Melvyn Ong Su Kiat (born 1975) is a Singaporean

lieutenant-general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

who has been serving as Chief of Defence Force since 2018. Prior to his appointment as Chief of Defence Force, he served as Chief of Army between 2015 and 2018.

Education

Ong was educated at Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) and

National Junior College National Junior College (NJC) is a government junior college located in Bukit Timah, Singapore. Established in 1969, it was the first government junior college in Singapore. NJC offers a two-year course for pre-university students and a six-year ...

, before being awarded the

Singapore Armed Forces The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) are the military services of the Republic of Singapore, responsible for protecting and defending the security interests and the sovereignty of the country. A military component of the Ministry of Defence (MINDE ...

(SAF) Overseas Scholarship in 1994 to study at the

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 millio ...

, where he graduated with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

with second class honours degree. He also completed a

Master of Science A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to ...

degree in economics at the London School of Economics in 1998. Ong attended the

Indonesian Army Command and General Staff College The Indonesian Army Command and General Staff College ( id, Sekolah Staf dan Komando Angkatan Darat, ) in Bandung, West Java, is a prominent graduate school for Indonesian Army and sister-service Officer (military), officers, inter-agency represe ...

Bandung Bandung ( su, ᮘᮔ᮪ᮓᮥᮀ, Bandung, ; ) is the capital city of the Indonesian province of West Java. It has a population of 2,452,943 within its city limits according to the official estimates as at mid 2021, making it the fourth most ...

in 2005. He also completed the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

's Infantry Officer Course in

Fort Benning Fort Benning is a United States Army post near Columbus, Georgia, adjacent to the Alabama–Georgia border. Fort Benning supports more than 120,000 active-duty military, family members, reserve component soldiers, retirees and civilian employees ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

in 1998.

Military career

Ong enlisted in the

(SAF) in January 1994 and was commissioned as an infantry officer in October that year. He has held various appointments in the SAF, including the Commander of the 7th Singapore Infantry Brigade from 2010 to 2011, and Head of the Joint Plans and Transformation Department. In 2011, he led the Singapore team which assisted in rescue operations and provided humanitarian aid to the victims of the

2011 Christchurch earthquake A major earthquake occurred in Christchurch on Tuesday 22 February 2011 at 12:51 p.m. local time (23:51 UTC, 21 February). The () earthquake struck the entire of the Canterbury region in the South Island, centred south-east ...

in New Zealand, and helped to establish the Changi Regional Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief Coordination Centre in 2014. He also chaired the executive committee of the 2015 National Day Parade. He served as Chief Guards Officer from 18 June 2014 to 14 August 2015. Ong succeeded

Perry Lim Perry Lim Cheng Yeow is a Singaporean former lieutenant-general who served as Chief of Defence Force between 2015 and 2018. Education Lim studied at Raffles Institution and won the President's Scholarship and the Singapore Armed Forces Over ...

as the Chief of the Singapore Army on 14 August 2015. Ong was promoted to the rank of Major General on 1 July 2016. Ong stepped down as COA on 21 March 2018 and is appointed as CDF on 23 March 2018. Ong was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant General on 1 July 2018.

Non-military career

In addition to his career in the SAF, Ong is also serving in the Singapore Administrative Service under a dual-career scheme. Between 2013 and 2014, he was the Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the Early Childhood Development Agency, which was jointly created by the

Ministry of Social and Family Development The Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF; ms, Kementerian Pembangunan Sosial dan Keluarga; zh, 社会及家庭发展部; ta, சமுதாய, குடும்ப மேம்பாட்டு அமைச்சு) is a minist ...

and

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

Awards and decorations

Lieutenant-General Ong has received the following awards:

Personal life

Ong is married to Nicole Lynn McCully. They have three children, Gabrielle Lynn Ong, Ryan Joshua Ong Sheng-En and Euan David Ong Yi-En.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ong, Melvyn Living people Singaporean people of Chinese descent Chiefs of Defence Force (Singapore) Chiefs of the Singapore Army Alumni of the London School of Economics Anglo-Chinese School alumni National Junior College alumni Recipients of the Pingat Pentadbiran Awam Recipients of the Long Service Medal (Military) (Singapore) 1975 births