Constitution, Arts. He was not elected by the people in a vote, but became president by virtue of being the sole candidate deemed qualified by the Presidential Elections Committee. [102], Head of state of the Republic of Singapore, சிங்கப்பூர் குடியரசுத் தலைவர் Ciṅkappūr kuṭiyaracut talaivar, List of presidents of the Republic of Singapore. 22L(1)(a) to (c). 17(3); Presidential Elections Act (. 19(2)(c) read with Art. The president's name must appear in a current register of electors. 21(2)(e), 21(2)(f), 22B and 22D. PEA, s. 62A(2), inserted by the Presidential Elections (Amendment) Act 2010 (No. 1 diplomat". [17] In most cases, the president is bound to exercise their powers in accordance with the advice of the Cabinet or a minister acting under the Cabinet's general authority. The Cabinet is responsible for all government policies and the day-to-day administration of the affairs of state. S.R. The National Assembly ha… Constitution, Art. [16] However, the Constitution vests "general direction and control of the Government" in the Cabinet. The Legislature can pass a law requiring the President to act after consultation with, or on the recommendation of, any person or body of persons other than the Cabinet in the exercise of his or her functions other than those exercisable in his personal discretion or in respect of the Constitution has made other provision: Art. In other cases, he or she may consult the CPA if he or she wishes to but is not bound to do so. [13] She is also the first female President of Singapore. [39] Discussions culminated in the Government issuing a non-binding white paper entitled The Principles for Determining and Safeguarding the Accumulated Reserves of the Government and the Fifth Schedule Statutory Boards and Government Companies (1999). The last Yang di-Pertuan Negara, Yusof Ishak, became the first president. The eighth and current president, Halimah Yacob, took office on 14 September 2017, becoming the first president elected as she was the sole eligible candidate under the new reform terms which took effect earlier that year. Here's a look back at the history of the presidential system and the men who had held the highest office in the land. [9][10][11] He appealed against this decision, but the Court of Appeal also dismissed it.[12]. Cap. [88] A candidate or his or her counting agent may ask the returning officer for a recount of votes if the difference between the number of votes for the candidate with the most votes and any other candidate's number of votes is 2% or less. The returning officer then states the number of votes cast for each candidate and the date and location where the overseas votes will be counted.[90]. 11 of 2010) ("PEAA"). [99][100] The allowance for the Istana's household expenses (Class III) is $2,762,308, an increase from $694,000. Ed. Wee Kim Wee was the first president to exercise custodial powers pursuant to the constitutional amendments of 1991. [61] If the office of president becomes vacant before the incumbent's term expires, a poll for an election must be held within six months. [33], The president is also empowered to approve changes to key civil service positions, such as the chief justice, the attorney-general, the chairman and members of the Public Service Commission, the chief of Defence Force and the commissioner of police. [62] In other cases, an election can take place any time from three months before the expiry of the incumbent's term of office. [63], The procedure for elections is laid out in the Presidential Elections Act. SINGAPORE: President Halimah Yacob dissolved Parliament on Tuesday (Jun 23) on the advice of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said. A. He served as president from 1 September 1993 to 31 August 1999. If the chairman of the Council of Presidential Advisers is not available, the speaker of the Parliament performs the duties of the president. Presidential clemency, or presidential pardon, is an authority held by the President under the Singapore Constitution.It allows him, on Cabinet’s advice, to extend leniency towards those convicted of crimes upon receiving a petition for clemency.. Clemency is most commonly sought in respect of death sentences. The election was won by Tony Tan Keng Yam with 745,693 (35.19%) of valid votes. [53] The changes went into effect in April 2017. Ong Teng Cheong (b. A person shall not be disqualified under this clause by reason only of anything done by him before he became a citizen of Singapore: Constitution, Art. Published November 19, 2020, Your email address will not be published. A series of events and activities were held over the past year to commemorate this landmark anniversary. [86] After the poll closes, the presiding officer of each polling station seals the ballot boxes without opening them. [26], The powers of the president of Singapore are divided into those which the president may exercise in their own discretion, and those their must exercise in accordance with the advice of the Cabinet of Singapore or of a minister acting under the general authority of the Cabinet. He was re-elected on 17 August 2005; both his election came on walkovers without any opposing contestants. SINGAPORE - Five young Singaporeans were awarded the President's Scholarship on Wednesday (Aug 16) evening at the Istana. The scholarship is awarded to students who have distinguished themselves beyond excellence in academic pursuits and co-curricular activities. [97] With effect from 17 February 2012, the sum under Class I of the list, which includes the president's personal pay ($1,568,900, known by the British term the "privy purse"), an entertainment allowance ($73,000) and an allowance for an acting president ($4,500), is $1,646,400. Jump to: navigation, search. List of presidents of Singapore. 