A retired Singapore Armed Forces brigadier-general was recently appointed to head the Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA). This raised concerns about decision process for selecting senior SAF officers for key leadership positions in the Civil Service.
On 4 October 2021 in Parliament, I will be asking the Minister-in-charge of the Civil Service how many retired officers with the rank of colonel and above have held senior positions in public sector organisations. I will also ask how the Public Service Division (PSD), which is responsible for HR policies in the Civil Service, determines which officers are suitable to lead these organisations despite not having had civilian work experience.
Sectoral knowledge and skills for key agencies like ECDA take years to acquire. I will be asking if PSD has considered requiring these officers spend several years in understudy before taking the helm of these organisations.
This is my question as filed:
Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: To ask the Prime Minister (a) how many currently retired SAF officers with the rank of colonel or ME7 and above have held senior positions in public sector organisations; (b) how does the PSD determine which officers have sufficient competencies to lead these organisations despite not having had civilian work experience; and (c) whether PSD has considered requiring these officers to spend several years building up sectoral knowledge and skills before taking the helm of these organisations.
