Lee Hsien Yang responds to PM Lee's statement, Latest Singapore News - The New Paper
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Lee Hsien Yang responds to PM Lee's statement

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Mr Lee Hsien Yang yesterday asked whether his late father Lee Kuan Yew was unwavering in his wish that his house at 38, Oxley Road be demolished, in his first response to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's latest statement.

In a Facebook post yesterday, Mr Lee Hsien Yang said: "We asked a simple question, that he (PM Lee) has refused to answer for a week: Was our father, Lee Kuan Yew, unwavering in his demolition wish? Yes or no?"

In a later post, he clarified that he and his sister, Dr Lee Wei Ling, have not interacted with Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean in his capacity as the chair of a ministerial committee considering options for the house.

This follows a statement issued by Mr Teo last Saturday, when he revealed the committee's members and its scope of work. Mr Teo had said he has shared some of the options being studied with the siblings.

In response, Mr Lee Hsien Yang said he and Dr Lee met Mr Teo numerous times before the committee was formed.

"During those discussions we had explored a wide range of options as well as concerns we had regarding Lee Hsien Loong and his family. DPM was always careful to preface his remarks that any views he expressed were personal views," he said.

Mr Lee Hsien Yang also denied PM Lee's assertion that he and his sister were unhappy that 38, Oxley Road, was bequeathed to their older brother.

"Wei Ling and I never had any objection to LHL receiving an equal share of the estate. We object to LHL's flip-flopping about Lee Kuan Yew's demolition wish," he said.

PM Lee has previously stated that as a son, he wants the house demolished to honour his father's wishes. He has recused himself from all government decisions concerning the house.

Mr Lee Hsien Yang did not immediately address the other points PM Lee made in the statement he issued on Monday, his first day back at work from a vacation.

In that statement and an accompanying video, PM Lee had apologised for the harm caused by the protracted and publicly aired dispute with his siblings.

He will make a ministerial statement to refute the "baseless accusations" when Parliament sits on July 3.

PM Lee said the allegations went beyond private and personal matters, extending to the conduct of his office and the integrity of the Government.

"These baseless accusations against the Government cannot be left unanswered.

"They must be and will be dealt with openly and refuted," he said.

In his statement, PM Lee also said he had "done everything possible to avoid this state of affairs" and had tried to deal with his siblings' unhappiness privately, to no avail.

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Lee Hsien YangLee Hsien Loongoxley road