New PUB chairman: Tan Gee Paw hands over to Chiang Chie Foo from April 1

Mr Chiang Chie Foo (left) will take over from Mr Tan Gee Paw as Chairman of PUB with effect from April 1, 2017. PHOTOS: PUB

SINGAPORE - Mr Chiang Chie Foo will take over from Mr Tan Gee Paw as chairman of national water agency PUB from April 1, PUB announced on Thursday (March 30).

Mr Tan, 73, has been leading the agency since April 1, 2001, and was instrumental in developing Singapore's water supply through the four National Taps - imported water, water from local reservoirs, Newater and desalination.

His illustrious career in environmental and water management spanned nearly 50 years, and dates back to the late 60s, when he embarked on his first major project to draw up the Bukit Timah Flood Alleviation Scheme. This was one of the most important and complex schemes during the early nation-building years to alleviate floods in the rapidly developing Bukit Timah catchment. Singapore's flood prone areas have been reduced from 3,200 ha in the 1970s to about 30 ha today.

Mr Tan also left an indelible mark on the clean-up of Singapore River and Kallang Basin in 1977 - hailed then as the most significant and ambitious clean-up project to date and a turning point in Singapore's history. His contributions towards the clean-up of the highly polluted catchments built the foundation for the iconic Marina Reservoir years later - the first reservoir-in-a-city with a catchment area one-sixth the size of the island.

His successor Mr Chiang, 61, retired from the civil service in 2013 after a long career, which included concurrent apppointments as Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Defence from 2004 to 2013, and of the Prime Minister's Office from December 2005 to August 2011.

Three new board members have also been appointed.

They are Mr Abu Bakar bin Mohd Nor, Managing Director of Keppel Singmarine, Mr S Thiagarajan, the Director (Strategy) of the Freelancers and Self-Employed Unit in NTUC, and former Deputy Chief Executive of URA Mr Tan Siong Leng.

Two current board members, Mr Lim How Teck, Chairman of Redwood International, and Mr Zainal bin Sapari, Director of Centre for Contract & Casual Workers in NTUC, will be stepping down.

The other board members are:

- Mr Ng Joo Hee, Chief Executive of PUB

- Ms Janet Ang, Vice President of Systems of Engagement and Smarter Cities at IBM Asia Pacific

- Prof Quek Tong Boon, Chief Executive of National Robotics Programme, and Chief Scientific Advisor at the Ministry of Trade and Industry

- Prof Chan Eng Soon, Provost's Chair Professor at the Faculty of Engineering in NUS

- Mr Tan Wah Yeow, Deputy Managing Partner of KPMG Singapore

- Ms Rachel Eng, Deputy Chairman of WongPartnership LLP

- Mr Chan Beng Seng, Director of Sector Development Commissioning and of Healthcare Finance and Resourcing at MOH

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