SINGAPORE, March 15 — Public Transport Council (PTC) chairman and retired senior district judge Richard Magnus died yesterday (March 14) after some five decades of distinguished public service.

Magnus was aged in his late 70s. No cause of death was disclosed publicly.

Several leading public figures including President Halimah Yacob issued statements of condolence to Magnus' family, praising his contribution to public life in various capacities.

Magnus took over from Mr Gerard Ee as chairman of the PTC on May 1, 2014, having served on the council since 2012.

He led the Fare Review Mechanism Committee (FRMC) which undertook a review of the public transport fare review mechanism and fare concessionary framework.

Magnus was also a leading figure in the public service. Among other appointments, he was board director of the Land Transport Authority (LTA) before joining the PTC.

He also led a four-member Committee of Inquiry that looked into the massive SingHealth cyber attack that occurred in mid 2018 where hackers stole the personal data of 1.5 million SingHealth patients as well as the outpatient medical records of 160,000 of them, including that of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

Magnus served as Singapore’s Non-Resident Ambassador to the Republic of Finland and was the founding chairman of Temasek Foundation Cares and deputy chairman of Temasek Foundation.

He was recently conferred the Distinguished Service Order for the 2021 National Day Awards. Prior to that, he was bestowed the Public Service Star Medal in 2015, the Meritorious Service Medal in 2009, and the Public Administration Medal (Gold) (Bar) in 2003.

Madam Halimah was among the country’s leaders who expressed her condolences to the family on Monday, describing the passing of Magnus as a profound loss.

"I will remember him as someone who was always working to serve others; to create a kinder, more inclusive society,” she wrote on Facebook.

"On the day before I conferred the Distinguished Service Order to him last year, we met at the launch of the Caring Commuter Week — an initiative he had driven as chairman of the Public Transport Council, to foster a caring commuter culture in Singapore.”

"Richard exemplified the definition of selfless service. He will be missed.”

Health Minister Ong Ye Kung described how he had worked with Magnus when the former was Minister for Transport.

"I could always count on him to lead the (Public Transport) Council to recommend what was right — striking that difficult balance between transport fares and transport cost. And he always had a heart for commuters,” said Ong.

"He will be sorely missed as a colleague, friend and teacher.”

Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan described Magnus as "a wonderful upright gentleman who epitomised justice, integrity, compassion, humility and service to his nation”.

"I had the privilege of working with him in MCYS (Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports) when we were crafting legislation that would ultimately become the Mental Capacity Act 2008,” said Dr Balakrishnan on Facebook.

"His keen insights, attention to detail and due process were invaluable.”

The PTC said it was "deeply saddened” by the demise of its chairman.

"More than a man of principle and conviction, Magnus cares deeply for the community, especially the vulnerable and those with special needs,” said the council.

Non-profit organisation, Pave, which provides an integrated service for family violence and child protection, also paid tribute to Magnus.

"As a judge, he was very in tune with social work issues and had a real compassion for the vulnerable, children, youth, elderly and families,” the organisation said.

"This is a great loss to Singapore and we grieve the loss of Magnus alongside his family and friends.”

TODAY has reached out to Magnus' family. ― TODAY