It was announced on 8 Apr that Senior Minister of State for Home Affairs and Foreign Affairs Masagos Zulkifli would be promoted to become a full Minister with effect from yesterday (9 Apr).
He was appointed Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office and will continue in the Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Foreign Affairs as Second Minister in both ministries, MHA and MFA.
In an interview with the media on 8 Apr, Mr Masagos told reporters that his promotion to full Minister is a testament to how Singapore is run on the basis of meritocracy.
Mr Masagos said, “I think this is also how Singapore runs on the basis of meritocracy. That you get the post, and are rewarded for your performance and contributions because of the impact you have made. Not because you are close to a particular person or that you are the son of somebody.”
“I think this is important because it gives you the credibility to the people you serve as well as your colleagues. And I’m glad that this is the system that we have,” he added.
On being the second Malay minister in the Cabinet, Mr Masagos said, “We carry out our duties with integrity to make sure we discharge our responsibilities fully for the sake of Singapore and Singaporeans. I think that should be the focus of what we do, whether or not there are two, three or more ministers in the future. That must be something we earn, and not something we get as a matter of right.”
“It is good to see more and more Malays doing very well in education, doing very well in all fields of their professions and even in Government, and I’m very happy for that. But more importantly, whoever gets appointed, whatever position, we must earn it.”
ON HOW HIS APPOINTMENT CAME ABOUT
“I had a message from my PA when I was in Oman that the PM would like to meet me on Monday, and to me, this is not unusual as he does have meetings and lunches sometimes.”
“So I went there and we talked about the potential for our SMEs and TLCs to participate in the new industrial areas that are turning up. At the same time, I shared my concern of the conflict in the Middle East and how it is getting much worse than it was before.”
“But in the midst of all these things, he also made an announcement to me that he wants to promote me as a full Minister.”
“I’m thankful to Prime Minister for this affirmation of the contributions that I’ve made for the last eight years. It has been a very long journey. I truly enjoyed it, but most important, felt I really benefited from the experience.”
“That he now wants to appoint me to be a full minister, I thank him for that. At the same time, I was told that my two ministers DPM Teo Chee Hean and Foreign Affairs Minister K Shanmugam also lent their full support to my promotion. I thank all of them for the support that they have given me.”
Going forward, Mr Masagos believes that as a full Minister, particularly in Foreign Affairs, he will get better access to people and ministers of higher rank so that the interests of Singapore can be better delivered.
http://www.tremeritus.com/2015/04/10/masagos-my-promotion-to-minister-due-to-meritocracy/
He was appointed Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office and will continue in the Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Foreign Affairs as Second Minister in both ministries, MHA and MFA.
In an interview with the media on 8 Apr, Mr Masagos told reporters that his promotion to full Minister is a testament to how Singapore is run on the basis of meritocracy.
Mr Masagos said, “I think this is also how Singapore runs on the basis of meritocracy. That you get the post, and are rewarded for your performance and contributions because of the impact you have made. Not because you are close to a particular person or that you are the son of somebody.”
“I think this is important because it gives you the credibility to the people you serve as well as your colleagues. And I’m glad that this is the system that we have,” he added.
On being the second Malay minister in the Cabinet, Mr Masagos said, “We carry out our duties with integrity to make sure we discharge our responsibilities fully for the sake of Singapore and Singaporeans. I think that should be the focus of what we do, whether or not there are two, three or more ministers in the future. That must be something we earn, and not something we get as a matter of right.”
“It is good to see more and more Malays doing very well in education, doing very well in all fields of their professions and even in Government, and I’m very happy for that. But more importantly, whoever gets appointed, whatever position, we must earn it.”
ON HOW HIS APPOINTMENT CAME ABOUT
“I had a message from my PA when I was in Oman that the PM would like to meet me on Monday, and to me, this is not unusual as he does have meetings and lunches sometimes.”
“So I went there and we talked about the potential for our SMEs and TLCs to participate in the new industrial areas that are turning up. At the same time, I shared my concern of the conflict in the Middle East and how it is getting much worse than it was before.”
“But in the midst of all these things, he also made an announcement to me that he wants to promote me as a full Minister.”
“I’m thankful to Prime Minister for this affirmation of the contributions that I’ve made for the last eight years. It has been a very long journey. I truly enjoyed it, but most important, felt I really benefited from the experience.”
“That he now wants to appoint me to be a full minister, I thank him for that. At the same time, I was told that my two ministers DPM Teo Chee Hean and Foreign Affairs Minister K Shanmugam also lent their full support to my promotion. I thank all of them for the support that they have given me.”
Going forward, Mr Masagos believes that as a full Minister, particularly in Foreign Affairs, he will get better access to people and ministers of higher rank so that the interests of Singapore can be better delivered.
http://www.tremeritus.com/2015/04/10/masagos-my-promotion-to-minister-due-to-meritocracy/
