President of Singapore in the context of "Prime Minister's Office (Singapore)"

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⭐ Core Definition: President of Singapore

The president of Singapore, officially the President of the Republic of Singapore, is the head of state of Singapore. The president represents the country in official diplomatic functions and possesses certain executive powers over the government of Singapore, including the control of the national reserves and the ability to revoke and appoint public service appointments.

After Singapore achieved full internal self-governance from the British Empire in 1959, the ceremonial office of the Yang di-Pertuan Negara (lit.'Lord of the State') was created, where it was first held by the governor of Singapore William Goode. The office was later succeeded by the president of Singapore following Singapore's independence from Malaysia in 1965. The initial role of the president was predominantly a ceremonial institution, serving as the representative of the Singaporean state both at home and abroad. It carried limited residual powers, and prior to 1991, the president was solely appointed by the parliament of Singapore. Singapore follows a non-executive model of the Westminster parliamentary system whereby the president is not the head of government but rather the head of state; these powers are instead vested in the Cabinet, which is led by the prime minister.

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👉 President of Singapore in the context of Prime Minister's Office (Singapore)

The Prime Minister's Office (PMO; Malay: Pejabat Perdana Menteri; Chinese: 总理公署; Tamil: பிரதமர் அலுவலகம்) forms a part of the executive branch of the Government of Singapore, tasked with overseeing other ministries and managing key political matters of national significance, such as combating corruption, conducting elections and overseeing financial regulations.

The PMO is led by the prime minister alongside other appointed ministers. It operates from The Istana, which also serves as the official residence and office of the President of Singapore. In the context of Singapore's Westminster parliamentary system, the PMO functions similarly to a minister without portfolio. This was formerly an official Cabinet designation, referring to a minister who holds Cabinet rank without heading a specific ministry.

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President of Singapore in the context of Singapore Armed Forces

The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) are the military of the Republic of Singapore, responsible for protecting and defending the security interests and the sovereignty of the country. A component of the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF), the armed forces have four service branches: the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Digital and Intelligence Service. An integrated force, it is the most capable, robust, technologically sophisticated and powerful military in the Southeast Asia region. The SAF is headed by the chief of defence force, appointed by the President, on the advice of the Cabinet.

Since its inception, the SAF has been involved in various operations, both domestically and abroad. These include peacekeeping missions in places such as Afghanistan, Iraq and Timor Leste as well as disaster relief operations in various countries, including the 1970 Bhola cyclone, 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, Hurricane Katrina, 2008 Sichuan earthquake, April 2015 Nepal earthquake, Hurricane Harvey, among others. In addition, the SAF has assisted the United Nations to oversee and supervise the electoral process in countries such as Cambodia, Ethiopia, Namibia and South Africa.

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President of Singapore in the context of Chief of Defence Force (Singapore)

The Chief of Defence Force is the head of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF), who holds the rank of Lieutenant-General or Vice-Admiral. The Chief of Defence Force also serves as the aide-de-camp to the president of Singapore. The current Chief of Defence Force is Aaron Beng.

The position was created in 1974 as Chief of the General Staff, before changing to its current name in May 1990. The first holder of the position was Winston Choo.

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President of Singapore in the context of Cabinet of Singapore

The Cabinet of Singapore forms the executive branch of the Government of Singapore together with the President. It is led by the Prime Minister who is the head of government. The Prime Minister is a Member of Parliament (MP) appointed by the president who in the president's judgment is likely to command the confidence of the majority of the Members of Parliament (MPs). The other ministers in the Cabinet are Members of Parliament appointed by the president acting in accordance with the advice of the prime minister. Ministers are prohibited from holding any office of profit and from actively engaging in any commercial enterprise.

The Cabinet has the general direction and control of the Government and is collectively responsible to Parliament. It also has significant influence over lawmaking. Ministers may be designated by the prime minister to be in charge of particular ministries, or as ministers in the Prime Minister's Office. Singapore's ministers are the highest paid in the world. Prior to a salary review in 2011, the prime minister's annual salary was S$3.07 million, while the pay of ministerial-level officers ranged between S$1.58 million and S$2.37 million. On 21 May 2011, a committee was appointed by the prime minister to review the salaries of the prime minister as well as the president, political appointment holders, and Members of Parliament. Following the recommended wage reductions by the committee which were then debated and subsequently accepted in Parliament, the prime minister's salary was reduced by 36% (includes the removal of his pension) to S$2.2 million. Nonetheless, the prime minister remains the highest-paid political leader in the world.

