Singapore President Quits Over Drinking
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SINGAPORE — The president of Singapore, C.V. Devan Nair, has resigned to seek treatment for alcoholism, Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew announced Thursday.
Lee told Parliament that doctors who examined Nair, 61, concluded that because of his alcohol dependency, “The president’s mental state at present fluctuates between lucidity and mild confusion and disorientation.”
In Singapore, the president’s power is nominal.
Nair, a former leader of the National Trades Union Congress, was appointed president on Oct. 23, 1981, and his term was to run until Oct. 23 this year. He was admitted to Singapore’s General Hospital on March 16, reportedly suffering from liver problems.
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