Is Singapore is ready for a non-Chinese prime minister? Presidential candidate Tharman Shanmugaratnam said that he believes Singapore is "ready anytime".

He said this while answering questions at an election meeting with registered guests from the public held at Pasir Panjang Power Station on Aug. 25.

Tharman's wife, Jane Ittogi, took a first stab at the question.

"The answer to that is before your eyes -- when Singaporeans vote a non-Chinese president."

Following cheers from the crowd, Tharman also took the mic from Ittogi to provide his take.

"By the way, I should also just give a very direct answer to that, because I've said this many times before in public. I think Singapore is ready anytime for a non-Chinese prime minister."

Race is a factor everywhere

He went on to say that race is "a factor" in politics "everywhere".

He brought up Barack Obama, a former president of the United States, as an example.

Tharman said that race was a factor for Obama's first term in office, something he managed to overcome.

"He was an exciting new candidate and he even won over the white working class in Michigan, Wisconsin, and several other states in that first election."

Tharman added that race became "more of an issue" for Obama in his second term, something that the former president wrote and spoke about before.

Not the only factor

However, Tharman noted while race is a factor everywhere in the world, it is not the only factor.

Compared to 40 or 50 years ago, he felt that Singaporeans today consider other factors.

"They look at a person's capabilities, they look at their courage, their character, their contributions. They look at people in totality."

Though race might be "always lurking behind people's minds", he believes that Singapore is ready anytime for a non-Chinese prime minister.

"If someone comes up who's a superior candidate for prime minister, the person can be made the prime minister. I believe in that."

Finally, he shared that this is a "mark of our progress as a society" in his opinion.

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Top image by Fasiha Nazren.