Benjamin Sheares

Benjamin Sheares DPMK FRCOG FACS
Official portrait, 1971
2nd President of Singapore
In office 2 January 1971 – 12 May 1981
Prime Minister	Lee Kuan Yew
Preceded by	Yusof Ishak
Succeeded by	Devan Nair
Personal details
Born	Benjamin Henry Sheares (1907-08-12)12 August 1907 Straits Settlements (present-day Singapore)
Died	12 May 1981(1981-05-12) (aged 73) Holt Road, Singapore
Cause of death	Lung cancer
Resting place	Kranji State Cemetery
Political party	Independent
Spouse	Yeo Seh Geok Sheares (m. 1939)
Children	3; including Constance
Alma mater	King Edward VII College of Medicine
Occupation	Physician academic

Benjamin Henry Sheares FRCOG FACS^[1] (12 August 1907 – 12 May 1981) was a Singaporean physician and academic who served as the second president of Singapore from 1971 until his death in 1981. Of Eurasian descent, Sheares was born in Singapore under British rule and graduated from the King Edward VII College of Medicine. He studied obstetrics and gynaecology and worked as an obstetrician at the Kandang Kerbau Hospital (KKH), eventually serving as the Acting Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University of Malaya in Singapore. He later became the Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the university, a rare feat for a local as usually high-ranking colonial officers held such positions.

Sheares retired in 1960 and was in private practice before being elected as the president of Singapore by Parliament following the death of Yusof Ishak, the former president, on 23 November 1970. He was sworn in on 2 January 1971. Sheares initially wanted to retire after finishing his second term as he felt that he did not have the energy for another term, but then-Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew persuaded him to stay and Sheares took on his third term. He served as the president of Singapore for three terms from 2 January 1971 till his death in office on 12 May 1981. He was succeeded by Devan Nair on 23 October 1981.

Regarded as "the father of obstetrics and gynaecology in Singapore",^[2] Sheares was known for pioneering the lower Caesarian section in Singapore and creating an artificial vagina. The lower Caesarian section has since become the standard procedure in Singapore. Sheares remains the only president to have been elected for three terms and was the longest-serving president at 10 years – a record surpassed in January 2010 by S. R. Nathan who served 12 years. Both the Benjamin Sheares Bridge and Sheares Hall at the National University of Singapore are named after him.