Certificates of Eligibility were issued to three presidential candidates — Ng Kok Song, Tharman Shanmugaratnam and Tan Kin Lian earlier today (Aug. 18).

In response to the outcome, Tharman said at a media doorstop in the evening that he is "looking forward very much to the contest" and hopes it will be a "dignified contest" in keeping with the dignity of the office.

Tharman also encourages all the candidates to make a positive case for themselves because "they each bring something that is of value to Singapore".

He also said that he hopes former presidential hopeful George Goh, who didn't make it to the qualifying list, will "remain in public life in some way and continue contributing to Singapore".

"I must say I'm also very sorry that George Goh didn't make it. [He] put a lot of effort into the journey that he began several years ago. So I'm sorry he's not part of the list of candidates. I had a lot of respect for him for his life story. But I hope he remains in public life in some way and continues to contribute to Singapore."

Tharman also reiterated why he is running for president at the media doorstop before attending Cerebral Palsy Alliance Singapore Charity Dinner at Sands Expo & Convention Centre:

"I'm not making calculations based on exactly who's contesting and so on. I'm just running on my track record, my purpose in life, and what I feel I can bring to Singapore in this next phase of our development.

I want to enter this race because I think things are changing and the next phase of Singapore's development is going to require a different character to the presidency. And that's the reason why I entered this race. It's not for myself."

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