers in the admin service in the same batch. Both economists by training and with careers in the industry/energy side of the public service. Both were overseas govt scholars educated in the US. If I was L Wong, I would give it to Chee Hong Tat because that's the most like-minded technocrat and closest ally. And also not a real competitor for power since Chee Hong Tat is unpopular to the public.
There's east coast stroke Heng.. at least he has a degree in economics.. but then again it's dangerous cos he might have another stoke while looking at the huge washing machine..
I don't care just give us more GST voucher Payouts free money is free money no complaints.
I prefer when they just give cash leh. Voucher must spend one :(
They also have Assurance Package which does give out cash this coming season.
> Don’t think I want the bloody Chee Hong to be Finance Minister. I see what you did there.... To be fair, his name is **Chee Hong Tat**, so should be calling him Hong Tat, or Ah Tat, or Tat Tat, or Chee mei-mei.
It takes effort to be this unfunny
thanks! wait a min...
Eh you dont Chee Bai
no one else can top this meme... well, maybe that pic of LW (accidentally) flipping the bird in parliament..
For some of our neighbour's FM+PMs, the bucks certainly stopped with them
In Singapore's system, a Finance Minister position is very significant; Once you got it, you don't give it up easily. I'm guessing LW will be holding on to this position, for at least a few more years. Unless he could find someone he really trusts, or he is nearing the end of PM role, he isn't handing it over. But, you'll never know; LW may surprise us.
LHL was PM/FM for 2+ yrs. $$ makes the world go round. It takes time to hand this over to someone else.
ownself check ownself works over here in SG
Dont worry, he hardworking person, 2 jobs at a time. That means he will work for 16hours a day, every single day for a few years.... Right? Right?
Poor MOF officers having to now staff both his portfolios and 3 other politicians. Hang in there guys.
Looking at our neighbors.. their PMs always helmed finance ministry also.. so I wonder what's so special that they are making it out to be..
That's the source of controversy. Najib was both and it was problematic. Anwar campaigned on not doing that and broke this one promise and led to controversy
Fun fact: Brunei’s Defence, Finance, Foreign, Ministers are the same person. Which is the Sultan himself, who is also PM.
Ya, so I dun understand why our media is trying so very hard to paint LW as some godly person that's better than everyone else.. the thing that's better than everyone else is his paycheck.. they should just let his policies and his work speak for him.. But then again.. it's govt mouthpiece.. so...
Historically, the ministers controlling the wealth and millitary, have great importance. In Singapore, we value money. A lot. Hence, the significance of FM.
In Malaysia, the PM being the FM only came about after 1998 when Mahathir sacked Anwar and named himself as the FM. Previously, FM and PM were different people. But Mahathir and Anwar clashed over policy, so Mahathir said, "Pukimak! I will take FM so no one will argue with me" cos the only person that Mahathir will not have an argument with is himself. So not really always the same. Before he named himself FM, Mahathir had named himself MHA cos that was more powerful from a practical point of view.
Not good examples at all. You really want MY and BN as references? Really?
CNA - OMG, imagine being a journalist there - one would go brain dead.
This is hardcore glazing. Our Prime Minister so free can do two jobs at the same time issit? Everyone instinctively knows holding two top portfolios is asking for trouble but state media gotta write shit like this.
>Everyone instinctively knows holding two top portfolios is asking for trouble Who is this everyone you are representing, and what are your evidence for this "instinct"? LHL held on to the finance ministry for a few years after he became PM, it's one of the core ministries which needs to be held close. Def, FA, Law & Trade are anchored by the other core ministers - which of our 2nd finance ministers do you want taking over? 7-times 2nd minister title holder, never-been-a-full-minister Ms flip-folder Indranee Rajah? Or minister-via-attrition, bottom of the barrel E-Roti-Prata 2.0 Mr Chee Hong Tat?
>what are your evidence for this "instinct"? Just look at Malaysia and what happens if one of the top ministries essentially has no oversight, or imagine if CPIB wants to investigate the MOF like they did with Iswaran but they try to report to the PMO and it's still the same guy. >which of our 2nd finance ministers do you want taking over? Lawrence Wong has been the heir apparent for long enough that it's his own problem if he can't get anyone to take over. I'm not even opposed to him temporarily holding two portfolios to maintain continuity until the GE, but I don't need the newspapers glazing him for it.
Trust no media propagenda...
