PM Goh sees Lee at helm by 2002

PM Goh sees Lee at helm by 2002

SINGAPORE (Reuters): Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong said he would lead Singapore through the city-state's next election, but sees Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong becoming his successor after 2002.

When asked if he would step down after the next election, due by 2002, but before the following election, Goh said: "I would not disagree."

Goh, 58, prime minister since succeeding founding father Lee Kuan Yew in 1990, has faced two elections as the country's top executive.

Lee Kuan Yew, who governed the country from 1959, is now Singapore's senior minister. Lee Hsien Loong, 47, the eldest son of Lee Kuan Yew, has widely been seen as Goh's likely successor.