Pool of capable Singaporeans will narrow if personal cost of public service is too high: Tan See Leng

Public service is a high calling, but even callings require deliberate choices, said Minister for Trade (Energy and Industry) Tan See Leng.

Published Sep 10, 2026, 05:15 PM

Updated Sep 10, 2026, 05:15 PM

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SINGAPORE - If entering public service comes at too high a personal cost, the pool from which Singapore can draw its leaders will narrow over time and this would be a far greater cost for the country than any debate over political salaries , said Minister for Trade and Industry (Energy and Industry) Tan See Leng.

“Ultimately, public service is a high calling, but even callings require deliberate choices,” said Tan, who was speaking at a debate on the Government’s response to a review of the salaries of political office-holders and MPs on Sept 10.

Tan w as the group chief executive officer and managing director of IHH HealthCare Berhad, a medical group, before he became a minister in 2020, after the General Election that year .

Sharing his own experience transitioning from the private sector to politics, he s aid political service demands significantly more from those who choose to serve.

“The hours are longer, the responsibilities are heavier, every decision is scrutinised, and there is little separation between public duty and private life,” he added.

Tan said yo ung professional executives will also have to face the conundrum of having to step away from careers that they spent years building to pivot to full-time public service, before they reach their peak in the private sector.

He cited ministers like Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan and former Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen who stepped away from their own medical careers in their prime. They both entered politics in 2001.

“Their ministerial salaries could never have matched what they gave up financially,” he said.

Skillsets that Singapore could benefit from may belong to other professionals, such as an entrepreneur whose company is just taking off, someone in finance who is starting to see rewards for the hard work put in, or a rapidly rising mid-career executive supporting aging parents while raising his own children, Tan said.

Such individuals, who enter politics in their prime, would have enough runway to learn the ropes from their seniors, and then make lasting contributions to Singapore.

“But please don’t forget, at a personal level, there is much they must be prepared to give up as well. Time. Future opportunities. Personal goals. Privacy. Financial remuneration then becomes one of the many opportunity costs on that list,” Tan said. “And some will conclude the sum total is just too high.”

Tan entered politics at the age of 55 afte r 30 years in the private sector.

He started as a general practione r, and later founded Healthway Medical Group, where he was its chief executive officer from 1993 to 2002. He later held other leadership roles in the healthcare sector, including the group chief executive officer and managing director of Parkway Pantai Limited.

He was the oldest of the new candidates on the People’s Action Party’s slate in 2020.

After winning the then-named Marine Parade GRC ward, he was made Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office and Second Minister for Manpower and for Trade and Industry. In May 2021, he became Minister for Manpower, retaining his Trade and Industry portfolio.

In May 2025, he took on the role of Minister-in-Charge of Energy and Science and Technology in MTI, but following a Cabinet reshuffle in 2026, he was appointed to his latest post as Minister for Trade and Industry (Energy and Industry).

Tan acknowledged that by the time he entered politics, he had already spent decades building many companies in the private sector.

This meant he had the financial security and independence to make decisions based entirely on his political convictions, with less regard for the personal financial consequences of such a decision.

Speaking for just himself, he said “no realistic level of ministerial salary” could have matched what he was earning before he joined the Government.

“I could have gone on earning, chasing , making exciting new deals, setting up new enterprises for many more years had I stayed in the private sector,” he said.

If money had been the primary consideration, he would never have entered politics, Tan added.

“I just felt I had to give back to the country and the people who had given me so much,” he said.

Tan told the House: “But I know that my own circumstances are unique. I cannot speak for everyone who is faced with the dilemma of either continuing to pursue their own careers or stepping into the uncertainties of public office.”

His hope, he said, is that when younger Singaporeans in the private sector are asked to serve in the public sector in future, it will not be an unnecessarily hard, or progressively harder choice.

“Because at the end of the day, the strength of our Government depends not on what we pay those who serve, but on whether we continue to recruit the best people to serve,” he said, adding that this in an investment in Singapore’s future that is always worth making.

“Our responsibility is to ensure that when good Singaporeans are given the privilege to serve, their answers will depend on their willingness and ability - and less on whether their families and loved ones also have to share steep financial costs.”

Anjali Raguraman is a correspondent at The Straits Times. She covers politics, as well as consumer stories spanning tourism, retail and F&B.

