Opening Speech by DPM Lawrence Wong for the Second Reading Debate of the Constitution of the Republic of Singapore Bill (November 2023)

Mr Speaker

I beg to move, “That the Bill be now read a second time.”Sir, the Bill before the House amends the Constitution to create frameworks for the President and Ministers to take on international appointments in their private capacities if the national interest so requires.

Background - President taking on appointments in official capacity

Let me first set out the background relating to the amendments for the President.

Under the Constitution, the President is the Head of State.

As the Head of State:

The President performs a vital symbolic and unifying role.

He symbolises our sovereignty at home and abroad, and is an important part of our international diplomacy.

In performing these roles, Presidents have from time to time taken on additional appointments in their official capacities. This is done on the advice and with the support of the Cabinet. For example:

Domestically, Presidents have served as university chancellors and patrons of charitable or other organisations, lending the prestige of the highest office of the land to worthy causes that unify Singaporeans.

Internationally, Presidents can take on appointments in their official capacity in furtherance of Singapore’s national interest. For example, Dr Tony Tan was inducted as a member of the Honorary Senate of the Foundation Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings in 2012 during his tenure as President. Such appointments reflect the high international standing of the individuals who have served as our President. In deciding whether to advise the President to take on an appointment in his official capacity, Cabinet applies the following principles:

Domestic appointments must be in furtherance of the President’s symbolic and unifying role.

International appointments must be in furtherance of Singapore’s national interest.

The President’s public life must be carried out in a manner that is compatible with his status and role as the Head of State – he is apolitical and cannot become involved in issues or events that may generate political controversy.

In addition, the appointment must not undermine or be incompatible with the President’s discretionary functions under the Constitution, including his custodial functions as the Elected President.

The appointment must not contravene Article 19A(1) of the Constitution, which among other things prohibits the President from being actively engaged in commercial enterprises.

The Cabinet will continue to apply these principles in deciding whether to advise and support the President to take on domestic and international appointments in his official capacity.

Today, President Tharman is the Chancellor of the National University of Singapore and of Nanyang Technological University, and patron of numerous organisations like the Singapore Red Cross, Singapore International Foundation, Philanthropy Asia Alliance and the Singapore University of Social Sciences.

President Tharman is also currently holding the following international positions, in his official capacity as President, with the advice and support of the Cabinet, and these are:

Chairman of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the Group of Thirty (G30). This oversees the governance and directions of the G30, which is a grouping of eminent thought leaders in economic policymaking, academia and the financial industry.

Member of the BoT of the World Economic Forum (WEF). This is an advisory board. It helps shape the strategic directions of the WEF, without directly overseeing the running of the organisation.

Co-Chair of the Global Commission on the Economics of Water (GCEW). This is an independent Commission that was convened to examine and make recommendations to United Nations and other international forums on how to improve the way societies govern, use and value water for the common good.

Co-Chair of the United Nations Human Development Report (UN HDR) Advisory Board. This provides intellectual guidance and advice on the overall vision, direction, and messages of the UN HDR.

These are appointments that President Tharman held when he was Senior Minister, and before assuming his current office. Cabinet has considered the matter and agreed that it is in the national interest for him to continue holding these appointments as President currently, in his official capacity.

For the information of the House, the President does not receive any remuneration or other benefits from these appointments.

Need for framework for President to take on international appointments in private capacity

The Government’s original intention was for President Tharman to continue to serve in these international appointments in his official capacity.

But after reviewing the matter carefully, we were advised by the Attorney-General that this arrangement was not ideal. So let me explain why this is so.

The four international bodies mentioned earlier want their distinguished appointees to carry on with their official roles, and to bring with them their official status and reputations, such as President Tharman’s former status as Senior Minister and now as Head of State. So these international organisations want their distinguished appointees to carry with them their official status. But these international bodies also want their appointees to contribute independently to achieve the aims of the respective bodies.

To illustrate, the WEF Board of Trustees includes the DPM of Canada, the heads of the WTO, IMF and World Bank, and leaders of major private organisations. But these Trustees are expected to give their views independent of the governments or organisations they head, so as to shape the strategic directions of the WEF in keeping with its goals of serving the interests of the global community. Similarly, the G30’s BoT includes current and former heads of Central Banks around the world, but they are expected to contribute independently of these central banks. Likewise, the UN HDR Advisory Board and the GCEW (the global commission on water) expect their members to contribute independently, in the global interest.

If the President were to serve in these international bodies purely in his official capacity, then he would be limited to representing the official Singapore position in everything he says. That would not be in keeping with the requirements of these organisations. Nor would it be in the interest of Singapore for our President to be so limited, as it restricts our ability to shape global conversations and initiatives.

From Singapore’s perspective, there is value to have the President represented on these international bodies. It enables us to be plugged into global conversations, and to understand and help shape the thinking that takes place in these important and influential international bodies. But for this to happen, the President must be able to function credibly in these international bodies, by lending his expertise to advance the agenda on broader issues of concern to these organisations.

So we are presented with a novel issue: should the President be allowed to contribute independently in his private capacity, when he takes on these international appointments? That’s what this issue is about.

Cabinet considered this carefully and we concluded that the President should be allowed to do so, to contribute in these international appointments in his independent and private capacity, as this is beneficial for Singapore. These are reputable international bodies with global reach, and with eminent persons serving on their respective boards. The President’s continued involvement in these organisations is in Singapore’s national interest.

To be clear: when we say that the President serves in his “private capacity”, it does not mean that he is doing this outside of his work duties.

These international appointments are core to the President’s international diplomacy role as Head of State. They are, in fact, how we project Singapore’s influence and strengthen our networks in the world.

