Ong Ye Kung ( zh, s=王乙康, p=Wáng Yǐkāng; born 1969)
is a Singaporean politician and former civil servant who has been serving as
Minister for Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare and other social security services.
Some governments have separate ministers for mental health.
Coun ...
since 2021. A member of the governing
People's Action Party
The People's Action Party (abbreviation: PAP) is a major conservative centre-right political party in Singapore and is one of the three contemporary political parties represented in Parliament, alongside the opposition Workers' Party (WP) and ...
(PAP), he has been the
Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
(MP) representing the
Sembawang Central division of
Sembawang GRC
The Sembawang Group Representation Constituency is a five-member Group Representation Constituency (GRC) located in the northern area of Singapore. The GRC consists: Sembawang Central, Sembawang West, Woodlands, Admiralty and Canberra divisions. ...
since 2015.
Prior to entering politics, Ong worked in the
Ministry of Communications
A Communications Ministry or Department of Communications is a ministry or other government agency charged with communication. Communications responsibilities includes regulating telecommunications, postal services, broadcasting and print media. T ...
,
Ministry of Trade and Industry A Ministry of Trade and Industry, Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry or variations is a ministry that is concerned with a nation's trade, industry and commerce.
Notable examples are:
List
*Algeria: Ministry of Industry and ...
,
Singapore Workforce Development Agency
Workforce Singapore (WSG) is a statutory board under the Ministry of Manpower of the Government of Singapore
The Government of Singapore is defined by the Constitution of Singapore to mean the executive branch of the state, which i ...
,
National Trades Union Congress
The National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), also known as the Singapore National Trades Union Congress (SNTUC) internationally, is the sole national trade union centre in Singapore. NTUC is at the heart of the Labour Movement which comprises 5 ...
and
Keppel Corporation
Keppel Corporation (also known as Keppel Corp) is a Singaporean conglomerate headquartered in Keppel Bay Tower, HarbourFront. The company consists of several affiliated businesses that specialises in offshore & marine, property, infrastructure ...
. He was also the
principal private secretary
A private secretary (PS) is a civil servant in a governmental department or ministry, responsible to a secretary of state or minister; or a public servant in a royal household, responsible to a member of the royal family.
The role exists in t ...
to Deputy Prime Minister
Lee Hsien Loong
Lee Hsien Loong (; born 10 February 1952) is a Singaporean politician and former brigadier-general who has been serving as Prime Minister of Singapore and Secretary-General of the People's Action Party since 2004. He has been the Member of Par ...
between 2002 and 2004.
He made his political debut in the
2011 general election as part of a five-member PAP team contesting in
Aljunied GRC
The Aljunied Group Representation Constituency is a five-member group representation constituency (GRC) in the north-eastern and eastern region of Singapore. The GRC consists of five divisions: Eunos, Bedok Reservoir-Punggol, Kaki Bukit, Sera ...
but lost. He contested again in the
2015 general election as part of a five-member PAP team contesting in Sembawang GRC and won.
Before becoming Minister for Health, he was
Minister for Education between 2015 and 2020, serving alongside
Ng Chee Meng
Ng Chee Meng ( zh, s=黄志明, p=Huáng Zhìmíng; born 8 August 1968) is a Singaporean politician, union leader and former lieutenant-general who has been serving as Secretary-General of the National Trades Union Congress since 2018. A membe ...
between 2015 and 2018, and
Minister for Transport
A ministry of transport or transportation is a ministry responsible for transportation within a country. It usually is administered by the ''minister for transport''. The term is also sometimes applied to the departments or other government ag ...
between 2020 and 2021. He is also a co-chair of the Multi-Ministry Taskforce set up by the government to manage the
COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore
The COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore is part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). The first case in :Singapore was confirmed on 23 January 2020. Early cases ...
.
Education
Ong attended
Maris Stella High School
Maris Stella High School (MSHS) () is a government-aided, all-boys Catholic secondary school with autonomous status. As a full school, it comprises a primary section offering a six-year programme leading up to the Primary School Leaving Examin ...
and
Raffles Junior College
The Raffles Junior College (RJC) was a junior college in Singapore offering pre-university education. The college was founded in 1982, following a separation from the pre-university section of Raffles Institution (RI). Raffles Junior College ...
before graduating from 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 ...
in 1991 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 ...
degree in
economics
Economics () is the social science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services.
