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Lawrence Wong to become Prime Minister of Singapore on May 15

Tuesday, April 23, 2024

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Lawrence Wong (left) will succeed Lee Hsien Loong (right) as Prime Minister of Singapore on May 15
Image: 首相官邸ホームページ & Ash Carter.

Current Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore Lawrence Wong is slated to become the fourth Prime Minister of the city-state on May 15, 2024, taking over the role from Lee Hsien Loong who has been serving as Prime Minister since 2004.

A statement by the Prime Minister's Office on April 15 said that Wong will be sworn in at The Istana at 8:00 p.m. SGT (1200 UTC) on May 15, and that he has the "unanimous support" of Members of Parliament from the ruling People's Action Party (PAP).

Wong said in a Facebook post that he accepts the role with "humility and a deep sense of duty", and that, "...every ounce of [his] energy shall be devoted to the service of [Singapore] and [its] people."

Wong was a civil servant who worked at various ministries prior to being elected to parliament in 2011. His previous roles included multiple ministerial appointments and co-chair of the task force on dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore. At the time of the announcement, he is serving as Minister for Finance and Chairman of the Monetary Authority of Singapore in addition to being the Deputy Prime Minister.

He was first hinted to be the successor of Lee in 2021, when he was named as the leadership of PAP's fourth-generation (4G) team, succeeding Heng Swee Keat who stepped down due to his age. Lee had originally planned to step down as Prime Minister in 2022, but pushed back the date due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He will take up the role of Senior Minister after stepping down.


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