One of the civil service’s ‘finest minds’ & nearly S'pore's PM: The legacy DPM Heng Swee Keat leaves behind

Lee Kuan Yew wrote of Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) Heng Swee Keat in his memoir, “One Man’s View of the World”:

"The only pity is that he is not of a big bulk, which makes a difference in a mass rally. But he has one of the finest minds among the civil servants I have worked with."

After 14 years in politics, DPM Heng Swee Keat is stepping down from public office.

He was an industrious police officer, a storied civil servant and, for a time, almost our prime minister.

Despite not being of a “big bulk”, he has left a huge, indelible mark on those who have worked with him, and the Singaporeans he has served.

Decorated scholar and a thoughtful police officer

Heng was born into a Chinese-Singaporean family of Teochew descent.

He grew up in Redhill; despite his Teochew heritage, he was more fluent in Hokkien.

He went to Raffles Institution, then to Cambridge to study economics with a scholarship from the Singapore Police Force (SPF).

That was where he met his wife, Chang Hwee Nee, a President’s Scholar.

Upon his return, Heng spent 15 years in the police force— starting with community policing work, and spent five years in the Criminal Investigation Department—working his way up to assistant commissioner.

In a Facebook post on Aug. 3, 2021, commemorating 200 years of the SPF, DPM Heng shared a striking experience from his time as a young officer that shaped his views on community and the exigencies of an effective police force.

He wrote about a time when, as a young officer, he attended to an old lady who had died alone in a rented cubicle in Chinatown.

Many of her relatives had turned up to claim her valuables, but none could say anything about what they had done with her or for her:

“I found this very sad, and it shaped my views on what is needed for a Police Force to perform well. I saw that it was harder for me as a policeman to help persons like this old lady, when members of a society were isolated, if relationships were not built over time, and if people did not care for others around them.”

After his time in the police force, Heng transitioned to a career in the civil service at large.

In 1993, he went on to complete a Master of Public Administration degree at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government.

In 1995, he entered the elite administrative service, starting at the Ministry of Education.

“The best principal private secretary I ever had”: Lee Kuan Yew

Heng was the Principal Private Secretary to then-Senior Minister (SM) Lee Kuan Yew from 1997 to 2000, a very challenging time.

Those, after all, were the years of the Asian Financial Crisis.

The young, enterprising Heng, however, made a mark on then-SM Lee, who called him "the best principal private secretary I ever had".

That high praise was not unwarranted.

Between 2001 and 2005, as permanent secretary at the Ministry of Trade and Industry, Heng helped lead Singapore’s negotiation teams for several significant free trade agreements.

Heng, for instance, led the Singapore team in wrangling together the landmark 2005 India-Singapore Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement.

In a time of trade war and global uncertainty, such free trade agreements appear more vital than ever.

Another financial crisis

Heng went on to steward the Monetary Authority of Singapore as managing director through another global financial crisis in 2008.

He steered Singapore’s monetary policy through the 2009 recession and kept our dollar strong.

The crisis was costly, and Heng was on the front lines.

Then Prime Minister (PM) Lee Hsien Loong praised Heng’s handling of the crisis:

“During the global economic crisis... he helped our financial system come through safely — a critical job at a high-pressured time.”

Tampines GRC

Off the back of his leadership through the 2008 financial crisis, Heng threw his gloves into the ring for the first time in the 2011 general election.

He debuted as part of a five-member PAP team contesting in Tampines GRC, alongside MPs Baey Yam Keng, Mah Bow Tan, Masagos Zulkifli and Irene Ng.

The PAP team then won with 57.22% of the vote against the National Solidarity Party.

Heng was, soon after, thrust into a cabinet position, being appointed as Minister of Education.

Heng would later be appointed as Minister of Finance in 2015.

Stroke in 2016

In 2016, during a cabinet meeting, then-Minister for Finance Heng suddenly collapsed from a stroke.

He would later recall:

“My colleagues thought that I had bent down to pick up something, which I had dropped from my table. But I did not get up after that.”

He was rushed to the hospital and treated. DPM Heng would later recall the time he was lying unconscious in the ICU as a moment of “great anxiety” for his family.

Heng, thankfully, made what Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan called a “miraculous” recovery, and was discharged less than two months later.

The East Coast Plan

DPM Heng’s career has not been without its fair share of ups and downs.

You might remember the infamous “East Coast Plan” meme from GE2020.

DPM Heng had been MP at Tampines GRC for ten years when he was fielded to East Coast GRC during GE2020.

He was replacing former Manpower Minister Lim Swee Say as the anchor minister in the constituency to contest against the Workers’ Party (WP).

During a speech he gave to East Coast Residents on Nomination Day, DPM Heng stumbled over his words, giving the public this viral moment:

DPM Heng has since embraced the mistake, even posting a video on social media recalling the moment.

In his interview with Mothership, he jokingly reflected:

"I was glad I didn't say it was a Tampines Plan. But it turned out to be a plus as many people remember it.”

Almost our PM

Then, there was the issue of succession.

DPM Heng, you might recall, was for a time widely touted as then-PM Lee’s successor.

Then 60, DPM Heng was supposed to take over from then-PM Lee sometime in February 2022.

He had even been appointed as sole DPM in 2019; the last time there was only one DPM was when Lee Hsien Loong held the appointment from 1993 to 1995, setting aside founding fathers Toh Chin Chye and Goh Keng Swee.

In July 2020, however, then-PM Lee delayed his retirement owing to the pandemic.

In Heng’s own words, given the time needed for problems caused by the pandemic to be resolved, this would have left a “very short runway” for him to lead the country.

And on Apr. 8, 2021, DPM Heng announced that he was stepping aside as leader of the PAP’s 4G team for a younger PM.

DPM Heng cited the pandemic, his age, and the demands of the job as reasons for his decision.

5 budgets during Covid-19

When Covid-19 struck, DPM Heng was Minister of Finance.

The pandemic placed a severe toll on our finances and economy, and DPM Heng had the responsibility of managing a slew of five unprecedented budgets in 2020 alone.

Recalling that period in an interview with Mothership, DPM Heng described it as "very stressful", and noted that our financial system was "really tested".

DPM Heng, however, said he was "very glad" for the system and added it was "of great satisfaction" that he was probably the only finance minister in the world who supported its citizens without having to borrow a single cent.

Looking back, and looking ahead

DPM Heng announced his retirement on Apr. 23.

In a Facebook post he made on the matter, DPM Heng reflected on his decades-long career in public service:

"It has been my honour and privilege to serve Singapore and Singaporeans. Thank you for all your support and partnership in this journey. Let us continue to work together as one people to bring Singapore forward and to greater heights."

Top photo from Prime Minister’s Office.