SINGAPORE: Mr Lee Hsien Yang knows the inaccuracy of his claim about 38 Oxley Road, which he wants to be demolished, and is creating "false urgency" for it to be torn down immediately, the Singapore government said on Friday (Oct 25).
Mr Lee, the youngest son of Singapore's founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, called on Prime Minister Lawrence Wong to make a decision on the property, saying in a Facebook post earlier on Friday that "the time for that decision is now".
In response, the Singapore government said the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew had accepted that his family home at 38 Oxley Road may be preserved.
Mr Lee Kuan Yew, who died in 2015, had written to the Cabinet in 2011 acknowledging that they were of the view that the property should not be demolished
"Thereafter, having accepted that the property may be preserved, Mr Lee Kuan Yew also submitted renovation and redevelopment plans for the property, and obtained approval URA (the Urban Redevelopment Authority). This was in March 2012.
"Mr Lee Kuan Yew was, in submitting the plans, proceeding on the basis that the property will be preserved," said a Singapore government spokesperson from the Ministry of Digital Development and Information (MDDI).
The spokesperson added that Mr Lee Hsien Yang has chosen to not mention that he and his wife, Mrs Lee Suet Fern, misled Mr Lee Kuan Yew on the execution of his last will.
Both Mr Lee Hsien Yang and his wife were also found to have lied under oath.
The findings were made by the Court of Three Judges in November 2020, and a Disciplinary Tribunal in February 2020.
The report of the Ministerial Committee on 38 Oxley Road was issued in 2018, before the findings by the court and disciplinary tribunal.
The disciplinary tribunal and the Court of Three Judges said that Mr Lee Hsien Yang and Mrs Lee Suet Fern had presented "an elaborate edifice of lies ... both on oath … and through their public and other statements", the government spokesperson noted.
"The affidavits were contrived to present a false picture. Several of the lies were quite blatant," the government said
"Mr Lee Hsien Yang's continued allegations must be seen in this light."
The government added that it is trying to keep options open and give time for current and future generations of Singaporeans to decide on what to do with the former home of the late Mr Lee.
Options include demotion or preservation of all or part of 38 Oxley Road.
"Instead of closing all options now, we should keep the options open and consider them carefully, in the fullness of time, taking into account Mr Lee Kuan Yew's wishes, the historical value of the site and what it can mean for current and future generations of Singaporeans," said the statement.
Mr Lee Kuan Yew had on several occasions publicly expressed his wish for the house to be demolished after his death.
He said in a letter to the Cabinet in October 2010 that it should “not be kept as a kind of relic for people to tramp through” and that it has “no merit as architecture”.
In his book Hard Truths to Keep Singapore Going, published in January 2011, he was quoted as saying: "Because of my house the neighbouring houses cannot build high. Now demolish my house and change the planning rules, go up, the land value will go up."
He reiterated his stance in July 2011 in another letter to the Cabinet, but was met with opposition from ministers when he asked them about it.
Subsequently, in another letter to the Cabinet in December 2011, Mr Lee said he had reflected on the matter after the Cabinet was unanimous in saying the property should not be demolished; and that he had decided that if it was to be preserved, work needed to be carried out.
“Cabinet members were unanimous that 38 Oxley Road should not be demolished. I have reflected on this and decided that if 38 Oxley Road is to be preserved, it needs to have its foundations reinforced and the whole building refurbished. It must then be let out for people to live in. An empty building will soon decline and decay,” he said.
"Mr Lee Kuan Yew's will, while stating his preference for the property to be demolished, also acknowledges that the property may be preserved," the government said on Friday.
"Mr Lee Kuan Yew's views are quite clear. His preference was for the property to be demolished. But he accepted that it need not be demolished, and he gave his views on how the property ought to be preserved. All of this is set out in the Report of the Ministerial Committee on 38 Oxley Road, published in April 2018," it added.
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Mr Lee, the youngest son of Singapore's founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, called on Prime Minister Lawrence Wong to make a decision on the property, saying in a Facebook post earlier on Friday that "the time for that decision is now".
In response, the Singapore government said the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew had accepted that his family home at 38 Oxley Road may be preserved.
Mr Lee Kuan Yew, who died in 2015, had written to the Cabinet in 2011 acknowledging that they were of the view that the property should not be demolished
"Thereafter, having accepted that the property may be preserved, Mr Lee Kuan Yew also submitted renovation and redevelopment plans for the property, and obtained approval URA (the Urban Redevelopment Authority). This was in March 2012.
"Mr Lee Kuan Yew was, in submitting the plans, proceeding on the basis that the property will be preserved," said a Singapore government spokesperson from the Ministry of Digital Development and Information (MDDI).
The spokesperson added that Mr Lee Hsien Yang has chosen to not mention that he and his wife, Mrs Lee Suet Fern, misled Mr Lee Kuan Yew on the execution of his last will.
Both Mr Lee Hsien Yang and his wife were also found to have lied under oath.
The findings were made by the Court of Three Judges in November 2020, and a Disciplinary Tribunal in February 2020.
The report of the Ministerial Committee on 38 Oxley Road was issued in 2018, before the findings by the court and disciplinary tribunal.
The disciplinary tribunal and the Court of Three Judges said that Mr Lee Hsien Yang and Mrs Lee Suet Fern had presented "an elaborate edifice of lies ... both on oath … and through their public and other statements", the government spokesperson noted.
"The affidavits were contrived to present a false picture. Several of the lies were quite blatant," the government said
"Mr Lee Hsien Yang's continued allegations must be seen in this light."
The government added that it is trying to keep options open and give time for current and future generations of Singaporeans to decide on what to do with the former home of the late Mr Lee.
Options include demotion or preservation of all or part of 38 Oxley Road.
"Instead of closing all options now, we should keep the options open and consider them carefully, in the fullness of time, taking into account Mr Lee Kuan Yew's wishes, the historical value of the site and what it can mean for current and future generations of Singaporeans," said the statement.
LEE KUAN YEW'S STANCE
Mr Lee Kuan Yew had on several occasions publicly expressed his wish for the house to be demolished after his death.
He said in a letter to the Cabinet in October 2010 that it should “not be kept as a kind of relic for people to tramp through” and that it has “no merit as architecture”.
In his book Hard Truths to Keep Singapore Going, published in January 2011, he was quoted as saying: "Because of my house the neighbouring houses cannot build high. Now demolish my house and change the planning rules, go up, the land value will go up."
He reiterated his stance in July 2011 in another letter to the Cabinet, but was met with opposition from ministers when he asked them about it.
Subsequently, in another letter to the Cabinet in December 2011, Mr Lee said he had reflected on the matter after the Cabinet was unanimous in saying the property should not be demolished; and that he had decided that if it was to be preserved, work needed to be carried out.
“Cabinet members were unanimous that 38 Oxley Road should not be demolished. I have reflected on this and decided that if 38 Oxley Road is to be preserved, it needs to have its foundations reinforced and the whole building refurbished. It must then be let out for people to live in. An empty building will soon decline and decay,” he said.
"Mr Lee Kuan Yew's will, while stating his preference for the property to be demolished, also acknowledges that the property may be preserved," the government said on Friday.
"Mr Lee Kuan Yew's views are quite clear. His preference was for the property to be demolished. But he accepted that it need not be demolished, and he gave his views on how the property ought to be preserved. All of this is set out in the Report of the Ministerial Committee on 38 Oxley Road, published in April 2018," it added.
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