8 February 2002, Singapore) was the fifth president of Singapore and ... S. R. Nathan Sellapan Ramanathan (b. The body of Robert Mugabe has arrived back in Zimbabwe after a private flight from Singapore, where he died last week aged 95. A person who wishes to run for the office of president has to fulfil stringent qualifications set out in the Constitution, which are as follows: Assuming a writ for a presidential election has not yet been issued before the vacation of office or, if it has been issued, has been, Constitution, Art. The 2011 presidential election was the first election with a ballot since the 1993 election, and was also Singapore's first presidential election contested by more than two candidates. [54] The PEC consists of the chairman of the Public Service Commission, who is also the chairman of the PEC,[67] the chairman of the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority, and a member of the Presidential Council for Minority Rights. Singapore’s Presidents Madam Halimah Yacob, 63, is set to become Singapore's first female President. In this assortment, I added some appealing videos about singapore president. The office of President also becomes vacant if it is determined that the election of the President was void and no other person was duly elected as President, or if on the expiration of the incumbent's term the person declared elected as President fails to take office: Arts. 3 He was succeeded by S. R. Nathan, who was elected unopposed in 1999 and 2005, and held office for two six … The office of President was created in 1965 after Singapore became a republic upon its secession from the Federation of Malaysia that year. Owing to personal problems, Nair stepped down in 1985 and was replaced by Wee Kim Wee, who served as president until 1993. 22L(1)(d) and (e). The increase was to cater for higher expenses for maintaining computer systems, buildings and land, and to account for inflation. Upon his assumption of office, the president is required to take and subscribe in the presence of the chief justice or of another justice of the Supreme Court the Oath of Office, which states:[94]. 1961-1962 Lim Ho Hup. [27] In addition, the president is required to consult the Council of Presidential Advisers (CPA) when performing some of his functions. The sixth president was S. R. Nathan. [18] The President only exercises limited powers in their personal discretion[19] to block attempts by the government of the day to draw down past reserves it did not accumulate, to approve changes to key appointments, and to exercise oversight over the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau and decisions of the Executive under the Internal Security Act[5] and the Maintenance of Religious Harmony Act. The first popularly elected president was Ong Teng Cheong, a former cabinet minister. In addition, the president contributes to the nation's external relations by undertaking overseas trips on Cabinet's advice. The disqualification of a person under clauses (d) and (e) may be removed by the President and shall, if not so removed, cease at the end of five years beginning from the date on which the return mentioned in clause (d) was required to be lodged or, as the case may be, the date on which the person convicted as mentioned in clause (e) was released from custody or the date on which the fine mentioned in clause (1) (e) was imposed on such person: Constitution, Art. List of Singaporean prime ministers, leaders and heads of state. [14], The president is the head of state of Singapore. 45(2). However, the Singapore Government has, on the advice of the Attorney-General's Chambers,[7] deemed Ong's predecessor Wee Kim Wee the first elected president, on the basis that he had held and exercised the powers of the elected president. [60] The office falls vacant upon the expiry of the incumbent's term or if the president is for some reason unable to complete their term; for example, due to death, resignation, or removal from office for misconduct or mental or physical infirmity. After he stepped down, Tony Tan won the 27 August 2011 presidential election by a narrow 0.34% margin. [101] Overall, the current civil list of $9,491,100 represents a decrease of about 18% from the sum for the past fiscal year of $11,605,000. singapore's 11 president scholars received their awards from president dr benjamin henry sheares in a floodlit ceremony at the istana. If so, the returning officer declares the candidate with the highest number of votes to be elected as President. [65] Potential candidates must obtain certificates of eligibility from the Presidential Elections Committee (PEC), the function of which is to ensure that such persons have the necessary qualifications to be nominated as a candidate for the election. The Singapore Parliament is unicameral and together with the President of Singapore is known as the Legislature. Thus, a guarantee may only be given or a loan raised by the Government if the president concurs,[29] and his or her approval is also needed for budgets of specified statutory boards and Government companies that draw on their past reserves. Candidates or their polling agents may also affix their own seals to the ballot boxes. Singapore has named its first female president, Halimah Yacob. 32B(1) and (4). The national constitution sets strict eligibility conditions for the presidency. 2 After the legislation on elected presidency came into effect on 30 November 1991, Singapore held its first presidential election on 28 August 1993 and Ong Teng Cheong became the country’s first elected president. At No. The privy purse was reduced from $4,267,500 after the president accepted the Ministerial Salaries Review Committee's recommendations on the matter. The Prime Minister of the Republic of Singapore is the head of the government of the Republic of Singapore.The President of Singapore chooses as Prime Minister a Member of Parliament (MP) who, he thinks, will have the highest chance of being supported by a majority of MPs.. [6], As a component of the legislature together with Parliament, the president is also jointly vested with legislative authority. The prime minister of the Republic of Singapore is the head of the government of the Republic of Singapore and the country's most powerful political figure. The Presidential Standard is flown at the Istana in the day, when the President is in the country. 19(2)(c) read with Art. Articles from the Constitution were drawn from provisions in three statutes; the Republic of Singapore Independence Act (1965), the Constitution of the State of Singapore (1963), and the Federal Constitution of Malaysia. In January 1991, the Constitution[4] was amended to provide for the popular election of the president, a major constitutional and political change in Singapore's history. Your email address will not be published. Nathan to draw $4.9 billion from past financial reserves to meet current budget expenditure, the first time it had done so. Just relax with by watching them and listen to the relaxing music. [98], The salaries for the president's personal staff (Class II) amount to $4,532,400. [98], Class IV expenses for "special services" are $550,000. If both are unavailable the presidential functions are performed by an individual appointed by the Parliament, The Parliament of Singapore is required to provide a civil list for the maintenance of the president,[96] and it does so by way of the Civil List and Gratuity Act. 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