Lee Hsien Yang seeks to demolish Oxley Road home; Stamford Catering suspended after 51 people fall ill: Singapore live news

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Lee Hsien Yang is applying to demolish the home of his late father Lee Kuan Yew. (Photo: REUTERS/Dawn Chua)
Lee Hsien Yang is applying to demolish the home of his late father Lee Kuan Yew. (Photo: REUTERS/Dawn Chua)

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Lee Kuan Yew's youngest son Lee Hsien Yang has revealed on Facebook his intention to demolish the home of his late father. He wrote in the post: "To honour my parents’ last wishes, I am applying to demolish the house at 38 Oxley Road and thereafter to build a small private dwelling, to be held within the family in perpetuity." More in the story.

Stamford Catering Services has been suspended until further notice by the Singapore Food Agency (SFA). The development comes after 51 people fell ill from three incidents of gastroenteritis. The company says they are "working closely with the local health authorities" on the issue.

Changes to the CPF Act were passed in parliament on Monday (14 October) which will see the closure of the CPF Special Account (SA) for workers aged 55 and above, from the second half of January 2025 onwards.

Anthony Mackie (‘Captain America: Brave New World’) and Kim Soohyun (‘Knock Off’) are among the big-name celebrities who will be in Singapore for a free fan event. It is jointly-organised by Disney and Marina Bay Sands, and will be held on 20 November at Marquee nightclub. Registration details in the story.

The amount of rainfall recorded over western Singapore on Monday from 8.15am to 1.50pm was 134.8mm. National water agency PUB says this amount corresponds to 80% of Singapore's average monthly rainfall in October. It also lies within the top 1% of maximum daily rainfall records since 1978.

On the second day of Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh’s trial, his defence lawyer Andre Jumabhoy sought to paint former Workers’ Party (WP) MP Raeesah Khan as a habitual liar. In one portion of Khan’s cross-examination, Jumabhoy tried to prove she did know what Singh meant when he requested her to substantiate part of her untrue anecdote in Parliament.

The Spanish tourists who were detained in Singapore for their ill-advised protests against Valencia football club owner Peter Lim, have left the country. But not without a "stern warning" from police who had to investigate the couple for allegedly taking part in a public assembly without a permit under the Public Order Act.

Hin Leong Trading founder Lim Oon Kuin will be sentenced on 18 November for cheating and forgery. Public prosecutor Christopher Ong is pushing for a 20-year jail term while defence lawyers for the 82-year-old sought a 7-year period. OK Lim was convicted earlier this year.

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  • Featured

    Pritam Singh's lawyer confronts Raeesah Khan on her 'lies'

    Raeesah Khan attends a campaign walkabout ahead of the general election on July 7, 2020 in Singapore. (Photo by Suhaimi Abdullah/Getty Images)
    Raeesah Khan attends a campaign walkabout ahead of the general election on July 7, 2020 in Singapore. (Photo by Suhaimi Abdullah/Getty Images)

    Defence lawyer Andre Jumabhoy tried to position former Workers’ Party (WP) MP Raeesah Khan as a serial liar on the second day of Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh’s trial.

    The defence lawyer set out to prove during Khan’s cross-examination that she did know what Singh meant when he requested her to substantiate part of her now infamous anecdote in Parliament which was investigated and found to be untrue.

    The anecdote involved her accompanying a sexual assault victim to a police station where she claimed to witness the victim being treated insensitively.

    “In terms of that anecdote, you had put yourself in the police station, but you weren’t there,” Jumabhoy said.

    “So when somebody says substantiate this because you were there, it’s really asking were you there, were you able to substantiate. And you knew in your mind that’s just not true because you weren’t there. So you did understand what substantiate means,” Jumabhoy said.

    Jumabhoy then showed text messages between Singh and Khan after the latter’s speech to Parliament which contained the untrue anecdote. In the text, Singh wrote: “I had a feeling this would happen. I highlighted this part in your draft speech. You should write to the police to clarify this matter.”

    Khan’s response to the text: “I thought I edited it enough to remove this possibility.”

    Jumabhoy queried why she had then said “no” earlier when asked if she made an edit based on Singh’s comment.

    Jumabhoy also sought to show Khan had lied several times to Singh when he pressed her for more details surrounding the woman in her story.

    “In one message, I think you’ve managed to lie about four times,” Jumabhoy said in reference to Khan’s response to Singh who had asked if she was still in contact with the woman.

    Khan told Singh she could only recall that the incident was three years ago in the early part of the year, and that she had met the victim at the bus stop near the Bedok police station.

