Yaacob Ibrahim

Dr Yaacob has been active in community service since his school days and has been involved in the Association of Muslim Professionals, Jamiyah, Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura and the Nature Society (Singapore). Initially a volunteer tutor, became the Chairman of the Council for the Development of Singapore Malay/Muslim Community (Yayasan Mendaki) in March 2002.

He is married with a son and a daughter.[5] Questions about his son's citizenship and if he would serve national service were raised when a leaked US diplomatic cable from WikiLeaks stated the minister's two children as US citizens.[6] In response, he clarified that his children have dual American and Singaporean citizenship until the age of 18 because of the status of his wife as an American citizen. He confirms his son will serve national service.[7]

Yaacob's eldest brother Ismail Ibrahim was the first Malay recipient of the President's Scholarship.[8] His sister Zuraidah Ibrahim was a former Straits Times journalist now with South China Morning Post.[9][10] His younger brother Latiff Ibrahim is a lawyer.[11]

Yaacob studied at Tanjong Katong Technical Secondary School, which turned coeducational during his time there.[12] He graduated from the University of Singapore with an honours degree in civil engineering in 1980 and in 1989 obtained a Doctor of Philosophy from Stanford University. He was a postdoc at Cornell University. He returned to Singapore in 1990 and joined the National University of Singapore faculty in 1991. He received his department's teaching excellence award in 1994. He is currently on leave of absence from the university as an associate professor.

A Member of Parliament since 1997, he represented the Jalan Besar Group Representation Constituency (Jalan Besar GRC) (1997–2011) and the Moulmein–Kallang GRC since the 2011 general election. Within both GRCs, he has been responsible for the Kolam Ayer ward. In April 2001 he became the first Mayor of Central District of Singapore until November 2001.[4]

Yaacob was Parliamentary Secretary and Senior Parliamentary Secretary at the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology. He became a Minister of State for at the Ministry of Community Development and Sports in November 2001. In March 2002, Yaacob became the Acting Minister for Community Development and Sports and Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs and made a full member of the Cabinet in May 2003.

He became the Minister of Environment and Water Resources in 2004.[4] In 2009, after the Bukit Timah canal burst its banks after a downpour, resulting in parts of Bukit Timah being submerged, Yaacob remarked it was a freak event that "occurs once in 50 years".[13] The country would go on to experience more than 70 flash floods between the year 2010 and 2013.[14]

In May 2011, in a cabinet rearrangement, Yaacob became Minister for Information, Communication and the Arts. He continued to serve as the Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs. Yaacob is on the PAP Central Executive Committee as Vice-Chairman.[4] In April 2015, Dr Yaacob was appointed the Minister in charge of Cyber Security and oversees the Cyber Security Agency (Singapore), an agency formed under the Prime Minister's Office. He had been re-appointed to serve in this capacity following the September 2015 General Election.

Yaacob stepped down from the cabinet on 30 April 2018.[15]

Yaacob retired from parliament as MP for Jalan Besar GRC after the 13th parliament was dissolved on 23 June 2020, thus ending his political career after 23 years of service.[1][2]