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President of Singapore in the context of Government of Singapore

The government of Singapore is defined by the Constitution of the Republic of Singapore to consist of the President and the Executive. Executive authority of Singapore is vested in the President but exercised on the advice of the Cabinet led by the Prime Minister. The President, acting as the Head of State, may only act in their discretion in appointing the Prime Minister, acting as the Head of Government; as well as withholding consent for the dissolution of Parliament; along with performing key checks on the Government in addition to the ceremonial duties of the Head of State inherited from the Westminster system. The Cabinet, consisting of the Prime Minister and ministers appointed by the President on the Prime Minister's advice, is responsible for heading the Executive through ministries and other statutory boards. At the end of the term or at any time during the term, once the President has consented to a request made by the Prime Minister to dissolve Parliament, Parliamentary General Elections are held to elect members of Parliament for a new term. The President, in their discretion, then appoints a Prime Minister who is a member of Parliament representing any political party or coalition of political parties who in their judgement is likely to command the confidence of the majority of the members of Parliament. The Prime Minister then forms the Government and, along with the Cabinet, sets the general direction and control of the Government for the next term.

A statutory board is an autonomous agency of the Government that is established by an Act of Parliament and overseen by a government ministry. Unlike ministries and government departments that are subdivisions of ministries, statutory boards are not staffed by civil servants and have greater independence and flexibility in their operations. There are five Community Development Councils (CDCs) appointed by the board of management of the People's Association (PA) for districts in Singapore. Where there are not less than 150,000 residents in a district, the PA's board of management may designate the chairman of a CDC to be the mayor for the district that the CDC is appointed for. As it is the practice for Members of Parliament (MPs) to be appointed as Chairmen of CDCs, these MPs have also been designated as mayors. There are currently five districts in the country.

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President of Singapore in the context of Parliament of Singapore

The Parliament of Singapore is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of Singapore, which governs the country alongside the President of Singapore. Based on the Westminster system, it consists of elected Members of Parliament (MPs), non-constituency MPs (NCMPs) and Nominated MPs (NMPs). Following the 2025 general election, 97 MPs from two political parties, the governing People's Action Party (PAP) and the opposition Workers' Party (WP), were elected to the 15th Parliament. 2 NCMPs from the latter were also appointed ("elected" in the language of Singaporean law). Nine NMPs are usually appointed by the president on a biennial basis.

The Speaker of Parliament presides over sittings and oversees the administration of Parliament. The Leader of the House is appointed by the prime minister to manage government business and the legislative programme, while the Leader of the Opposition leads the largest political party not in government. Some work is carried out by select committees of MPs. Standing committees are permanent, while ad hoc committees are established to examine specific matters, including bills. Selected backbenchers of the PAP serve on Government Parliamentary Committees (GPCs) to review policies, programmes, and proposed legislation of government ministries.

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President of Singapore in the context of Prime Minister of Singapore

The prime minister of Singapore is the head of government of Singapore. The president appoints the prime minister on the advice and consent of the Cabinet of Singapore. The incumbent prime minister is Lawrence Wong, an MP for Marsiling–Yew Tee GRC from the People's Action Party, who took office on 15 May 2024.

Singapore is modelled after the Westminster system. The prime minister only governs with the confidence of the majority in Parliament; as such, the prime minister typically sits as a member of Parliament (MP) and leads the largest party or a coalition of parties. In practice, the prime minister is the leader of the majority party in Parliament.

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President of Singapore in the context of 15th Parliament of Singapore

The 15th Parliament of Singapore is the current meeting of the Parliament of Singapore. It was opened by President Tharman Shanmugaratnam on 5 September 2025. The 97 elected members of this parliament were elected in the 2025 general election. As was the case in the previous parliament, this parliament is controlled by the majority of the governing People's Action Party (PAP), which is led by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. There are 108 seats in this parliament – 97 from elected constituencies, 2 non-constituency (NCMPs) and 9 nominated (NMPs).

This parliament saw the return of only one opposition party since the 13th Parliament elected in 2015 – the Workers' Party (WP) – which is led by Pritam Singh and is also the Leader of the Opposition. The WP controls 10 elected and 2 NCMP seats, giving it a representation of 12 seats – the largest representation for any single opposition party in post-independence Singapore and surpassing its own record of 10 seats in the previous parliament. On 20 June 2025, the Prime Minister's Office announced the renomination of incumbent speaker Seah Kian Peng for another term.

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President of Singapore in the context of Prime minister of Singapore

The prime minister of Singapore is the head of government of Singapore. The president appoints the prime minister on the advice and consent of the Cabinet of Singapore. The incumbent prime minister is Lawrence Wong, an MP for Marsiling–Yew Tee Group Representation Constituency from the governing People's Action Party, who took office on 15 May 2024.

Singapore is modelled after the Westminster system. The prime minister only governs with the confidence of the majority in Parliament; as such, the prime minister typically sits as a member of Parliament (MP) and leads the largest party or a coalition of parties. In practice, the prime minister is the leader of the majority party in Parliament.

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