Economics focuses on the behaviour and intera ...
.
In 1999, he completed a
Master of Business Administration
A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...
degree at the
International Institute for Management Development
International Institute for Management Development (IMD) is a private business school in Lausanne, Switzerland specializes in executive education offering open enrollment programs for senior executives, as well as longer-term educational engage ...
in
Lausanne
, neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR-74), ...
,
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
.
Career
Civil Service career
Ong started his career working in the
Ministry of Communications
A Communications Ministry or Department of Communications is a ministry or other government agency charged with communication. Communications responsibilities includes regulating telecommunications, postal services, broadcasting and print media. T ...
between 1993 and 1999. He served as Director of Trade in the
Ministry of Trade and Industry A Ministry of Trade and Industry, Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry or variations is a ministry that is concerned with a nation's trade, industry and commerce.
Notable examples are:
List
*Algeria: Ministry of Industry and ...
between 2000 and 2003 and was the Deputy Chief Negotiator for the
Singapore–United States Free Trade Agreement
The United States-Singapore Free Trade Agreement was signed 6 May 2003 and ratified by the US House of Representatives on 24 July 2003 by a vote of 272-155. The US Senate ratified the bill on 31 July 2003 by a vote of 66-32. President George W. ...
signed in May 2003. He was
Principal Private Secretary
A private secretary (PS) is a civil servant in a governmental department or ministry, responsible to a secretary of state or minister; or a public servant in a royal household, responsible to a member of the royal family.
The role exists in t ...
to
Deputy Prime Minister
A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, ...
Lee Hsien Loong
Lee Hsien Loong (; born 10 February 1952) is a Singaporean politician and former brigadier-general who has been serving as Prime Minister of Singapore and Secretary-General of the People's Action Party since 2004. He has been the Member of Par ...
between 2002 and 2004. Ong also served as the
chief executive officer
A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...
of the
Workforce Development Agency between 2005 and 2008. Following that, he joined the
National Trades Union Congress
The National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), also known as the Singapore National Trades Union Congress (SNTUC) internationally, is the sole national trade union centre in Singapore. NTUC is at the heart of the Labour Movement which comprises 5 ...
as Assistant Secretary-General.
Political career
In the
2011 general election, Ong contested in
Aljunied GRC
The Aljunied Group Representation Constituency is a five-member group representation constituency (GRC) in the north-eastern and eastern region of Singapore. The GRC consists of five divisions: Eunos, Bedok Reservoir-Punggol, Kaki Bukit, Sera ...
as part of a five-member
People's Action Party
The People's Action Party (abbreviation: PAP) is a major conservative centre-right political party in Singapore and is one of the three contemporary political parties represented in Parliament, alongside the opposition Workers' Party (WP) and ...
(PAP) team led by
George Yeo
George Yeo Yong-Boon ( zh, s=杨荣文, p=Yáng Róngwén; born 13 September 1954) is a Singaporean former politician and brigadier-general who served as Minister for Foreign Affairs between 2004 and 2011.
Yeo served in the Singapore Army an ...
. The PAP team lost to the
Workers' Party team led by
Low Thia Khiang
Low Thia Khiang (; born 5 September 1956) is a Singaporean former politician who served as Secretary-General of the Workers' Party (WP) between 2001 and 2018. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Hougang SMC between 1991 and 2011 and Aljun ...
. This was the first time in Singapore's history when the PAP lost a GRC in an election.
Following the 2011 general election, Ong continued to work at the
National Trades Union Congress
The National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), also known as the Singapore National Trades Union Congress (SNTUC) internationally, is the sole national trade union centre in Singapore. NTUC is at the heart of the Labour Movement which comprises 5 ...
(NTUC) and became Deputy Secretary-General in June 2011. He was also elected into the NTUC's Central Committee later that year. In 2013, he left the NTUC and became Director of Group Strategy at
Keppel Corporation
Keppel Corporation (also known as Keppel Corp) is a Singaporean conglomerate headquartered in Keppel Bay Tower, HarbourFront. The company consists of several affiliated businesses that specialises in offshore & marine, property, infrastructure ...
