Lee Hsien Loong will stand down and hand power to his deputy Lawrence Wong at a challenging time for the city state

Singapore’s prime minister, Lee Hsien Loong, will stand down on Wednesday and hand power to his deputy Lawrence Wong, the first change of power in the city state in two decades.

Wong, 51, a US-trained economist credited with managing the country’s response to the pandemic, will be the fourth prime minister to lead Singapore, and is the first leader to have been born after the country’s independence in 1965. He is also only the second leader who is not a member of the founding Lee family. He will be inaugurated in a ceremony on Wednesday night.

Election comes as minister faces a corruption investigation and voters express frustration with the electoral process

Singaporeans will select a new president on Friday, a vote that will measure public mood at a time when the ruling party, which has been in power for more than six decades, is reeling from a spate of uncommon political scandals.

The vote comes as a senior government minister is under investigation by the country’s anti-graft agency, and after the resignation of two senior lawmakers over an affair.

Claimant seeks $3m in damages to cover financial losses as well as rehabilitation and therapy to overcome ‘trauma’

A man in Singapore is seeking more than S$3m (£1.87m) in damages from a woman who said she saw him only as a friend, claiming she caused him trauma and damaged his “stellar reputation”.

A defamation case being brought by K Kawshigan claims the damages are to cover loss in earnings and investments, as well as “rehabilitation and therapy programmes to overcome the sustained trauma,” according to court documents.