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贸易（能源及工业）部长陈思龙表示，公共服务是一项崇高的使命，但即使是使命也需要深思熟虑的选择。

发布于 2026 年 9 月 10 日下午 5:15

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新加坡——贸易及工业部长（能源及工业）陈思龙表示，如果进入公共服务领域需要付出过高的个人代价，那么随着时间的推移，新加坡能够选拔领导人才的范围将会缩小，这对国家造成的损失将远远大于任何关于政治薪酬的辩论。

“归根结底，公共服务是一项崇高的事业，但即使是崇高的事业也需要深思熟虑的选择，”陈先生在9月10日就政府对政治官员和国会议员薪酬审查的回应举行的辩论中说道。

在 2020 年大选后成为部长之前，陈先生曾担任医疗集团 IHH HealthCare Berhad 的集团首席执行官兼董事总经理。

他分享了自己从私营部门过渡到政界的经历，并表示政治服务对选择从政的人提出了更高的要求。

“工作时间更长，责任更重，每个决定都会受到审查，公职和私生活之间几乎没有界限，”他补充道。

Tan表示，年轻的专业高管们也将面临这样的困境：在私营部门达到事业巅峰之前，他们不得不放弃自己多年建立的职业生涯，转而全职从事公共服务。

他举例说，外交部长维文·巴拉克里希南和前国防部长黄永宏都在事业鼎盛时期放弃了医生职业，两人都于2001年步入政坛。

他说：“他们的部长薪水永远无法弥补他们在经济上做出的牺牲。”

谭先生表示，新加坡可以从其他专业人士身上受益的技能可能属于他们，例如公司刚刚起步的企业家、开始看到辛勤工作获得回报的金融从业者，或者一边赡养年迈父母一边抚养自己孩子的快速晋升的中年高管。

这些在黄金时期进入政坛的人，将有足够的时间向前辈学习，然后为新加坡做出持久的贡献。

“但请不要忘记，从个人层面来说，他们也必须做好放弃很多东西的准备。时间、未来的机会、个人目标、隐私等等。经济回报就成了众多机会成本之一，”谭说道。“有些人最终会觉得，所有这些成本加起来实在太高了。”

谭在私营部门工作了30年后，于55岁步入政坛。

他最初是一名全科医生，后来创立了 Healthway Medical Group，并于 1993 年至 2002 年担任首席执行官。之后，他还在医疗保健领域担任过其他领导职务，包括 Parkway Pantai Limited 的集团首席执行官和董事总经理。

他是2020年人民行动党新候选人名单中最年长的一位。

在赢得当时名为马林百列集选区的席位后，他被任命为总理公署部长兼人力部第二部长和贸工部第二部长。2021年5月，他出任人力部长，同时保留贸工部部长职务。

2025 年 5 月，他担任贸工部能源、科学和技术主管部长，但在 2026 年内阁改组后，他被任命为贸易和工业部（能源和工业）部长，这是他目前的职位。

谭承认，在他步入政坛之前，他已经在私营部门创建了许多公司，并为此投入了数十年时间。

这意味着他拥有经济保障和独立性，可以完全根据自己的政治信念做出决定，而较少考虑此类决定对个人经济造成的后果。

他仅以自己为例表示，“任何现实的部长级薪水”都无法与他加入政府之前的收入相提并论。

他说：“如果我留在私营部门，我本可以继续赚钱、追逐目标、达成令人兴奋的新交易、创办新企业很多年。”

谭补充说，如果金钱是他的主要考虑因素，他就不会涉足政坛。

“我只是觉得我必须回报这个国家和这个给予我如此之多的人民，”他说。

谭在众议院表示：“但我知道我的情况很特殊。我无法代表所有面临两难选择的人发言，他们要么继续追求自己的事业，要么踏入充满不确定性的公职领域。”

他表示，他希望将来当新加坡私营部门的年轻员工被要求到公共部门服务时，这不会是一个不必要的艰难选择，或者越来越难的选择。

“因为归根结底，我们政府的实力不在于我们给公职人员支付多少薪水，而在于我们是否继续招募最优秀的人才来为国效力，”他说道，并补充说，这是对新加坡未来的一项投资，始终值得去做。

“我们的责任是确保当优秀的的新加坡人有机会为国效力时，他们的回答将取决于他们的意愿和能力，而不是取决于他们的家人和爱人是否也必须承担沉重的经济负担。”

安贾莉·拉古拉曼是《海峡时报》的记者。她的报道领域包括政治，以及涵盖旅游、零售和餐饮等领域的消费新闻。

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