Quick Facts
Biography
Joseph Yuvaraj Pillay, DUNU (First Class) (born 30 March 1934), also known as J. Y. Pillay, is the chairman of the Singapore Council of Presidential Advisers. He has been appointed acting President of Singapore following the end of President Tony Tan's term on 31 August 2017. He served 34 years (until 1995) as a top-ranking civil servant and an entrepreneur. He is one of the pioneers who helped build the Singapore economy after its separation from Malaysia in 1965.
Life and career
Pillay was born at Klang in Selangor, Malaysia in 1934. He graduated from Imperial College London.
His most significant contribution was building Singapore Airlines into a world-class carrier. He served as Chairman of Singapore Airlines from 1972 until 1996. He is one of the few Civil Service officers to reach Staff Grade III.
He was the Chairman of the Singapore Exchange between 1999 and 2010.
He was the Chairman of Tiger Airways Holdings from 2011 until 2014. He is currently the Chairman of the Council of Presidential Advisers.
He is the Acting President since 1 September 2017 when President Tony Tan's term expired on 31 August 2017, until the next president is sworn into office after the 2017 presidential election.
Awards
In 2012, the National University of Singapore (NUS) set up two professorships in his honour, for his contributions.
For his public service, Pillay was awarded the Order of Nila Utama (First Class), one of Singapore's most prestigious National Day Awards on 9 August 2012.