MPs want inquiry into saga to put issue to rest
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong speaks during the parliamentary debate. Photo: Screengrab from Parliament House of Singapore video
SINGAPORE — Worried that the Lee family dispute will rage on even after Parliament wraps up its debate on the matter, Members of Parliament (MPs) — including one from the People’s Action Party (PAP) — raised the prospect of convening an inquiry to end the saga once and for all.
PAP MP (Chua Chu Kang GRC) Zaqy Mohamad said that while he agreed that the Government’s integrity should be defended, a parliamentary debate “may not stop further allegations from being hurled” at it.
He asked how the Government plans to deal with new charges from the Lee siblings should further queries emerge, adding: “Under what circumstances will the Government or Parliament consider (a) further enquiry or select committee to investigate any further allegations or disputes of accounts?”
Calling a Special Select Committee the “next-best option” to put an end to the accusations, WP MP Pritam Singh (Aljunied GRC) said such a panel would look into the truthfulness of the allegations and summon the parties involved.
“The longer this sad episode drags on, Singapore’s reputation as a country ... and the credibility of our Government will be cast in very serious doubt,” he said.
His call was echoed by fellow party member Leon Perera, a Non-Constituency Member of Parliament (NMP), who said the House could not dismiss the allegations brought by Dr Lee Wei Ling and Mr Lee Hsien Yang without allowing them a “public platform to defend and expand on their views, share evidence and be cross-examined”. Trying to close the issue without the proper process of “fact-finding” may see the accusations, Facebook posts and the erosion of public and international confidence dragging on, Mr Perera said.
NMP Kuik Shiao-Yin, meanwhile, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s accusers should have an “independent, neutral space” in the form of either a Select Committee or a Committee of Inquiry, where they can put on record their side of the story.
An independent Committee of Inquiry, with an adequate number of non-PAP representatives and those who do not work under the Prime Minister, would address some concerns raised by Dr Lee and Mr Lee Hsien Yang. While acknowledging that this risked “stretching out” the saga, she nevertheless said that it would be a “significant display of political courage that will shore up much trust in our system’s integrity”.
Responding, Senior Minister of State (Communications and Information and Education) Janil Puthucheary said Parliament was an appropriate forum to deal with the dispute.
He said: “Coming to Parliament today is a demonstration that our system works ... Our ability to talk about this, the documents that have been shared here today, the record of conversations and interactions we have had ... to make this debate happen, are a marker of the transparency and effectiveness of our system working.”
A Select Committee, he noted, is given its powers by Parliament, which would also carry out its recommendations. “How can we say that it will be better than Parliament?” he asked.