    “I wouldn’t call it impressive, I would call it fear,” Khan said.

  • Singapore seeks 20-year jail term for oil tycoon OK Lim

    Lim Oon Kuin, founder of collapsed oil trading firm Hin Leong, arrives at the State Courts in Singapore back in April 2021. (Photo: REUTERS/Edgar Su)
    Lim Oon Kuin, founder of collapsed oil trading firm Hin Leong, arrives at the State Courts in Singapore back in April 2021. (Photo: REUTERS/Edgar Su)

    Singapore oil tycoon Lim Oon Kuin will be sentenced on 18 November for cheating and forgery, with public prosecutor Christopher Ong pushing for a 20-year jail term.

    Ong has argued for the sentence on three counts including instigating forgery and deceiving HSBC.

    Defence lawyers for the 82-year-old, also known as OK Lim, are led by Davinder Singh who sought a 7-year period.

    The Hin Leong Trading founder was convicted earlier this year of criminal charges related to cheating HSBC and instigating an employee to forge documents which helped him hide hundreds of millions in losses.

    OK Lim also filed for bankruptcy this week after agreeing to pay $4.6 billion to the liquidators and creditor HSBC to resolve multi-year civil lawsuits against him and his family.

    In August, OK Lim sold his Good Class Bungalow (GCB) at 1K Tanglin Hill for $39.2 million to bring the total raised from assets seized to $99.09 million.

  • Valencia fans can go home after 'stern warning' by Singapore police

    Fans show banners against Valencia owner Peter Lim at the Mestalla in September 2023. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)
    Fans show banners against Valencia owner Peter Lim at the Mestalla in September 2023. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)

    The two Spanish Valencia fans who were stopped from leaving Singapore after protesting against the club’s Singaporean owner Peter Lim, have left the country.

    The tourists, reported by Spanish media as Dani Cuesta and his wife Mireia Saez, were investigated by police for allegedly taking part in a public assembly without a permit under the Public Order Act.

    Cuesta had posted pictures of himself in multiple spots in Singapore holding a black and yellow banner that read "Lim go home". One of the locations is believed to be outside Lim’s home.

    The couple were detained by authorities when they attempted to board a flight to Bali.

    Police said, in a statement on Tuesday (16 October), they issued a "stern warning" to a 34-year-old man for "taking part in a public assembly without a permit... and for affixing notices".

    A 30-year-old woman was also warned "for the offence of abetting the Spanish man's participation in a public assembly".

    "The two Spanish nationals have since departed Singapore," police said.

    Singapore billionaire Lim bought Valencia in 2014 but the initial excitement surrounding his arrival has soured badly over the years.

    Protests by fans against Lim are now quite common in Valencia with yellow banners saying “Lim go home” a regular sight at home games at the Mestalla.

  • Rainfall over western Singapore on 14 Oct was heavy. Really heavy

    Singapore experienced extremely heavy rain on 14 October especially in western areas. (Photo: Getty)
    Singapore experienced extremely heavy rain on 14 October especially in western areas. (Photo: Getty)

    If you were in the western part of Singapore during yesterday (14 October) morning’s downpour, it might have felt unusually heavy

    In fact, the amount of rain which fell on Monday from 8.15am to 1.50pm in western Singapore was 134.8mm – a figure among the highest recorded in over 40 years.

    “This amount corresponds to 80% of Singapore's average monthly rainfall in October, and lies within the top 1% of maximum daily rainfall records since 1978,” revealed Singapore’s national water agency PUB.

    The rain was so heavy that PUB had to issue flood risk warnings for 15 locations across the island.

    Dunearn Road, a known flooding hotspot, was just one of several locations in Singapore which experienced flooding on Monday.

    PUB has advised the public to use the MyENV app and subscribe to the PUB Flood Alerts Telegram channel to receive heavy rain alerts and flood risk warnings.

  • Anthony Mackie, Kim Soohyun to be in Singapore for free fan event

    Anthony Mackie will be in Singapore on 20 November at Marquee in MBS. (Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images for ESSENCE)
    Anthony Mackie will be in Singapore on 20 November at Marquee in MBS. (Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images for ESSENCE)

    A number of celebrities including Anthony Mackie (‘Captain America: Brave New World’), Kim Soohyun (‘Knock Off’), Ryu Seungryong (‘Moving’) and Yuya Yagira (‘Gannibal’) will be in Singapore for an event on 20 November.

    The event is jointly-organised by Disney and Marina Bay Sands and will be held from 5.30pm to 7.30pm at the famous Marquee nightclub at MBS.

