Two Indian-origin Singapore cabinet ministers have sued Lee Hsien Loong, younger brother of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, for defamation over allegations related to the rent of two government-owned bungalows. Channel News Asia reported on Saturday that the case conference will be held at 9am on Tuesday (Sept 5), according to the list of hearings on the Singapore court’s website. Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam and External Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan sent letters from lawyers to Lee Hsien Yang in July, asking him not to withdraw his charges until he apologises, withdraws his charges and pays damages. will sue.
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In a Facebook post on July 27, Shanmugam said Yang accused him and Balakrishnan of “corruption and working for personal gain by illegally felling trees without permission and giving preferential treatment at 26 and 31 Readout Road”. The allegations are false, Shanmugam said. Yang and his wife fled the country in July 2022 after refusing to attend a police interview. The issue regarding the rent of two Readout Road state properties came to light in early May when an opposition politician and member of the Reform Party Chief Kenneth Jayaratnam questioned whether ministers were paying “less than fair market value” for the bungalow.
The CPIB report released on June 28 said that the two ministers did not benefit from any privileged information. The report said they were not given preferential treatment and their rental rates were the same as neighboring properties. The issue was debated in Parliament on 3rd July. According to the channel report, Yang made at least eight Facebook posts on Redout Road before and after the CPIB report and the Parliament debate. A Facebook post on July 23 resulted in a direction for amendments under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA), which the law ministry said contained false statements.
Although Yang posted a correction notice as required, he also published a new post two days later saying it was on his writing. Pointing out that his post was made in the United Kingdom, Yang said, “Even if Shanmugam and V Balakrishnan think they have a valid case, they should sue me in the UK.” According to media reports, Yang may be prosecuted in Singapore even though he is abroad.
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