But allowing the President to serve in his private capacity allows him to act independently in achieving the aims of the international bodies, subject of course to the necessary safeguards of our national interest.

Such an arrangement would then enable the President to take on appointments that help to expand Singapore’s influence and networks, while acting independently on these international bodies.

The Attorney-General, however, advised that such an arrangement is currently not clearly provided for by the Constitution. And that is why constitutional amendments are needed to enable the President to take on roles where he acts independently in his private capacity.

The provisions in this Amendment Bill put in place a proper framework under which these and future appointments are governed. The framework would not just apply to this President and this Government, but also to future Presidents and future Governments.

In developing the framework, Cabinet had regard to the following broad considerations:

One, the framework would only apply to appointments in international organisations. It would not apply in the domestic context. In the domestic context, the current position will continue to apply, and the President will not have an independent role outside of the specific discretionary powers conferred on him by the Constitution.

Two, any international appointment for the President to act in his private capacity must be justified by the national interest. Importantly, our own policy matters must remain the responsibility and prerogative of the Cabinet. Any appointment must therefore be supported by Cabinet in the first place. If need be, Cabinet must be able to intervene to advise the President on how he acts in these appointments.

Three, at the same time, the President should have a say in deciding whether to take on such appointments. He should be able to decline such appointments if, for example, he considers them to be incompatible with his constitutional functions.

Four, any appointment must be on the public record, in the interests of transparency and accountability.

Article 22Q

Sir, these are the considerations behind the new Article 22Q.

Article 22Q(1) will enable current and future Presidents to accept international appointments in their private capacities, subject to 3 conditions.

First, the President cannot contravene the disabilities imposed by Article 19A(1), which include a prohibition on active engagement in commercial enterprises;

Second, the Cabinet must assess and advise the President that it is in the national interest for the President to accept the appointment. In making this assessment, Cabinet would be guided by similar principles as those I set out earlier.

And third, the President, acting in his discretion, must concur with the advice of the Cabinet.

The President cannot accept an international appointment in his private capacity outside of the framework set out in this Article.

Article 22Q(2) will enable the Cabinet to advise the President on his execution of such a role so that it is in our national interest, including ensuring that it does not undermine the President’s status as constitutional Head of State or contradict the President’s powers under the Constitution. The President must act in accordance with any such advice.

As a general rule, the Cabinet will advise the President: (i) against commenting on domestic politics, laws and policies; (ii) against making any commitments on behalf of the Government or Singapore, whether formally or informally, and (iii) against retaining any remuneration or benefits in connection with the appointment.

Subject to any advice by the Cabinet, the President may act independently in his private capacity.

Article 22Q(3) goes on to require the President to relinquish an international appointment if so advised by the Cabinet.

And finally Article 22Q(4) requires the acceptance or the relinquishment of an international appointment to be published in the Gazette. This Gazette notice will include the term dates of the appointment.

Conceptually, the new Article 22Q will be a specific and defined extension of the President’s international role as the Head of State. It is not part of the Elected President’s custodial powers. The President is therefore not required to consult the Council of Presidential Advisers and is not subject to any time limit in deciding whether to take up an international appointment under the Article.

I should also mention that, out of an abundance of caution, we have backdated the new Article 22Q to 14 September, when President Tharman assumed office. But in fact we do not need this backdating. Because, as I mentioned earlier, President Tharman currently holds his appointments in an official capacity, on the advice and support of the Cabinet as provided for in the Constitution.

Should the Bill be passed by Parliament, Cabinet intends to advise the President that it is in the national interest for the President to continue in his existing international roles in his private capacity. And this will take effect on a forward-looking basis.

The position for Ministers

Sir, I move now to the position for Ministers.

Today, Ministers take on external appointments in their official capacity in connection with their responsibilities. For example, when Singapore was a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, Prof S Jayakumar, as the Minister for Foreign Affairs then, served as the President of the Council.

The Code of Conduct for Ministers also permits Ministers to take on external appointments in their private capacities if the Prime Minister considers it to be in the national interest and grants permission.

Currently, SM Teo Chee Hean sits on the TotalEnergies’ International Advisory Committee.

This appointment was approved by the Prime Minister, and published in the Gazette.

SM Teo donates the honorarium he receives from TotalEnergies to charity.

There are no general legal impediments to Ministers taking on external appointments today. However, as we are putting a legal framework in place for the President to take on international appointments in his private capacity, we will also create a legal framework for Ministers.

This is found in the new Article 33A.

The framework is similar to Article 22Q except that Ministers must obtain the permission of the Prime Minister and are subject to his instructions.

As a general rule, Ministers taking on international appointments in their private capacities will be instructed: (i) against breaching collective Cabinet responsibility; (ii) against making any commitments on behalf of the Government of Singapore, whether formally or informally, and (iii) against retaining any remuneration or benefits in connection with the appointment.

The new Article 33A will supersede the relevant portions of the Ministerial Code, and the Prime Minister intends to give permission to SM Teo to continue with his TotalEnergies appointment under the new framework.

I should add that the new Article 33A does not apply to the Prime Minister. Previous and current Prime Ministers have not undertaken any such international appointments, and we do not expect future Prime Ministers to do so. Hence the provision in the new Article 33A only applies to Ministers.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Sir, the Bill provides a principled framework to govern how the President and Ministers take on international appointments in their private capacities, if required by the national interest.

The proposed additions of Articles 22Q and 33A in the Constitution seek to ensure that we safeguard the dignity and status of the roles of President and Ministers in Singapore, while enabling them to make significant contributions in international bodies and shape global thinking, if these contributions are in the interest of Singapore. In this way, we can make the most of the expertise, experience, and personal standing of the individuals we elect to office, so as to advance Singapore’s interests and reinforce our value to the world.

Sir, I beg to move.