    Members of the public can register to attend the free event via the Marina Bay Sands official website – each fan will only be allowed to redeem two e-tickets per person.

    Registration opens tomorrow (16 October) at 10am and ends on 20 October at 11.59pm, or when tickets are fully redeemed.

    A press release for the event described it as “a rare opportunity for fans to meet a wide range of stars in a single session.”

  • CPF Special Account closure for workers aged 55 and above set for second half of January

    Closures of the Special Account (SA) for CPF members aged 55 and above will take place from second half of January.
    Closures of the Special Account (SA) for CPF members aged 55 and above will take place from second half of January.

    The closure of the CPF Special Account (SA) for members aged 55 and above will take place in the second half of January 2025 onwards.

    This follows changes to the CPF Act to legislate the closure being passed in Parliament on 14 October.

    The topic has been a subject of debate previously when it was announced in Budget 2024.

    CPF said: “With the closure of the SA, members’ SA savings will be transferred to the Retirement Account (RA) up to their Full Retirement Sum, where they will continue to earn the long-term interest rate. Any remaining SA savings will be transferred to the Ordinary Account (OA) and can be withdrawn on demand.”

    According to CPF, the principle behind this change is to “right-site CPF monies, so that only CPF savings committed towards long-term retirement needs earn the higher long-term interest rate.”

    You can read more details about the amended CPF Bill – including the expansion of the Home Protection Scheme (HPS) – here.

  • Stamford Catering suspended by SFA after 51 people fall ill

    A buffet spread by Stamford Catering Services. (Photo: Stamford Catering/FB)
    A buffet spread by Stamford Catering Services. (Photo: Stamford Catering/FB)

    The Singapore Food Agency (SFA) has suspended Stamford Catering Services until further notice after 51 people fell ill.

    No one was hospitalised but the SFA revealed that their investigation involves three incidents of gastroenteritis affecting individuals who had consumed food on 12 October supplied by Stamford Catering Services.

    “The licensee is required to comply with measures during the suspension including cleaning and sanitising of the premises, equipment and utensils,” said SFA in a statement.

    SFA added: “All food handlers working in the premises are required to re-attend and pass the Food Safety Course Level 1 and test negative for foodborne pathogens, before they can resume work as food handlers."

    The Food Hygiene Officer working at Stamford must also re-attend and pass the Food Safety Course Level 3 before resuming work.

    Stamford Catering has released a statement saying that “the safety of our customers is our top priority.”

    “We have taken immediate action and are working closely with the local health authorities on this matter. We are committed to ensuring that our kitchen is safe for operation and will provide updates when we have more information,” read the statement.

    Stamford Catering is located at 24A Senoko South Road.

  • Lee Hsien Yang seeks to demolish Oxley Road home

    Lee Hsien Yang, youngest son of Lee Kuan Yew, posted on Facebook his plans to demolish his late father's home. (Photo by Suhaimi Abdullah/Getty Images)
    Lee Hsien Yang, youngest son of Lee Kuan Yew, posted on Facebook his plans to demolish his late father's home. (Photo by Suhaimi Abdullah/Getty Images)

    Lee Hsien Yang is seeking permission from authorities to demolish the home of his late father Lee Kuan Yew.

    “To honour my parents’ last wishes, I am applying to demolish the house at 38 Oxley Road and thereafter to build a small private dwelling, to be held within the family in perpetuity,” Hsien Yang said on Facebook on Tuesday (15 October).

    The property at 38 Oxley Road has long been a subject of contention.

    Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore’s first Prime Minister, passed away in 2015 and had been vocal about not wanting his private residence to become a public monument. He left instructions for it to be demolished immediately after his death, or when his daughter Lee Wei Ling decided to move out of the home.

    However, elder brother and Singapore’s third Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong had sought to explore options for the property through a ministerial committee in 2018. No decision was made as Wei Ling was “likely to continue residing there for the foreseeable future.”

    She passed away last week.

    “I am the sole legal owner of 38 Oxley Road. After my sister's passing, I am the only living executor of my father Lee Kuan Yew’s estate. In his will, he wished for the house to be demolished ‘immediately after’ Wei Ling moved out of the house. It is my duty to carry out his wishes to the fullest extent of the law,” Hsien Yang said in his recent FB post.

    Bloomberg reports that while the bungalow is owned by Hsien Yang, Singapore’s laws empower a minister to make a preservation order for a property designated as a monument. This is subject to a government board that can consider objections from the property’s owners and occupiers.