SINGAPORE — It didn't take long for memes and popular clips to emerge from the swearing-in ceremony for Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and his ministers.

The ceremony at the Istana on Wednesday (May 15) evening was watched by more than 330,000 viewers on CNA's livestream alone.

TODAY takes a look at some of the viral moments from the ceremony. 

PM WONG'S COMMAND OF MALAY

At the ceremony, Mr Wong gave his first speeches as Prime Minister in English, Malay and Mandarin.

His Malay speech earned him praise from the online community with many impressed by his command of the language.  

One comment on YouTube read: “I am pleasantly surprised he can speak Malay language, just like his predecessors.” 

In a report by The Straits Times, Mr Mohamed Sa’at Abdul Rahman, president of the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore, said: “I noticed (Mr Wong’s) Malay has improved.”

In an interview with CNA, Mr Wong said that he had been taking Malay language lessons every week. He hopes that he will be able “to engage more in Malay”.

PM WONG’S WIFE LOO TZE LUI TAKING THE SPOTLIGHT

Images of Mr Wong's low-profile wife Loo Tze Lui went viral on social media.

Dressed in a elegant black dress with a necklace, she wowed netizens with her looks. 

One Instagram user wrote: “There is a beautiful woman behind every successful man is real siah”.

Another wrote: “Mr Lawrence’s wifey is so pretty like a Korean actress”. 

According to an 8Days article, Ms Loo, 50, is Mr Wong’s second wife. She is known to keep a private life and rarely joins Mr Wong in his social media posts.

Ms Loo was previously a banker, and part of the board of directors for the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) until 2023. She currently works in wealth management.

Ms Loo first captured the public imagination last September, when she attended President Tharman Shanmugaratnam’s inauguration with Mr Wong, then deputy prime minister.

Her appearance quickly became a popular topic with many people taking note of her graceful manner and beauty.

The pair do not have children. 

HOT WEATHER 

The outdoor ceremony at the Istana left its distinguished audience sweltering in Singapore’s evening heat and humidity.

In a TikTok post by user "huhjyeah", Mrs Josephine Teo,  Minister for Communications and Information, was seen holding a fan to cool outgoing prime minister Lee Hsien Loong.

Her actions won plenty of fans online with the clip being shared more than 2,000 times and receiving over 1,800 likes. 

Many called her actions “sweet” and “thoughtful”.

One TikTok user wrote: “Please, we can understand weather very warm and humid”.

Viewers also noticed how Mr Wong appeared to be perspiring visibly during the swearing-in ceremony, with some attributing it to nervousness. 

One Instagram user said: “You can see how nervous he is with the sweat...”

Another asked: “Why is he sweating so bad tho?”

‘SPILLING TEA’

In another TikTok post by user "huhjyeah", the former president Halimah Yacob was spotted chatting with Mrs Mary Tan, the wife of Mr Tony Tan, another ex-president. In the video, she can be seen pointing and gesturing to Mrs Tan. 

With more than 6,000 likes, the video has amused viewers who have dubbed her actions as "spilling tea". Humorous commentaries can also be found in the comments. 

One viewer wrote: “No, la, both sharing their ghostly experience in the Istana.”

Another suggested jokingly what Madam Halimah might be saying: "Actually, ah, why never install aircon outside? You see the pipes can link here and there..."

CROSSOVER WITH THE STAR AWARDS 

Mediacorp’s official Tiktok account released a video using audio from The Star Awards to complement the ministers' entrance during Wednesday's ceremony. 

Posted with the caption "Star Awards 2025 came early", the video showed Mr Wong, Mr Tharman and other key political figures walking down the red carpet.

The audio was used to draw parallels with artistes appearing at The Star Awards, Mediacorp's annual awards event. 

The video was well-received, with more than 1,000 likes. 

One TikTok user commented that it was “the crossover we didn’t know we need”.

An Instagram user wrote: "Our ministers all SLAYYYYYYY".