SINGAPORE - The Elected Presidency system has worked well for Singapore, and it is timely to take a look at it to see if refreshing it is needed, President Tony Tan Keng Yam said on Wednesday (Jan 27).
"The Elected Presidency is a relatively new institution which is unique to Singapore. So far, it has worked well for us," Dr Tan said in a Facebook post.
"We now have 25 years of experience in operating the institution and it is timely to take a look at the Elected Presidency to see if there is a need to refresh it to better serve Singapore's needs over the longer term."
His comments come in the wake of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's announcement in Parliament earlier on Wednesday that a Constitutional Commission will be appointed to study changes to the Elected Presidency system.
Proposed changes include reviewing the qualifying criteria of candidates and ensuring that minorities will have a chance to be elected to the office of president.
Dr Tan added that he will formally give his views when the Commission has completed its work and made its recommendations.
Some ministers have also commented on the political changes announced by PM Lee, including having more group representation constituencies and giving Non-Constituency MPs equal voting rights as MPs.
