Chinese social media set abuzz as Singapore PM-designate steps aside, upending leadership transition

Thursday’s unexpected announcement that Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat has stepped aside as the designated successor to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has taken mainland Chinese political observers and netizens by surprise. Chinese social media was set abuzz after Heng, who turns 60 this year, released a letter addressed to Lee that said he would likely be too old to take over by the time the crisis sparked by the pandemic is over.“We need a leader who will not only rebuild…