Singapore's Deputy PM Wong gets top post in ruling Party

On July 16, 2022, Singapore Minister of Finance and Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong attended the G 20 Finance Ministers Meeting in Nusa Dua, Indonesia resort island of Bali. SONNY TUMBELAKA POOL AFP SINGAPORE - Singapore's Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong received a top post in the ruling party on Saturday, cementing his position as the city-state's next prime minister.

Premier Lee Hsien Loong, secretary-general of the People's Action Party PAP, who has ruled the island nation since independence in 1965, announced this year that Wong, 49, would be his successor.

The party said in an announcement of new leadership positions that Wong will become deputy secretary-general.

Lee, 70, was the son of Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore's independence leader and dominant figure for half a century. Lee said that Wong would succeed him before or after the next general election, which is due in 2025.

The minister for national development, Desmond Lee, and Education Minister Chan Chun Sing, each were appointed assistant secretary-general, signalling that they could be the right-hand men of the next leader, analysts say.

Assistant Professor Walid Jumblatt Bin Abdullah, from Nanyang Technological University's School of Social Sciences, said there was a good chance that those two would be the future deputy prime ministers.

READ MORE: Singapore PM names new finance minister in cabinet reshuffle.

The announcements are unlikely to affect markets or businesses, Walid said. The party is still around, it is still the same party, the same ideology, and the same people.