Dummipedia, the simplified free online encyclopedia
| "PM and Cabinet decide who gets state funeral." [1] — Straits Times, 14 May 2005, on why President Ong Teng Cheong was not accorded a state funeral.
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The Prime Minister of the Republic of Singapore is the head of government of the island nation. Lee Kuan Yew was the first Prime Minister of Singapore, serving from 1959 to 1990.
Lee Kuan Yew, the first Prime Minister of Singapore
2. The Prime Minister's role is to to provide overall policy direction and to co-ordinate the activities of his Ministries and the general policies of the Government. To assist him directly in his duties, the Prime Minister has a ministry called the "Prime Minister's Office" (PMO) which is manned by his top political staff and is located at the Istana, the official workplace of the President of Singapore.
3. Under the 1991 constitutional amendment, the Prime Minister is appointed by the President from among sitting Members of Parliaments (MP) who, in his opinion, is most likely to command the confidence of a majority of the MPs.[1] Notwithstanding, however, the Prime Minister is the most powerful person in the land, having the powers to decide even on matters pertaining to the President, such as how many staff he is entitled to,[1] and whether he is entitled to a state funeral.[1] Ong Teng Cheong, the fifth President of Singapore, for example, was denied a state funeral by the then Prime Minister, Goh Chok Tong, despite the fact that all four former Presidents were accorded one.
4. As of 2008, the Prime Minister of Singapore is paid US$3.1 million, five times the US$400,000 currently earned by the President of the United States.[1] The salary figure is determined by a formula created in 1994 by Singapore's founder, Lee Kuan Yew, pegging the salaries of government ministers and top civil servants to the money they might earn at the top of the private sector. Under the formula, ministers are to be paid two-thirds of the median of the top eight earners in each of six professions: accounting, law, banking, engineering, multinational companies, and local manufacturing.[1] While the Prime Minister's salary may seem exorbitant, Singapore is without doubt one of the most corruption-free governments in the world and thus, the figure may well pale by comparison to what counterparts in neighbouring countries are "getting". [{{{1}}} more... at {{{2}}}]