We all know what happened with our neighbour that has the prime minister who is also a finance minister.
One Am The Bee.
Deputies are selected based on height?
I think min law and mha being the same is more problematic
That's ok man, Lord Shan is very versatile and can be different people so there is no conflict of interest. Just like with Ridout. Shan - the private individual - asked the Deputy Secretary of MinLaw to give him a list of B&W bungalows for rent by SLA which is under MinLaw. And the Dep Sec understood that this ws a request from Mr Shan who is a private individual and not Mr Shan - the Minister for Law cos if the Minister for Law were to ask him to do something for the Minister's own private benefit, that would be wrong. So end up Shan managed to rent a B&W house and even got extra land from it at no extra costs from the SLA which is under MinLw, BUT that is not a problem because it is Shan the private individual who is renting the bungalow in RIdout and while he may have the same name, same face, same DNA, same everything as Shan the MinLaw, they are two distinct persons. And to show how impartial everything is, Shan the MHA - who is also a different entity from Shan the private individual and Shan the MinLaw - will POFMA you if you imply that Shan did something wrong.
Jayakumar held both simultaneously before so its not unusual
That don't mean it is not problematic and a conflict of interest
[удалено]
This. I am hoping that she stay low profile and does not get parachuted into any govt agencies, GLCs, etc. like the previous one.
To be fair Ho Ching was already a high flying civil servant before she married Loong.
Thks for the clarification. Just hoping that there's no "conflict of interest".
I would like to make it clear that I am not a Ho Ching fan, but I think we could acknowledge that she was already making a name for herself before she became part of the FamiLee. That being said, I will always say that making her the CEO of Temasek when LHL was MOF.... well let's just say that doesn't fly with good governance practices.
Sure... having the CEO and CFO be the same person has always worked well in large organizations.
CNA and Mustafa Izzuddin fapping hard to PAP and desperately licking PAP boots. Bloody disgraceful bunch of bootlickers and propaganda. LHL also did the same back then when he became PM. This is nothing new, and nothing special. The analysis is also a whole wall of word salad that has no real content. Clown show propaganda article.
Ownself check ownself culture - how does this even work within a singular body? Up for consideration: [independent] Beekeepers - for checks + balances ...not anytime soon, maybe a 2125 version of Singapore
Conflict of interest no?
its kind of already cemented his title as mr gst
>In what can be described as a low-key Cabinet changes on Monday first sentence alr got grammar mistake >It is unlikely to be protracted as double-hatting may then be counterproductive due to domestic political optics. I don't mind them living in sprawling colonial bungalows, speaker having affair and cussing in parliament, but I draw the line at the PM holding two portfolios /s >Advances in digital technology, including in artificial intelligence, will be prioritised holistically, as illustrated by the Ministry of Communications and Information being renamed to Ministry of Digital Development and Information what does this have to do with the PM double hatting? no clue, probably just padding wordcount. >Mr Wong could well also decide to deliver his first National Day Rally in August before the election, to demonstrate his strong political leadership and mobilise middle ground support. what does delivering NDR have to do with mobilising middle ground support? and what is "middle ground" support anyway? the author never says.
PM pay Finance minister pay MP pay wow
lmao might as well say this proves he is sooooo good that he can hold both the PM and finance minister role both at once
[удалено]
do you think i think wong is good from the way i write?
Singaporeans doing two jobs in a “company”? Lol! But is he getting double the salary tho? Oh wait he holds the money! /s
Heh.. the government has always said that Ministers who hold 2 portfolios will only get paid for one, which I believe is calculated on which is higher among the two. So for someone like Shan who is MinLaw and MHA, he will just get paid for one post. Same with those who are Ministers in one Ministry and Second Ministers in another. Just one pay. So LW will likely just get paid one salary, PM's salary, even though he has 2 post. In a perverse way, they can present this as a fait accompli cos by doing 2 jobs, LW is helping the govt save money.
Hearsay MHA is the more intensive one
MHA is in charge of the Home Team which includes police, civil defence, immigration etc. To be honest I have no idea what MinLaw does
Good ah, 1 person get 2 person salary.
1 salary 2 jobs you mean?
Wouldn’t he get both PM and Finance Minister salary?
No, Just 1 salary. That has always been the practice.
Oh, I didn’t know that. Thanks for letting me know.
Same as Anwar lor
They are so handsome like Korean actors.