Following an earlier report by China state media Global Times on June 12 which criticised Lee Hsien Loong for being a flip-flop, Prime Minister’s brother issued a press release criticising Lee Hsien Loong for flip-flopping too:
“Lee Hsien Loong now claims, “My father left the property at 38 Oxley Road to me, as part of my equal share of his estate. But my siblings were not happy about it.”
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.”
“On the other hand, Singapore may not abandon its flip-flop diplomacy and China needs to be prepared for this. Singapore’s diplomatic thinking is hard to change shortly. Lee Hsien Loong is less adept at balancing diplomacy than his father Lee Kuan Yew, and geopolitical competition in Asia nowadays has become more complicated.”
Lee Hsien Yang wrote that his brother has dodged the sole single question all this time – to comply with the will or not:
“We asked a simple question, that he has refused to answer for a week: Was our father, Lee Kuan Yew, unwavering in his demolition wish? Yes or no?”
Lee Hsien Yang also wrote that Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean has never once revealed himself as the chairman of the Ministerial Committee, and neither did Minister Lawrence Wong who sits as a member of the committee did so. This confirms that Lee Hsien Loong has indeed created the committee in a single day last Saturday (June 17):
“DPM Teo Chee Hean on 17 June 2017: “The Committee has tasked the relevant agencies to study a range of options for the property. I have shared some of these options with the siblings.”
Wei Ling and I wish to clarify that we have had no interaction with DPM Teo Chee Hean in his capacity as Chair of the Committee since the Committee has been formed. Neither has Lawrence Wong who was the sole point of contact given any indication of the range of options under consideration. We had met with DPM Teo on numerous occasions apart from and well before the formation of the committee. 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.”