Singapore President-Elect Tharman Shanmugaratnam, former Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) and Coordinating Minister for Economic and Social Policies of Singapore, is a prominent figure known for his charisma, intelligence, and international reputation.
In this article, we delve into the life of President-Elect Tharman Shanmugaratnam, his upbringing, and his philosophies on parenting and education, shedding light on his remarkable journey.
2023 President-Elect of Singapore Tharman Shanmugaratnam
Being the son of one of the greatest histopathologists (the study of diseased tissue), in Singapore, Emeritus Professor K. Shanmugaratnam, must have been a daunting task.
His father is commonly referred to as the “Father of Pathology in Singapore” and also the Founding Director of the Singapore Cancer Registry and a Founding Member of the Singapore Medical Association.
In an interview published in the weekly, Tabla! in early 2016, he indicated that from a young age he knew that, unlike his father, he did not want to go into medicine.
He opens up that, “Studying medicine would have required time and academic effort, and I didn’t have that at the age of 17 or 18. I was completely disinterested in my studies at that time.”
Instead, Tharman spent his teen years obsessed and into every sport, from Hockey to Sepak Takraw, that was played in the school!
He shares, “I wanted to be a sportsman. I spent all of my teen years playing sports, and could not think of anything else I wanted to do.”
President-Elect of Singapore Tharman Shanmugaratnam in his teenage years
But that said, he was not without an aptitude for formal education
Alas, at the age of 17, he was diagnosed with anaemia and had to reduce his involvement in sports. Having to be forced to spend less time on sports he diverted his time into reading.
A former ACS boy, he did quite well in the A levels and went to the London School of Economics and then to the University of Cambridge to study economics.
After Cambridge, he returned home to work for the MAS, where he took up a MAS scholarship to Harvard University to get a formal education in Public Administration.
At Harvard, President-Elect Tharman also received a Lucius N. Littauer Fellow award for outstanding performance and potential.
In 2001, he was elected MP for Jurong, and the rest they say is history!
Tharman Shanmugaratnam emerges as Singapore’s 9th President in PE 2023
In a historic moment for Singapore, its citizens participated in a highly anticipated Presidential Election on September 1, 2023, marking the first contested presidential election in over a decade.
The outcome was a resounding victory for Tharman Shanmugaratnam, who secured his place as the nation’s ninth head of state. Tharman, a former Senior Minister, garnered an impressive 70.4 per cent of the vote, clearly demonstrating the widespread support he enjoys.
In contrast, his competitors, former GIC chief investment officer Ng Kok Song and former NTUC Income chief Tan Kin Lian secured 15.72 per cent and 13.88 per cent of the votes, respectively.
Tharman’s win not only reflects his political acumen but also underscores his significant popularity among the people of Singapore.
Tharman as a husband to Jane Yumiko Ittogi and father to four children
Tharman is married to Ms Jane Yumiko Ittogi, a lawyer of Chinese-Japanese heritage. They have a daughter, Maya and three sons, Aran, Arivan and Akilan.
President-Elect Tharman, wife Jane Yumiko Ittogi, son Aran Shanmugaratnam and three of their children. | Image screengrabbed from Tabla Newspaper
Based on his interview and by “stalking” his Facebook fan page, we have compiled his thoughts on parenting and education. The interpretation of the philosophies is my own.
Number 1: Little moments add up.
In a Q&A with families for life in 2012 he shared, “The little moments add up—I SMS them when I am on my way back home, in the hope I can give one of them a lift. Sometimes they get off the bus or MRT just so I can pick them up along the way”.
“Family time to him means, “chatting with my kids, usually about their sports, listening to music together, or just talking about what they’ve done during the day.”
This next president of Singapore also shares that he likes listening to the latest electro-pop and whatever they listen to. The family also likes many of the African musicians.
Number 2: Let them find their own way in life.
President-Elect Tharman, wife Jane Yumiko Ittogi with their Family on a trip to India (Image from The Hindu)
As a busy father, it is very easy to tell the kids what to do and what not to do! Who would not want the best for his kids?
But when we chalk down a path for the kids, we deprive them of a learning curve. It is better if they find what they like to do than what we want them to become!
We should encourage them in whatever they are doing. As a parent, it is extremely easy to be critical of what our kids are doing. Many times, we stop them from pursuing their dreams because we think that a particular hobby is not worth pursuing.
In doing so, we deprive them of the important quality of seeing things until the end. It is important to finish the task at hand and to do it with all your heart.
As a parent, you should encourage your kids to follow their passions rather than discourage them because you think it is not a good idea.
Number 3: Teach them to be serious about what they are doing.
It is extremely important to teach your kids to take the job at hand seriously. No job is small or big, and in the larger scheme of things, every job is important. It also warrants all the seriousness even if it seems menial.
If your kid is passionate about something, teach him to pour his heart into it. Only then would he enjoy it to the fullest!
Number 4: Encourage them to question and think in original ways.
President-Elect Tharman writes that we need to nurture the “ability to think for themselves and think in original ways. This can only come about if it is a habit from young—a habit of constantly questioning, reading up on their own, discussing alternatives.”
Number 5: Learn to play and love to play.
In late August 2012, Tharman wrote on his Facebook, “Good to play and learn through play. Let our children have their childhood!” In October of that same year, he echoes similar sentiments by writing.
“We have to create real space for children to have a broad-based education, to interact outside the classroom, get to know each other across the races and social backgrounds, and to develop that zest for learning, for life, starting young.”
Number 6: Trust your kids in what they want to do.
President-Elect Tharman says, “Trust that they will find their own way in life. You have got to trust them.”
This is so true, often as parents when our child starts to walk, we hover around him lest he would fall.
We continue to do that throughout his childhood and this leads them to follow your direction instead of following their hearts.
One of the most important life skills is to make decisions and stand by them or change them in light of new evidence.
In order to allow our kids to develop these life skills, we need to trust them to find their own way—at their own time and pace.
Number 7: React in a way that respects what they are doing!
Tharman shares, “The signals we send our children are extremely important. Respect the things they want to do and enjoy. That is how we develop imaginative people who do something different.”
Kids are receptive to body language. If you say something but your body language says something otherwise, then the kids will lose respect for what they are about to do. This is even worse than discouraging them from doing something they want to do!
Learn to react in such a way that the kid takes his task seriously. If you feel that more harm than good would come out of it, do let them know with a reason. To sum it up, respect their decisions to help them make good decisions themselves!
Parents! There is indeed a lot to learn from President-Elect Tharman Shamugaratnam! Do let us know if you agree with these seven (7) points in the comments section.
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