SINGAPORE — Taking over the hottest seat in town and what some analysts had described as a poisoned chalice, Transport Minister-designate Khaw Boon Wan today (Sept 28) was quick to make clear that he did not volunteer to take on the role this time — in contrast to how he had put himself forward for the national development portfolio in the aftermath of the 2011 General Election.
“I think you volunteer once, that’s enough. One should not keep on volunteering you know, people will misunderstand (and question) ‘what are you trying to prove?’” said Mr Khaw, who has been credited with turning the housing situation around during his four-year tenure as National Development Minister.
If my term turns out to be a thankless job, the loss is personal. But if we succeed collectively in transforming the city, the benefits will go to millions of Singaporeans. In such a cost-benefit equation, I will be selfish to say ‘no’ to PM. I just hope that my heart, my own body train, can withstand the stress and do not breakdown.
From October, Mr Khaw will become the fourth minister to helm the transport ministry since 2006.
Today, he said that his first order of business is to improve rail reliability and encourage a “car-light lifestyle”. A major objective is to “further raise the quality of life for Singaporeans — make it easier for them to move about on feet, bicycle, bus, train and occasionally some driverless cars”, he said. “We are not there yet, so the question is how to move from here to that destination.”
Adding that he will be sharing some of his ideas in the coming weeks or months, he noted that the public has to be realistic about the MRT system. Even for Hong Kong, which has been touted as having the best rail operator, there were 12 major disruptions last year, he said.
Since his time as Health Minister, Mr Khaw has been blogging about his work. Writing in his first blog post as transport minister, Mr Khaw said that he was advised by “many friends” against taking on the new portfolio. But he agreed to Mr Lee’s request because of his “strong beliefs” in raising Singaporeans’ quality of life further, and making the MRT lines more reliable. He added: “I believe that a united Team Singapore can tackle any problem, daunting as it may seem. That was how we tackled SARS, and the 2011 housing crisis. That is what I will bring to the table.”
Seeking “understanding and patience” from the public, Mr Khaw said: “In housing you gave me four years. I hope that I will have some ‘honeymoon’ period too, as I dive into the details, know the people, learn from them, and especially those many unsung heroes, toiling away at night, over weekends, and behind the scene. You can be sure that I will be in the trenches with you.”
Mr Khaw will also be Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure — a role where he would need to “tie together closely the different aspects of urban planning and infrastructure provision — housing, commercial and industrial development, road and rail networks, even our IT infrastructure”, in Mr Lee’s words.
Analysts felt Mr Khaw’s success as National Development Minister possibly played a part in his new appointments, which they noted would enable him to ensure better coordination between traffic and land use planning.
