(From left) Former GIC investment chief Ng Kok Song, former senior minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam and former NTUC Income chief Tan Kin Lian had earlier submitted their nomination papers ahead of the noon deadline. - ST
SINGAPORE (The Straits Times/Asia News Network): A three-way contest for the presidency is officially under way among former GIC investment chief Ng Kok Song, 75, former senior minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam, 66, and former NTUC Income chief Tan Kin Lian, 75.
The three presidential hopefuls all successfully filed their nomination papers on Tuesday.
Returning Officer Tan Meng Dui officially announced the trio as candidates at 12.39pm.
All three had arrived earlier at the nomination centre at the People’s Association headquarters in Jalan Besar ahead of the noon deadline.
Now that they have been officially announced as candidates, they cannot pull out of the race without forfeiting their election deposits of $40,500 each.
The three men, who are vying to become Singapore’s ninth president, can begin campaigning officially.
Campaigning ends on Aug 30, with cooling-off day on Aug 31 and Polling Day on Sept 1.
In his two-minute speech addressing the crowd at the nomination centre, Ng said he was standing for President to protect Singapore’s three national treasures, which define the country as exceptional.
The first treasure is the reserves, which he said he can protect, having spent his entire career at GIC and the Monetary Authority of Singapore helping to build them up.
The second is good public administration, and the third is social stability.
“I do not belong to any political party. And so I am well-placed to unite the people of Singapore to face an uncertain future,” he said.
Speaking to the media later, he said: “I feel I’m on a mission to really serve the people of Singapore. So I feel excited that the people of Singapore are giving me this opportunity to serve my country one more time.”
In his speech, Tharman said he looked forward to a dignified and honourable contest, focused on what each candidate brings to Singaporeans and what each of them brings to the country’s future.
Addressing all the supporters in the crowd, he said: “Let’s look forward to a campaign, which is dignified and honourable, and a campaign which itself seeks to unite Singaporeans and not divide us.”
He later told the media that he was running for the presidency not on the basis of new positions or statements, but on the basis of a long-held purpose in his life.
“I believe in a fairer, more compassionate and more inclusive society. And my life is dedicated to that. Singapore can be special,” he said.
Tan said in his speech that he wanted to give the people of Singapore “a chance to vote for a President who is truly independent of the ruling government”.
If elected, he will carry out his duties, as set out in the Constitution, diligently, honestly, and to the best of his ability, he added.
“These duties are to safeguard the reserves and uphold the integrity of the public service. I ask for your support so that I can do my best for the people,” he said.
He later told the media that he hoped his supporters would elect him to be an “independent President”, so he could do his best to use the influence of the President’s office to make life better for all the people in Singapore.
The three candidates have also selected their symbols.
Ng’s symbol is the palm of a hand with a heart within it. Tharman’s is a pineapple, while Tan’s depicts four people holding up a flower.
Ng said the five fingers symbolise the various races in Singapore, and the palm signifies that while people might come from different races and religions, “we are one palm, we are one country”.
He added that he wanted to unite all the people of Singapore regardless of race, religion or political affiliation.
Tharman said the pineapple is a symbol with a lot of meaning to the communities here.
“Ong lai - it is a propitious and welcome symbol for many people - when we move into a new home, when we start a new business, when we want good luck and good things to happen, it is our future,” he said. Ong lai means pineapple in Hokkien, and symbolises prosperity and good fortune to come.
Tan said his symbol represents living in harmony. The four figures represent the major ethnic groups in Singapore, all reaching out to a flower, which represents hope for a better future.
