Minister Ong Ye Kung appointed to lead the Chinese Community Liaison Group

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has appointed Mr Ong Ye Kung, Minister for Education and Second Minister for Defence, to take over from Mr Chan Chun Sing, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office and Secretary-General of the National Trades Union Congress, as Chairman of the Chinese Community Liaison Group (CCLG). The appointment takes effect from 1 August 2017.

The CCLG, comprising office-holders and Members of Parliament, was set up in 2000 to strengthen relations between the Government and the Chinese community as well as cooperation amongst the various Chinese groups.

Prime Minister Lee thanks Mr Chan for his contributions in CCLG. Mr Chan assumed the CCLG Chairmanship in 2014, and did much to deepen and expand CCLG’s engagement with the Chinese community. He has canvassed the community leaders’ feedback and concerns, worked with them on government programmes and explained these initiatives to the Chinese ground. Mr Chan has also broadened the reach of CCLG beyond the Chinese clan and business associations, to include media, sports, arts and cultural groups. Minister Chan will continue as advisor to the CCLG.

Mr Ong has been a member of the CCLG since 2015. He is actively involved with Chinese groups, particularly in the media, arts and cultural sectors. Prime Minister Lee is confident that under Mr Ong’s leadership, the CCLG will continue to deepen ties between the Government and the Chinese community.

Being Minister for Education, Mr Ong will be able to engage educators on ways to strengthen the Singapore Chinese identity, in our multi-racial context. Prime Minister Lee wishes him all the best as he continues the important work of the CCLG team.

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PRIME MINISTER’S OFFICE
SINGAPORE
31 JULY 2017