.
In the
2015 general election, Ong joined as part of the five-member PAP team contesting in
Sembawang GRC
The Sembawang Group Representation Constituency is a five-member Group Representation Constituency (GRC) located in the northern area of Singapore. The GRC consists: Sembawang Central, Sembawang West, Woodlands, Admiralty and Canberra divisions. ...
,
which was considered 'safer' for him. The PAP team won with 72% of the vote and Ong was elected as the Member of Parliament representing the Gambas ward of Sembawang GRC.
[Ong Ye Kung, Amrin Amin join PAP's Sembawang GRC team](_blank)
channelnewsasia.com, 14 August 2015.
On 1 October 2015, Ong was appointed
Senior Minister of State for Defence and
Acting Minister for Education (Higher Education and Skills). On 1 November 2016, he was promoted to Second Minister for Defence while concurrently holding the portfolio of Minister for Education (Higher Education and Skills) alongside
Ng Chee Meng
Ng Chee Meng ( zh, s=黄志明, p=Huáng Zhìmíng; born 8 August 1968) is a Singaporean politician, union leader and former lieutenant-general who has been serving as Secretary-General of the National Trades Union Congress since 2018. A membe ...
, who was Minister for Education (Schools). In 2017, Ong moved a Bill in Parliament to confer the
Singapore University of Social Sciences
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borderin ...
autonomous status.
On 1 May 2018, the two Education portfolios were merged into a single one; Ong took over the single portfolio as Minister for Education, Ong had also relinquished his Second Minister of Defence portfolio at the same time.
On 27 July 2020, Ong relinquished his portfolio as Minister for Education and succeeded
Khaw Boon Wan
Khaw Boon Wan (; born 8 December 1952) is a Singaporean former politician who served as Minister for Transport between 2015 and 2020, Minister for National Development between 2011 and 2015, and Minister for Health between 2003 and 2011. A mem ...
as
Minister for Transport
A ministry of transport or transportation is a ministry responsible for transportation within a country. It usually is administered by the ''minister for transport''. The term is also sometimes applied to the departments or other government ag ...
, as well as the Anchor Minister of Sembawang GRC.
In the lead-up to the
2020 general election, Ong was widely seen as one of the three leading candidates (alongside
Heng Swee Keat
Heng Swee Keat (; born 15 April 1961) is a Singaporean politician, former police officer and civil servant who has been serving as Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore since 2019 and Coordinating Minister for Economic Policies since 2020 and als ...
and
Chan Chun Sing
Chan Chun Sing ( zh, s=陈振声, p=Chén Zhènshēng; born 9 October 1969) is a Singaporean politician and former major-general who has been serving as Minister for Education since 2021 and Minister-in-charge of Public Service since 2018. A m ...
) to succeed
Lee Hsien Loong
Lee Hsien Loong (; born 10 February 1952) is a Singaporean politician and former brigadier-general who has been serving as Prime Minister of Singapore and Secretary-General of the People's Action Party since 2004. He has been the Member of Par ...
as
Prime Minister of Singapore
The prime minister of Singapore is the head of government of the Republic of Singapore. The president appoints the prime minister, a Member of Parliament (MP) who in their opinion, is most likely to command the confidence of the majority of ...
. Ong led the PAP team in Sembawang GRC and they won with about 67% of the vote. Ong's former Gambas ward was merged with part of Khaw Boon Wan's former Sembawang ward, forming the new Sembawang Central ward which is currently helmed by Ong.
On 23 April 2021, Ong was appointed co-chair of the multi-ministerial committee formed on 22 January 2020 to manage the
COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore
The COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore is part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). The first case in :Singapore was confirmed on 23 January 2020. Early cases ...
. Following a Cabinet reshuffle on 15 May 2021, Ong relinquished his portfolio as Minister for Transport and succeeded
Gan Kim Yong
Gan Kim Yong ( zh, s=颜金勇, p=Yán Jīnyǒng; born 9 February 1959) is a Singaporean politician who has been serving as Minister for Trade and Industry since 2021. A member of the governing People's Action Party, he has been the Member of P ...
as
Minister for Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare and other social security services.
