Commissioner of Police (Singapore)

Last updated

Commissioner of the
Singapore Police Force
Hoong Wee Teck (Police Day).jpg
Incumbent
Hoong Wee Teck
since 6 January 2015
Singapore Police Force
Type Commissioner of Police
AbbreviationCP
Reports to Minister for Home Affairs
Appointer President of Singapore
Term length No term limit
Constituting instrument Cap. 235, 2006 Rev. Ed.
Formation1857;168 years ago (1857)
First holder Thomas Dunman
Deputy Deputy Commissioner of Police
Commissioner of Police rank epaulettes Commissioner Police - SPF epaulettes (everyday dress).JPG
Commissioner of Police rank epaulettes

The Commissioner of Police is the head of the Singapore Police Force (SPF). The Commissioner is assisted by the Deputy Commissioner of Police, and reports to the Minister for Home Affairs. The current Commissioner of Police is Hoong Wee Teck.

Contents

The position was created with the Police Act of 1856 (and passed in 1857), in response to calls for a full-time dedicated police officer to helm the police force in response to escalating cases of violent crime in Singapore during that period. Thomas Dunman was appointed as a Deputy Magistrate and Superintendent of Police in 1843, before he assumed responsibilities as the first full-time Commissioner of Police in June 1857.

When Singapore, Malacca and Penang became Crown colonies of the British Empire in 1867, the role of the police commissioner was expanded to include that of the entire Straits Settlements, with the title changed to Inspector-General of Police. This lasted until the Japanese occupation of Singapore in 1942, before the position was restored as the Commissioner of Police in 1946 with the return of the British and the gradual instatement of self-governance.

The President of Singapore has the power to appoint the Commissioner of Police on the advice of the Cabinet. [1]

List of commissioners of police

Commissioner of the Singapore Police Force

#PortraitCommissioner of PoliceTook officeLeft office
1 R. E. Foulger.png R E Foulger19461951
2 J. P. Pennefather-Evans.png J P Pennefather-Evans19511952
3Nigel G Morris19521957
4Alan Edmund Grove Blades19571964
5 John Le Cain in 1950.png John Le Cain 19641967
6Cheam Kim Seang19671972
7Tan Teck Khim19731981
8Goh Yong Hong19811992
9 Tee Tua Ba 19921997
10 Khoo Boon Hui 19972010
11Ng Joo Hee20102015
12 Hoong Wee Teck (cropped).jpg Hoong Wee Teck2015Incumbent

List of inspectors-general of police

Commissioner of the Straits Settlements Police

#PortraitCommissioner of PoliceTook officeLeft office
1 Thomas Dunman.jpg Thomas Dunman 18571871

Inspector-General of the Straits Settlements Police

#PortraitInspector-General of PoliceTook officeLeft office
1C B Plunket18711875
2 Samuel Dunlop.jpg Samuel Dunlop 18751891
3R W Maxwell18911895
4 Edward Graham Pennefather.png E G Pennefather18951906
5 William Andrew Cuscaden.jpg William Andrew Cuscaden 19061914
6A R Chancellor19141923
7G C Denham19231925
8 Harold Fairburn 3.jpg Harold Fairburn 19251935
9 Rene Onraet.png René H de S Onraet 19351939
10 Arthur Harold Dickinson 19391942

References

  1. "Police Force Act - Singapore Statutes Online". sso.agc.gov.sg. Retrieved 26 January 2018.