A Look at the Career of Singapore’s Interim Transport Minister
SINGAPORE: Following the recent Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) probe involving Transport Minister S Iswaran, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong appointed Senior Minister of State Chee Hong Tat as Acting Minister for Transport. Mr. Iswaran, along with businessman Ong Beng Seng, was arrested on July 11 but has since been released on bail.
Chee Hong Tat, who first came into the public eye as a People’s Action Party (PAP) candidate in Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC in 2015, has been a public servant since 1998. He has held roles in multiple ministries, including Education, Finance, and Transport. Notably, he served as Principal Private Secretary to Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew from 2008 to 2011 and was one of the pallbearers at Mr. Lee’s funeral.
Mr. Chee also served as CEO of the Energy Market Authority and held various ministerial roles since his election, spanning Health, Communications, Education, Trade, and Foreign Affairs. He was Deputy Secretary-General of the National Trades Union Congress from 2021 to 2022.
Born in 1973, Mr. Chee holds a Bachelor’s in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and Economics from UC Berkeley and an MBA from Adelaide University. He is married with four children.
