Singapore—Finance Minister Lawrence Wong may go down in history as being most like the classmate everyone looks to for all the answers.
It certainly seemed that way during a Covid-19 multi-ministry task force (MTF) press conference on Monday (May 31).
Mr Wong co-chairs the task force and has arguably been its public face since the pandemic began last year.
At one point, a journalist asked a question concerning the new Covid-19 variant from Vietnam.
The camera, which had been on Health Minister Ong Ye Kung, caught Mr Ong turning his head to the right, where Mr Wong sat.
On the immediate right of Mr Ong sat Trade and Industry Minister Gan Kim Yong, who had already turned towards Mr Wong.
The newly-minted Finance Minister gave the two other men a look, before launching into an answer. He seemed to swallow at first, and jump in his seat, and then quickly found his footing, saying he would continue to monitor the situation.
The wordless exchange among the three ministers can be seen in this CNA clip.
That both Messrs Ong and Gan turned to Mr Wong for an answer — and Mr Wong jumped in to save the day — caught the public eye.
And the internet being what it is, the exchange showing Mr Wong being “arrowed” was quickly turned into a meme, first on the SGAG Facebook page.
Mr Wong himself posted a version of the meme on his Facebook and Instagram accounts, but with captions from the press conference.
However, some commenters are calling Mr Wong “the boss,” implying that the other ministers were right to let him answer the question.
Others commented that he looked like “the next PM” because “All so rely on him already.”
One netizen even made a meme about it.
Mr Wong wrote that the memefication of the moment made him laugh.
“Had a good laugh when I saw this meme of the MTF press conference on Monday. It’s really not about who answers the questions. My fellow co-chairs and I work closely together to fight the pandemic. We are all in this together, and teamwork makes the dream work.
“Let’s continue to stay united in this challenging time!”
He then tagged his fellow ministers, Mr Ong Ye Kung and Mr Gan Kim Yong.
Mr Ong was quick to respond, commenting, “Lawrence, next time you can ‘eye power’ me back!”
/TISG
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