Singapore’s Shanmugam rebuts ‘sneering’ Economist article on Lawrence Wong’s political succession

Last Updated on April 20, 2024 8:57 am

Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam on Friday criticised a commentary by British publication The Economist, which he said could not “resist sneering” at Singapore’s political leadership handover.

The weekly newspaper’s commentary, published on Thursday, noted that Singapore has had “only” three leaders in its 59 years, and that the next prime minister Lawrence Wong “remains relatively unknown among Singaporeans”.
“He was not the 4G’s [fourth generation leaders’] first choice,” said the publication, noting that Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat had withdrawn himself from contention for the premiership in 2021.

Despite this, the piece argued, the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) will win at the coming General Election due to its “formidable organisation, unrelenting attacks on the opposition, a docile press”, among other factors.

In a response published on Facebook on Friday, Shanmugam said the publication “can’t resist” sneering at Singapore due to an instinct lodged “in the unconscious of the British commentariat class”.
Britain was Singapore’s colonial ruler for over a century.

“They can’t stand that a people they were accustomed to lecturing are now doing better than they are, across the board,” said Shanmugam, before outlining areas in which he said the nation has progressed further than Britain.

While Wong, who is Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister, is due to take over from Lee Hsien Loong as the fourth prime minister here in 59 years on May 15, Britain’s Rishi Sunak is the fourth PM in 4.9 years, he said.

During a turbulent period of British politics in the wake of the Brexit vote, Sunak was preceded by Liz Truss, who lasted only a couple of months. She had replaced Boris Johnson, who followed Theresa May.