Singapore named a former speaker of parliament Halimah Yacob as the multicultural city-state’s first woman president
- The returning officer declared Halimah Yacob, 63, elected after nominations closed.
- There were four applicants among those two were not Malays and were diqualified.
- Halimah had automatically qualified because she held a senior public post for over three years.
Who is Halimah Yacob?
- She is a former member of Singapore's governing People's Action Party (PAP),
- She was the ninth Speaker of Parliament from January 2013 to August 2017.
- In 2001, she was elected as an MP for the Jurong Group Representation Constituency.
- She was made a Minister of State at the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports in 2011
- She has also served as the Chair of Jurong Town Council.
About Singapore
- Prime Minister of Singpore is Lee Hsien Loong.
- Singapore officially the Republic of Singapore is a sovereign city-state in Southeast Asia.
- It is sometimes referred to as the "Lion City", the "Garden City" or the "Little Red Dot"
- During the Second World War, Singapore was occupied by Japan. It gained independence from the UK in 1963 by federating with other former British territories to form Malaysia, but separated two years later over ideological differences, becoming a sovereign nation in 1965.
- There are four official languages: English (common and first language), Malay, Mandarin and Tamil, though almost all Singaporeans are bilingual.
- One of the five founding members of ASEAN.
- Singapore is also the host of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Secretariat
- It is a member of the East Asia Summit, Non-Aligned Movement and the Commonwealth of Nations.
