Singapore—On Monday morning, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s sister, Lee Wei Ling, took to social media to address news reports alleging that her younger brother, Lee Hsien Yang, had somehow managed to obtain more money from the will of their father, Singapore’s founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew.
Ms Lee stated forthrightly in her Facebook post on April 15, “This is a lie,” and called the allegations “false and dishonourable.”
Media reports have continued to repeat Loong’s false and dishonourable allegations that Yang somehow swindled our father…
Posted by Lee Wei Ling on Sunday, 14 April 2019
Ms Lee explained that in the version of her father’s will, written in 2012, LKY had intended to leave “a little more” for his daughter. However, in the final version of his will dated a year later, in 2013, he had evidently changed his mind and chose to leave all three of his children—Lee Hsien Loong, Lee Hsien Yang, and Lee Wei Ling—equal shares.
She called out reports in the media that have spread the “false and dishonourable allegations” that have accused her younger brother of swindling their father.
She wrote, “Equal shares was always our parents intention and agreement between them and with the children.”
Ms Lee also clarified that LKY’s final will had been drafted by lawyer Kwa Kim Li. “Kwa Kim Li was retained as our father’s lawyer for all his wills save the first (drafted by our mother, for which she was the principal beneficiary).”
She also said that it was the lawyer who told LKY that equal shares between the three offspring would be the best, writing, “Kim Li herself advised our father to go to equal shares. In an e-mail to me, she wrote: ‘I told him…. when he instructed me to divide the estate unequally, that it was already decided that the estate was to be divided equally.’ This is exactly what was reflected in his final will.”
Lee and Lee vs Lee
Ms Lee’s post is just the next part of the tale of infighting between the Lee siblings, which began mid-June two years ago. In a joint statement over social media, Ms Lee and Lee Hsien Yang said that they had “no confidence” in the Prime Minister, whom they accused of wanting to keep the family home in 38 Oxley Road so that he could start a political dynasty, with his son Hongyi as his heir apparent.
A month later, PM Lee called these accusations “entirely baseless” in a special parliamentary session.
Shortly afterward, his sister and brother announced a truce of sorts on social media, saying, “For now, we will cease presenting further evidence on social media, provided that we and our father’s wish are not attacked or misrepresented,” in a joint statement.
However, the fight between the siblings did not end there. The wife of Lee Hsien Yang, Lee Suet Fern is now facing a disciplinary tribunal called for by the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) for her alleged role in helping prepare the will of her father-in-law. On Friday, April 12, Lee Hsien Yang announced on Facebook that the AGC had filed “over 500 pages of complaint” against his wife.
Lee Suet Fern is not the only one from his family at odds with the law in Singapore, however. Their son, Li Shengwu, has been charged with contempt of court for a Facebook post, which had been set to private, wherein he said that “the Singapore Government is very litigious and has a pliant court system.” At the beginning of this month, he announced that his case was proceeding.
Here is Ms Lee’s post in full:
“Media reports have continued to repeat Loong’s false and dishonourable allegations that Yang somehow swindled our father to get more in his final will. This is a lie.
In one will in 2012, my father did give me a little more than my brothers but he decided to revert to EQUAL shares in 2013 for his final will. Equal shares was always our parents intention and agreement between them and with the children.
Kwa Kim Li was retained as our father’s lawyer for all his wills save the first (drafted by our mother, for which she was the principal beneficiary). Kim Li wrote to all three of siblings in Jun 2015 that our father “was aware that it was intended/agreed that he would divide his entire Estate into 3 equal shares for the 3 children” The final will provided for this. Each of us received equal shares in the estate, no more, no less.
Kim Li herself advised our father to go to equal shares. In an e-mail to me, she wrote: “I told him …. when he instructed me to divide the estate unequally, that it was already decided that the estate was to be divided equally.” This is exactly what was reflected in his final will.” /TISG
Read related: Lee Hsien Yang: The AG filed well over 500 pages of complaint against my wife
https://theindependent.sg.sg/lee-hsien-yang-the-ag-filed-well-over-500-pages-of-complaint-against-my-wife/