On the afternoon of April 15, Singapore's Prime Minister's Office announced that 72-year-old Lee Hsien Loong will officially step down as prime minister next month to hand over the baton to the 51-year-old leader of the ruling People's Action Party's fourth-generation (4G) team, Lawrence Wong. According to the announcement, at 8 p.m. on May 15, the current Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Lawrence Wong will be sworn in at the Presidential Palace in Singapore.
Lee Hsien Loong (left) and Lawrence Wong (right) at the People's Action Party (PAP) congress on 5 November 2023
This means that the top political echelons of Singapore, with Lee Hsien Loong at its core, who have been in power for nearly 20 years, will formally hand over power to the fourth-generation leadership team. On the day of the announcement, Lee Hsien Loong wrote in a social media post that a change of leadership is an important moment for any country, and he called on Singaporeans to fully support Lawrence Wong and his team.
In the face of increasing international volatility, there is particular concern about how the new leadership team will manage its relations with major powers such as China and the United States, as well as with key neighbors. In terms of China-New Zealand relations, during Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's visit to China in March 2023, the two countries announced that they would upgrade their bilateral relations to a forward-looking partnership of all aspects, which has laid the course for the next development of China-New Zealand relations.
A young successor who is two years late for the handover and replacement
On the evening of August 20, 2023, Singapore held a National Day mass rally, and Lee Hsien Loong said in a speech that he had planned to step down as prime minister before his 70th birthday in 2022, but the new crown epidemic disrupted this plan. After three years, the pandemic has passed, and his handover plan is back on track.
In that speech, the only person he mentioned at the beginning was Finance Minister Lawrence Wong.
On August 20, 2023, Singapore held a National Day mass rally, and Lee Hsien Loong delivered a speech
In his speech, Lee Hsien Loong announced an increase in the consumption tax, for which the government will provide matching subsidies to the public to reduce the impact. He jokingly said, "Can the God of Wealth be generous again, so that everyone can receive a little more assistance? This is a very reasonable question." You ask me, who do I ask? I asked Finance Minister Lawrence Wong. ”
Speaking of this, the audience applauded continuously, including Huang Xuncai, who was sitting in the first row, couldn't help laughing.
On August 20, 2023, at the National Day mass meeting in Singapore, Lawrence Wong (centre) listens to Lee Hsien Loong's speech from the audience
The Minister of Finance has long been regarded as a potential candidate for prime minister in Singapore. In 2001, Lee Hsien Loong, who was already deputy prime minister, concurrently served as finance minister. Three years later, he succeeded the second prime minister, Goh Chok Tong, as the new prime minister. Goh Chok Tong, who graduated with a master's degree in economics, was also elected to the cabinet of founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew as finance minister.
But initially, the person in this high-profile position was not Huang Xuncai, but another person - Heng Ruijie. On April 8, 2021, then Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat announced that he had no intention of becoming the next Prime Minister due to his health and age, and would no longer concurrently serve as Finance Minister. He has written to Lee Hsien Loong to renounce becoming a fourth-generation team leader.
That year, Heng Swee Keat was 60 years old, and compared with Lee Hsien Loong, who was in his seventies, it seemed that there was still a lot to be done. However, comparing the inauguration years of previous prime ministers, it can be found that Heng Swee Keat is not empty talk. Lee Kuan Yew became prime minister in 1959 at the age of 36. In 1990, Goh Chok Tong succeeded him as prime minister at the age of 49. Lee Hsien Loong succeeded as prime minister in 2004 at the age of 52. Successive younger senior executives have worried that by the time the pandemic is over as prime minister, the tenure he will be able to do is too short.
On April 8, 2021, Heng Swee Keat announced that he would give up becoming a fourth-generation team leader
At the press conference on his resignation, Heng Swee Keat specifically mentioned that the post-epidemic era will be a very different world, and the requirements for the prime minister's incumbent will be more demanding. "Although I am in good health now, in the best interests of the country, I hope that younger people will take on the great challenges ahead," he said. ”
Heng Swee Keat gave up unexpectedly, allowing the fourth-generation team to start looking for leaders again. Two weeks later, the new finance minister was announced, and Lawrence Wong, who was the education minister, was entrusted with the important post. On 14 April 2022, Lee Hsien Loong issued a statement saying that Lawrence Wong had been selected as the new leader of the fourth-generation team. According to the website of Channel News Asia (CNA), 15 of the 19-member selection team chose Lawrence Wong as their first choice, while none of the other candidates received more than two votes.
In November 2023, at the PAP convention, Lee Hsien Loong announced that he would formally hand over power to Lawrence Wong before the 70th anniversary of the party's founding, which is November 2024. "Wong told me he was ready. I have a lot of confidence in Lawrence Wong and his team, and there is no reason to postpone the political transition. ”
Lee Hsien Loong wept during his speech at the PAP congress in November 2023
Why Lawrence Wong?
After announcing the date of his resignation, Lee Hsien Loong said in a social media post: "Lawrence and the 4G team have worked hard to earn the trust of the people, especially during the pandemic. Through the 'Singapore Together' campaign, they have worked with many Singaporeans to re-forge our social contract and set the national agenda for a new generation. ”
In this passage, Lee Hsien Loong mentions three of Wong's three major contributions to Singapore: the response to the pandemic, the "Singapore Together Together" campaign and the setting of the national agenda.
