Born in China on 12 August 1923 of Chinese origin,[1] Howe was the son of a liquor shop owner who migrated to Malacca, British Malaya.

[5][6][7] Known by his colleagues from the civil service as a fierce, tough-talking man, Howe debated vehemently with former Deputy Prime Minister Goh Keng Swee over whether to build the MRT system in Singapore.

Howe was strongly in favour of the MRT as the backbone of Singapore's public transport system, while Goh proposed a more economical all-bus alternative.

[8] This was despite the Cabinet's decision for the go-ahead in 1972, based on a British expert's report that it would cost less to expand Paya Lebar Airport and that there was not enough time to get Changi built up to meet increasing traffic needs.

Howe gathered a team to reclaim land, widened and extended the old Royal Air Force airstrip to take Boeing 747s and build the terminal.

[2] However, he declined Lee's invitation as he believed that Singapore needed civil servants in light of the repatriation of British forces during the post-World War II period.

[5] In 1979, upon being named as a People's Action Party (PAP) candidate in by-elections called in seven constituencies, Howe said he hoped to serve no more than five years.

After submitting his nomination papers in the by-election, Howe dismissed the opposition candidates, including independent Chiam See Tong, as "court jesters" who had come out "to provide comic relief".

Directness being his hallmark, just six months after becoming Defence Minister Howe said that those who dodged national service ought to be looked upon as "pariah" in the community.

[2] In the 1980 Singaporean general election, Howe again defeated Chiam for Potong Pasir,[12] and duly served as the Member of Parliament for the constituency until 1984.

There, Howe became best remembered by Singaporeans for his controversial proposal in 1984 to raise the age for the withdrawal of Central Provident Fund (CPF) savings from 55 to 60 years.

As a result of Howe's controversial report, the PAP lost 12% of the overall votes in that election, and conceded the Potong Pasir ward to Chiam.