The President has appointed two members, and two alternate members, to the Council of Presidential Advisers (CPA).
Former Keppel Corp chairman Lim Chee Onn and former Singapore Airlines chairman Stephen Lee, who were both alternate members since January 2008, were made members of the CPA, the President's Office said yesterday.
Their appointments come after changes were made to the elected presidency in November last year.
Under the changes, the president is required to consult the CPA on all matters related to safeguarding Singapore's reserves and the appointment of key public officers.
As a result, the CPA was expanded from six to eight members, with two alternate members.
In the past, the president was required to consult the CPA only on some of these matters.
The alternate members step in when members are temporarily unable to take part in the proceedings of the CPA.
Two new alternate members were appointed: Ho Bee Land chief executive officer Chua Thian Poh and Bank of Singapore chief executive Bahren Shaari.
Mr Lim, Mr Lee and Mr Chua were sworn in at the Istana yesterday. Mr Bahren will be sworn in next Thursday. Their terms started on April 1.
The present chairman of the CPA is Mr J.Y. Pillay, a former civil servant and former chairman of both Singapore Airlines and the Singapore Exchange. The other members are former Cabinet minister S. Dhanabalan, former managing partner of accounting firm Deloitte & Touche Po'ad Shaik Abu Bakar Mattar, retired Supreme Court judge Goh Joon Seng, FairPrice chairman Bobby Chin and Esplanade chairman Lee Tzu Yang.
The CPA advises the president in the exercise of his custodial and discretionary powers. The elected president must consult the council before exercising his powers to veto the Budgets of the Government and key government-linked bodies, and on the appointments of key personnel in the public service.
Members of the council are initially appointed to a six-year term and are eligible for reappointment on four-year terms.
Three of the members are appointed by the president; three are the prime minister's nominees; one is nominated by the chief justice; and one is the nominee of the chairman of the Public Service Commission.
