SINGAPORE – When President Halimah Yacob spoke up for older workers in a Facebook post or called for the law to be reviewed to allow rapists over the age of 50 to be caned, all she was doing was lending her voice to issues close to her heart, she says.

The posts, among others on issues such as caregiving and equality, had sparked questions about propriety, since she was commenting on matters of policy.

Asked about this, she laughs and says: “I never intended to be a check. I just wanted to add my voice. I don’t think it’s too difficult for people to comprehend.”

Turning serious, she adds: “The Government exercises the executive powers. I don’t have the executive powers. I’m very clear about that.”

Championing causes

As such, she was never worried about being outspoken on policies and contentious issues, she says.

For instance, when she wrote on Dec 19, 2022, in a Facebook post that “rapists should not be spared the cane just because they are 50 years old”, it came from a place of wanting the laws to better protect children from sexual predators.

And when she said in a July 31, 2022, post that more was needed to be done to “provide a variety of options for the different needs of caregivers”, it was in the interest of ensuring the welfare of those with dementia, mental illness and physical and mental disabilities who need people to care for them.

“I think if you speak from a point of view of the welfare of the children, for instance, or you speak from the point of view of the welfare of the elderly when it comes to caregiving, people know you’re coming from a certain place that has no motive except to help people,” she adds. 

Throughout her presidency, whether it was championing social causes, speaking up for vulnerable groups or engaging disadvantaged communities, Madam Halimah did so because she believed it was important for her to try to change things for the better.

“At the end of the day, I have to lend a voice,” she says simply.

Having always been a proponent of interfaith harmony and multicultural dialogue, she initiated the International Conference on Cohesive Societies (ICCS) in 2019, to bring together people from around the world to discuss topics such as religion and identity.

Two conferences have been held so far, in 2019 and 2022, with 40 countries represented and more than 1,000 participants.

Noting that many countries in the world are grappling with multicultural, multiracial and multi-religious harmony, she hopes the ICCS will go some way in encouraging cohesion.

Helping the disadvantaged

During her term, the President’s Challenge focused on increasing awareness of mental health issues, empowering people with disabilities, and making society more digitally inclusive, among other causes. She also visited social service agencies and non-profit organisations.

In 2018, Madam Halimah launched the Empowering for Life Fund under the President’s Challenge, setting aside $10 million over five years to help disadvantaged families improve their circumstances and turn their lives around.

“My starting point is that we should look at the underserved communities,” she says. “For those who are underserved, you need to make that extra special effort to reach out to them so that they are not isolated, so that they also can benefit from our progress.”

Many of these causes were those she had championed during her time as a People’s Action Party MP from 2001 to 2017, when she stepped down from electoral politics to contest the presidential election.

As an MP, she was also known to be always on the ground and meeting constituents.

She continued engaging the community during her time as president, packing her schedule with dialogues with various groups such as nurses, front-line workers and unionists.

“These dialogues keep me grounded because I get to hear the issues and challenges they face in their own industry, in their work, and in their own words. You can never beat that – hearing what people feel and the challenges they face... rather than reading about them somewhere.”

Many of these groups told her they appreciated “being supported at the highest office in the land”.

It was also the desire to be more accessible that prompted Madam Halimah to open up parts of the 40ha of Istana grounds to various groups for picnics and garden visits.

Under her, the Picnic@Istana and Garden@Istana programmes kicked off, on top of the usual open house events, when the public could visit.

The Inclusive Garden was opened in 2021, with wheelchair-friendly footpaths and plants from the Istana’s spice gardens.

“In my mind, this is a national resource, it’s a national asset, and therefore, we ought to make it a little bit more friendly by making it accessible to people who otherwise would not have the opportunity to come,” she says.

She recalls how she had invited a group from a hospice, worrying that they may not be interested. It turned out that they had treasured the chance to see the Istana at least once near the end of their lives.

Children from disadvantaged families were invited for picnics with their parents, and they were delighted as it was their first time at the Istana.

Even at the regular Istana open houses, she made it easy for those who wanted to take photos with her, standing in one spot so that people could snap their photos.

The security team was initially apprehensive, but “after a while, they probably believe in what I do as well, and so they go out of their way to facilitate it”, says Madam Halimah.

“I wanted it to be an inclusive and caring presidency, you know, where we open up opportunities, make it accessible wherever we can.”

Correction note: An earlier version of this story said two editions of the ICCS have been held so far, in 2021 and 2022. This has been corrected to 2019 and 2022.