In January 2020, when the pandemic broke out, then-Minister of Health Gan Kim Yong and then-Minister for National Development Lawrence Wong co-chaired a multi-ministry task force to lead Singapore's fight against the pandemic. Almost every day, the two discussed the epidemic prevention policy behind closed doors before the media meeting, and then explained various decisions in front of the media camera. According to The Straits Times, throughout the crisis, Lawrence Wong has been unhurried, explaining policies clearly and calmly, and explaining various needs and trade-offs to Singaporeans.
On March 26, 2020, as Parliament paid tribute to frontline workers fighting the pandemic, Lawrence Wong choked back tears. In February 2023, the multi-ministry working group announced its disbandment, turning a new page in Singapore's three-year fight against the pandemic.
On 26 March 2020, Lawrence Wong delivered a speech in Parliament to pay tribute to frontline workers in the fight against the pandemic
The "Singapore Forward Together" campaign, launched by Lawrence Wong in June 2022, has also witnessed his frequent dialogue with the public. The 16-month campaign brought together the concerns and needs of 200,000 Singaporeans to discuss topics ranging from careers to ageing and environmental sustainability.
A 180-page survey report released in October 2023 charts a course for Singapore, including more assistance to the economically disadvantaged, middle-aged workers and the elderly through additional financial support and infrastructure improvements, as well as more measures to ensure that Singaporeans' basic needs at all stages of life, such as education, housing, healthcare and retirement, are met.
When it comes to setting the economic agenda, Lawrence Wong, who has a master's degree in economics, is no slouch. Since taking office as Finance Minister in May 2021, Lawrence Wong has issued three Budgets: Budget 2022 includes a series of progressive tax measures to fund major projects needed in Singapore in the coming years to address social inequalities, Budget 2023 continues to raise progressive taxes, increases maternity bonuses and doubles paternity leave to address the long-standing low fertility rate, and Budget 2024 includes further support for mid-career workers, Strengthen retirement support programs for the elderly, etc.
On April 15, 2024, Lawrence Wong released a video saying that he would take over as prime minister
After announcing his official succession, Lawrence Wong posted a video on social media in which he stood in front of the Singapore flag and said, "I accept this task with humility and a strong sense of responsibility, and I pledge to give my all in this cause and every ounce of my energy will be dedicated to serving our country and people." ”
China-Singapore meeting under the leadership of Lawrence Wong
"The team you brought this time...... Particularly. This shows the importance we attach to China. ”
From December 5 to 8, 2023, at the invitation of Ding Xuexiang, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Vice Premier of the State Council, Lawrence Wong, then Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of Singapore, visited China. On the 6th, Premier Li Qiang met with Lawrence Wong in Beijing. According to a report by "Lianhe Zaobao" on the 7th, this is the first opening sentence that Li Qiang said to Huang Xuncai after taking his seat.
On December 6, 2023, Premier Li Qiang met with Lawrence Wong in Beijing
The word "special" has multiple meanings: first, Lawrence Wong was leading a delegation to China as the successor of Singapore's prime minister for the first time, and second, the visit was accompanied by 11 high-level officials holding political positions in various departments, including the Minister of Trade and Industry, the Minister of Education, the Minister of Health, the Minister of Communications and Information, the Minister of National Development, the Minister in the Prime Minister's Office, The acting minister of the Ministry of Communications and others are the main force in the fourth-generation leadership team; third, the fourth-generation leadership team has chosen China in the way of collectively appearing to the world, and the significance is self-evident.
Even before the trip, Lawrence Wong himself had published a signed article in The Straits Times, in which he directly stated in the headline that the visit had three major goals: to expand economic ties, reshape the industrial landscape, and strengthen China-Singapore relations.
On the evening of 5 December 2023, Lawrence Wong (front row, first from left) meets Singaporeans living in Beijing
On the 6th, He Lifeng, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and director of the Central Finance Office, also met with Huang Xuncai in Beijing. Lianhe Zaobao reported that He Lifeng specifically mentioned the signing of a memorandum of cooperation with Huang Xuncai in 2017 on the "Belt and Road", and said: "More than six years have passed in a flash. I am sincerely happy to see that you have continued to improve and take on more and more important positions over the past six years. ”
On July 7, Ding Xuexiang met with Lawrence Wong in Tianjin and co-chaired four meetings of bilateral cooperation mechanisms, including the 19th meeting of the China-Singapore Joint Committee on Bilateral Cooperation (JCBC). On the same day, the two sides announced that they had reached 24 outcomes, including a 30-day visa waiver.
"Lianhe Zaobao" commented during Wong's visit to China that China and New Zealand have diplomatic relations for more than 30 years, and now Singapore is approaching the next leadership handover. In the face of increasing international volatility, there is particular concern about how the new leadership team will manage its relations with major powers such as China and the United States, as well as with key neighbors. In terms of China-New Zealand relations, during Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's visit to China in March 2023, the two countries announced that they would upgrade their bilateral relations to a forward-looking partnership of all aspects, which has laid the course for the next development of China-New Zealand relations.