News of Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat's upcoming promotion to Deputy Prime Minister on May 1, 2019 has been swiftly followed by effusive praise from Singapore's senior leadership.

Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) and Co-ordinating Minister for Economic and Social Policies, said in a Facebook post on Tuesday afternoon that Heng is "the best person to move up to become DPM and take over as PM during the next term of government".

He added that Heng has "exceptional ability, mettle and the confidence of the 4G team".

Tharman himself, alongside fellow outgoing DPM Teo Chee Hean, will become Senior Minister (SM) as part of a Cabinet reshuffle announced by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) on Tuesday (Apr 23). He had previously served as Minister for Finance for eight years from 2007 to 2015.

There will also be changes on his part at GIC, where he currently holds the position of Director, and Chairman of the investment strategies committee, will also take the role of Deputy Chairman on May 1. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is GIC's Chairman.

Tharman is currently the Chairman of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), Singapore’s central bank and financial regulator.

Heng & 4G leadership "must carve their own way"

In his post, Tharman said Singapore will have a strong crew in Cabinet, with PM Lee at the helm, Teo Chee Hean and himself staying engaged as SMs, providing support to the 4G team as it takes over.

Tharman noted that Singapore has "avoided sudden change" in leadership, and while it may be unexciting and predictable, it works for Singapore.

He added that Heng and the 4G team "must carve their own way as leaders, individually and as a team, and progressively leave their own imprint", especially when Singaporeans’ views and aspirations are changing.

Hence, he advises the 4G leaders to "keep their ears close to the ground, stay open to new ideas and initiatives, and keep evolving our strategies to keep our society inclusive and vibrant".

His last word of advice is that none of the leaders are perfect, adding that political renewal in government only succeeds if the 4G leaders complement each other, play as a team and work with Singaporeans.

He also advised the leaders never to let success get to their heads or assume that all that worked in the past will work in the future.

Tharman continues to be economics expert for the government

After April 30, DPM Tharman will continue to advise PM Lee in both his new roles.

An announcement from GIC notes that as Deputy Chairman, he will assist the Chairman (PM Lee) with overseeing GIC’s long-term asset allocation and portfolio performance.

While the PMO indicated that both DPMs Teo Chee Hean and Tharman are going to be SMs, it notes that Tharman's role as Coordinating Minister of Economic and Social Policies will be adjusted to remove the term "economic".

It isn't clear what that change means, but the PMO release does also include an additional sentence that says he will continue to advise PM Lee on economic policies, so we reckon his role in this isn't going away just yet.

Photo via Ministry of Finance Facebook page