DESMOND KUEK President and Chief Executive OfficerDesmond Kuek is President and CEO of SMRT Corporation Ltd. He assumed his role on 1 October 2012. Prior to joining SMRT, Mr Kuek served with distinction in both the military and civil service. He joined the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) in 1981 on being awarded an SAF Overseas Scholarship. In 1993, he entered the Administrative Service but remained in the SAF where he held various leadership appointments including Chief of Army and Chief of Defence Force. In 2010, he was appointed Permanent Secretary (Environment and Water Resources).Mr Kuek has a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) degree in Engineering Science from Oxford University. He also holds a Master of Arts degree from Oxford University and a Master’s degree in Public Administration from Harvard University.
Mr Tan Chuan-Jin served in the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) for nearly 24 years before retiring in 2011. Commissioned at Sandhurst, he has held various appointments in the SAF, including Commander Singapore 3rd Division and Commander Training and Doctrine Command.When the Indian Ocean Tsunami struck on Boxing Day 2004, Mr Tan led the SAF’s relief effort to Meulaboh, Aceh in Indonesia. Despite the uncertainty and scale of the crisis, they brought in emergency relief to stabilise the situation in the critical period after the tragedy.As Chairman Executive Committee, Mr Tan was responsible for organising National Day Parade 2009.In May 2011, Mr Tan was elected as one of the Members of Parliament for the Marine Parade Group Representation Constituency. He was then appointed as Minister of State for National Development and Manpower.On 1 August 2012, Mr Tan was appointed Acting Minister for Manpower, while concurrently holding the title of Senior Minister of State for National Development.Mr Tan was awarded the SAF Overseas Scholarship to read Economics and graduated with a BSc (Econs) from the London School of Economics (1992). He also holds a Masters of Arts in Defence Studies from King’s College London (1999), and a Masters in Public Management from the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore (2008).Born in 1969, Mr Tan is married with two children. He is an avid photographer and enjoys reading, watching movies and football.
