Strong, cohesive leadership must emerge from Cabinet rejig

COMING a mere nine months after the current Cabinet was unveiled, one clear message in Friday's Cabinet reshuffle is that we should not get ahead of ourselves in trying to determine which fourth-generation (4G) leader is poised to step up, now that Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat has stepped aside as the Prime Minister-in-waiting.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong fronted the press conference at the Istana alone, clearly signalling that it is business as usual with the focus squarely on keeping Singaporeans safe amid the prolonged Covid-19 pandemic and managing the economic onslaught.

As he indicated, these changes were among those he had wanted to make after last July's general election, but for Singapore being in the thick of the pandemic.