Some governments have separate ministers for mental health.
Coun ...
.
Ong was considered by many to be one of the most likely candidates to succeed
Heng Swee Keat
Heng Swee Keat (; born 15 April 1961) is a Singaporean politician, former police officer and civil servant who has been serving as Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore since 2019 and Coordinating Minister for Economic Policies since 2020 and als ...
as leader of the fourth-generation (4G) team, however it was ultimately revealed that Finance Minister
Lawrence Wong
Lawrence Wong Shyun Tsai ( zh, c=黄循财, p=Huáng Xúncái; born 18 December 1972) is a Singaporean politician, economist and former civil servant who has been serving as Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore since 2022 alongside Heng Swee Keat ...
had the most support compared to the other candidates.
Ong has spoke out on the events of
Anti-Indian sentiment
Anti-Indian sentiment, also known as Indophobia or anti-Indianism, is a modern term referring to negative feelings and hatred towards the Republic of India, Indian people, and Indian culture. Indophobia is formally defined in the context of ant ...
at Singapore.
Other appointments
* Board Member,
Monetary Authority of Singapore
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is the central bank and financial regulatory authority of Singapore. It administers the various statutes pertaining to money, banking, insurance, securities and the financial sector in general, as well ...
(29 Aug 2016 – 31 May 2019)
* Board Member,
SMRT Corporation
SMRT Corporation is a multi-modal public transport operator in Singapore operating bus and rail services. A subsidiary of the Government of Singapore's Temasek Holdings, it was established on 6 August 1987 and listed on the Singapore Exchange ...
(2006–2014) As an independent director, he was appointed to head an internal investigation into the major train disruptions between 15 and 17 December 2011.
* Chairman, Employment and Employability Institute
* Adviser, National Transport Workers' Union (NTWU), Singapore Industrial and Services Employees’ Union (SISEU), and Attractions, Resorts & Entertainment Union (AREU)
* Executive Secretary, National Transport Workers' Union and the Singapore Manual and Mercantile Workers' Union.
Personal life
Ong's father, Ong Lian Teng, was a
Barisan Sosialis
Barisan Sosialis ( eng, Socialist Front) was a political party in Singapore. It was formed on 29 July 1961 and officially registered on 13 August 1961 by left-wing members of the People's Action Party (PAP) who had been expelled from the PAP. ...
politician who was a Member of the Legislative Assembly for
Bukit Panjang SMC from 22 October 1963 to 8 August 1965 and then as Member of Parliament from 9 August 1965 till 5 December 1966, when he resigned to protest the "undemocratic acts" of the PAP government. In an interview with ''
The Straits Times
''The Straits Times'' is an English-language daily broadsheet newspaper based in Singapore and currently owned by SPH Media Trust (previously Singapore Press Holdings). ''The Sunday Times'' is its Sunday edition. The newspaper was established ...
'' in 2011, Ong noted that his father (who died in 2009) had been fully supportive of his decision to become involved in politics as a member of the PAP despite his own past involvement in opposition politics in Singapore.
Ong is married to Diana Kuik Sin Leng, the daughter of real estate magnate Kuik Ah Han.
They have two daughters.
Ong's maternal cousin,
Xie Yao Quan, is also a PAP Member of Parliament representing the
Jurong Central ward of
Jurong GRC.
References
External links
Ong Ye Kungon Prime Minister's Office
Ong Ye Kungon
Parliament of Singapore
The Parliament of Singapore is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of Singapore, which governs the country alongside the president of Singapore. Largely based upon the Westminster system, the Parliament is made up of Members of Parliam ...
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ong, Ye Kung
People's Action Party politicians
Alumni of the London School of Economics
Singaporean people of Hokkien descent
Living people
1969 births
Ministers for Transport of Singapore
Ministers for Education of Singapore
Singaporean trade unionists
Raffles Junior College alumni
Members of the Parliament of Singapore
Members of the Cabinet of Singapore