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George Yeo Says He Won’t Run for President in the Next S’pore Presidential Election

2022-08-09 , 6:00 pm

With the Presidential elections coming up next year, some of us might have already started to wonder which candidates will run for the title of President a year from now.

Some may have also thought of politicians from the past and present, such as former Minister for Foreign Affairs George Yeo, who retired from politics more than a decade ago.

Mr Yeo announced his retirement from politics back in 2011, after being part of the team that lost the Aljunied Group Representative Constituency (GRC) to the Workers’ Party team led by Low Thia Khiang.

Prior to that, he was the Member of Parliament (MP) representing of the Bedok Reservoir–Punggol ward in Aljunied GRC.

Since then, he has participated in various forums and talks, and has also accepted interviews from both local and international media outlets.

Just yesterday (8 August), Mr Yeo, now 67, spoke to Lianhe Zaobao regarding his upcoming book titled Musings, and also revealed that he has decided that he not be running for President in the next Presidential Election.

Instead, he expressed his wishes to enjoy his “partially-retired” life.

Did Not Publish Book as Political Stunt

When speaking about how the publishing of his book might be interpreted as a sign that he will be running for President next year, Mr Yeo insisted that it was not the purpose behind publishing the book.

He explained that he will have written 250,000 words by the time the book is completed, and that writing a book is no mean feat.

He even added that he would not have chosen to write it if he had known beforehand that it would require so much time and energy.

Confirmed that He Will Not Partake in Election

During the interview with Zaobao, he clearly expressed that he will not be participating in the election, and said that his book might be able to offer readers some perspective as to why.

He also likened himself to a “free spirit”, saying that he enjoys speculating and speaking freely, both of which may result in his speech coming off as “politically incorrect” at times.

Apart from that, Mr Yeo pointed out that he is currently semi-retired, and that he cherishes this freedom.

On the other hand, he also said that being the President would mean having to be disciplined in both one’s actions and words, and that he would rather be “free”.

He then emphasised that he is not attracted to the idea of being the President of a country, similar to his sentiments back in 2011 before the Presidential Election.

Additionally, in his previous book, George Yeo on Bonsai, Banyan and the Tao, which was published in 2015, he wrote, that running for President is just a responsibility, not an ambition, and that one should not run for President just because they want to prove their worth.

Journey of Publishing His Newest Book

With regards to his newest book, Musings, which bears resemblance to a memoir in terms of its narrative style, Mr Yeo also shared more about the background behind its publication.

He mentioned how author and veteran media practitioner Woon Tai Ho approached him to ask if he was interested in publishing a new book, and suggested for the book to be written in the format of interviews.

Mr Yeo then recounted how he readily agreed as he initially thought that he would just have to answer the interview questions, making the process a breeze.

However, he ended up spending around ten hours preparing for every two or three-hour-long interview session due to his serious attitude.

Apart from noting down the important points to discuss, he even rummaged through his personal belongings to find photos that could be used in the book as well.

However, despite the amount of effort that he had to put in, Mr Yeo also said that he derived much satisfaction from the process as it not only allowed him to find himself again but also let him sort out his thoughts and make constant revisions to them.

According to him, this process allowed him to become more aware of the contradictions or dilemmas that he is, or was faced with.

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Election to Be Held by September Next Year

And for those who don’t know what dates to look out for with regards to the new 2023 Presidential election, here’s all you need to know.

The election will be held latest by September 2023, and it will be open to candidates from any racial group.

Previously in 2017, the Presidential election was reserved for Malay candidates, and current President Halimah Yacob took over the role in an uncontested election.

When asked if he would volunteer himself if there is no election by next year, Mr Yeo’s answer was still a resounding “No”.

After pausing for a while, he added, “I am sure that there will be many candidates who will run for President.”