The chief minister of Singapore was the

head of government The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, a gro ...

of the

Colony of Singapore Singapore was a British colony for 144 years, apart from a period of occupation under the Japanese Empire from 1942 to 1945 during the Pacific War. When the Empire of Japan surrendered to the Allies in 1945, at the end of World War II, S ...

until its abolition on 3 June 1959. It was replaced by the office of

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

. The chief minister was appointed by the

governor of Singapore The Governors of Singapore were the political leaders of Singapore during its pre-independence phase in the history of Singapore. Residents of Singapore (1819–1826) The Resident of Singapore ruled the British colony that is today the Republi ...

. The chief minister was the party leader of the majority in the Legislative Assembly.

Background

In February 1955, a new constitution, the

Rendel Constitution The Constitution of the Republic of Singapore is the supreme law of Singapore. A written constitution, the text which took effect on 9 August 1965 is derived from the Constitution of the State of Singapore 1963, provisions of the Federal Cons ...

, was implemented. Singapore would create its first Legislative Assembly with majority of the seats popularly elected, to replace the existing Legislative Council. 25 out of 32 seats would be elected by the general populace, four seats would be allocated to unofficial members appointed by the

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

, three seats taken by ''ex officio'' members, respectively the chief secretary,

attorney-general In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

and financial secretary, while the remaining seat would be for the unofficial speaker of the Assembly nominated by the governor. Moreover, the office of Chief Minister was added, which would be assumed by the leader of the majority party in the Assembly, sharing the responsibility with Chief Secretary, Attorney-General and Financial Secretary. The chief secretary continued to take control over areas such as foreign affairs, defense , administration, internal security , broadcasting and public relations, whereas the power of policy-making for the people's welfare lay in the hands of the chief minister.

List of chief ministers

References

1955 establishments in Singapore 1959 disestablishments in Singapore Government ministers of Singapore {{Singapore-stub

Background

List of chief ministers

See also

References