The Presidential Elections Committee was set up by the Government of Singapore to ensure that each candidate running for the office of President of Singapore has the qualifications needed — referred in Article 19 of the Constitution of Singapore. Composition The committee consists of: the Chairman of the Public Service Commission, who is also the Chairperson of the Presidential Elections Committee the Chairman of the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority a member of the Presidential Council for Minority Rights, appointed by the Chairperson of that Council a member or former member of the Council of Presidential Advisers (but not the sitting Chairperson of that Council or a former member who vacated his seat under Article 37F(2)(a) or (c) of the Constitution), appointed by the Chairperson of that Council a person who is qualified to be or has been a Judge of the Supreme Court, appointed by the Chief Justice a person, who in the opinion of the Prime Minister has expertise and experience acquired in the private sector that is relevant to the functions of the Committee, appointed by the Prime Minister Criticism Amount of discretionary power Legal academic Valentine Winslow wrote that the committee has the power to reject anyone who does not have "integrity, good character, and reputation", and that this places too much discretionary power in the hands of a small group of persons, with no guarantee that they are qualified to judge others as being of integrity and good character, or are unbiased, as there is no provision for any independent election commission. Constitutional lawyer Thio Li-ann wrote that the mechanism of selecting qualified candidates "removes the power of choice one step further away from the people, placing in the hands of an unelected group of people the power to decide who is a suitable candidate". Decisions beyond judicial review Thio observed that the committee is "not under a legal duty to give reasons for their decision, which is deficient as a process". Opacity of decisions leading to embarrassment Winslow suggested that there is an "embarrassment of uncertainty" for a candidate seeking nomination, because they may be rejected for reasons completely unclear to them, and that "men of eminence" will not agree to be nominated if they are likely to be humiliated by rejection. Presidential election, 2017 The Presidential Elections Committee for the 2017 Singapore presidential election comprises six members. They are: Eddie Teo, Public Service