PM Wong accepts resignation, thanks Dr Koh for decade-long service across multiple ministries
Senior Minister of State Koh Poh Koon will step down from public office from 1 June due to “family reasons”, according to a statement released by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) on Friday (22 May).
Prime Minister (PM) Lawrence Wong has accepted Dr Koh’s resignation from his appointments at the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) and Ministry of Health (MOH).
However, Dr Koh will continue serving residents as a Member of Parliament (MP) for Tampines GRC.
‘My family needs my attention’
Shortly after news of his resignation broke, Dr Koh confirmed, in a Facebook post, that he had requested to step down from public office after a long deliberation with his family.
Source: Koh Poh Koon on Facebook
Dr Koh described his time in office as one of the “greatest honours” in his life, and expressed his thanks to PM Wong for allowing him to hold the position.
However, Dr Koh admitted that since joining politics in 2015, he had been an “absent husband, father and son”, and regularly placed the needs of Singapore and his constituents above his family.
“Right now, my family needs my attention in a way that is not compatible with the demands of political office”, Dr Koh said.
However, he emphasised that he was not bidding farewell to politics.
Source: @kohpohkoon on Instagram
“I will continue to do my best serving my constituents as Member of Parliament at Tampines GRC,” he pledged.
Served across multiple ministries over 10 years
In its statement, the PMO thanked Dr Koh for his “decade of service as a political office holder” and highlighted his contributions across several ministries and portfolios.
These included trade and industry, manpower, health, sustainability and the environment, national development, as well as the Labour Movement.
Source: MDDI Singapore on YouTube
During his time at the Ministry of National Development (MND) and Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment (MSE), Dr Koh led efforts to strengthen Singapore’s agri-food sector.
He also worked on improving food safety and boosting sustainability practices.
Played role in worker protection and Progressive Wage Model
Across appointments at MOM, the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI), and NTUC, Dr Koh also focused on support for businesses and workers.
Source: NTUC
According to the PMO, he helped to strengthen Singapore’s enterprise ecosystem while ensuring workers benefited from business transformation efforts.
Dr Koh also pushed for the expansion of the Progressive Wage Model to more sectors and contributed to policies aimed at protecting platform workers and tackling workplace discrimination.
At MOH, Dr Koh drew from his clinical background to help shape healthcare policies, where he contributed to efforts to keep healthcare affordable and accessible for Singaporeans, PMO said.
He also supported preventive healthcare initiatives such as Healthier SG and Age Well SG, and worked on strengthening Singapore’s healthcare workforce.
PM Wong thanks Dr Koh for service
The PMO described Dr Koh as someone who served “with dedication, thoughtfulness and a deep sense of duty”.
It added that his contributions had “made a difference to the lives of many Singaporeans”.
In a post on Facebook soon after, PM Wong added that while he was “sad to lose a dedicated member of the team“, he understood Dr Koh’s wish to spend more time with his family and accepted the request.
Source: Lawrence Wong on Facebook
While stepping down from his ministerial appointments, Dr Koh will remain active in politics as MP for Tampines GRC.
No replacements for the vacated roles have been named at the time of writing.
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Featured image adapted from Koh Poh Koon on Facebook and @kohpohkoon on Instagram.
