Jakarta, IO – The sensational and well-publicized “family feud” among Lee Kuan Yew’s heirs is not over yet. Lee Hsien Yang, the youngest sibling, continues to criticize his eldest brother, incumbent Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Hsien Loong.
As a matter of fact, Lee Hsien Yang now resides overseas, since he was summoned by the police last year, related to an old feud with the eldest brother. He has not returned to Singapore, and continues to level criticism of his brother on Facebook. The endless dispute centers around ownership and eventual disposal of the vast property at 38 Oxley Road, a 125-year-old house with eight rooms, where they all lived with their late parents when they were young.
The rift was not about who should own the land itself – always a matter of supreme importance in tiny Singapore. It was rather about the destiny of the house itself. The eldest son intends to preserve the structure as a historical monument, since their late father, Lee Kuan Yew, was the modern-day founding father of the nation of Singapore. While he was alive he was in fact the very embodiment of Singapore.
Against this, Lee’s youngest son wishes to see the house demolished, to avoid any “cult of their father” – claiming that this intention aligns with his father’s will and testament.
This is the Prime Minister, as the eldest son, disagrees, declaring stoutly that Lee Kwan Yew’s will was in fact falsified – a serious crime were it proven. Thus was Hsien Yang summoned by the Singaporean police.
The story gets even more entangled as it is the middle child, Lee Wei Ling, a 68-year-old neurologist, who is most insistent on demolishing the house.
Meanwhile, the youngest son has sided with the only daughter – Wei Ling – against Hsien Loong. Of the three, Wei Ling resided in the big house the longest, staying with her parents until Lee Kuan Yew died, in 2015. Reportedly “exceptionally intelligent”, the daughter is not married!
Alas, Wei Ling recently revealed that she suffers from a severe nerve-related disease, affecting her memory. Thus Hsien Yang is left alone, without allies in the public battle. “I may never see my older sister again,” Hsien Yang wrote sadly, safely across the ocean and out of reach of Singapore law.