Inside Singapore’s secret intelligence agency: Three former SID leaders on threats, sacrifice and service

For decades, Singapore’s intelligence officers received medals they could not publicly display. Kevin Santa Maria, a former chief of staff at the Security and Intelligence Division, recalled being told that military officers wore medals on their chests, while SID officers wore theirs inside their jackets, hidden like the work itself.

Santa Maria spent more than two decades at the top-secret agency under Singapore’s Ministry of Defence. He said its officers took pride in working in the shadows and knowing they were contributing to something larger than themselves.

Former SID director Eddie Teo, now 79, recently received Singapore’s highest civilian honour, the Order of Temasek (With Distinction), for 56 years of public service. His career included 24 years at SID, where he served as director from 1979 to 1994 after joining the agency in 1970.

Teo said he still regretted a decision from his time in charge. “For a very long time, that was one mistake I made. I did not allow them to get National Day Awards because I thought there was a security risk,” he said. Later directors changed the policy, allowing SID officers to receive public recognition.

Established in 1966 as a small team focused on geopolitical analysis, SID grew into an intelligence agency that advises the government, supports discussions on strategic issues and assesses global developments affecting Singapore’s security and national interests. Santa Maria compared its role to that of the CIA and MI6 in collecting information. The agency remained largely out of public view until it launched a recruitment website in 2021. As SID marks its 60th anniversary, Teo, Santa Maria and former senior counterterrorism director Ng Kah Meng have spoken publicly for the first time about their work behind the scenes.

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For a very long time, that was one mistake I made. I did not allow them to get National Day Awards because I thought there was a security risk.