In one of the world's most deliberately governed city-states, Singapore has chosen to pay its leaders as though governance itself were a premium commodity — raising Prime Minister Lawrence Wong's salary to $2.8 million annually, a 60 percent increase that widens an already vast distance between the political class and ordinary citizens. The move rests on a long-held philosophy: that excellence in public service must be purchased at market rates, and that corruption is best deterred not by moral expectation but by financial sufficiency. Whether a society can sustain trust in leaders who set the
Singapore boosts PM salary by $1m in dramatic 60% ministerial pay rise
Politics & Governance