On the second day of the hearing, Ms Chee Siok Chin questioned Mr Lee Hisen Loong. As you can see, Mr Singh objected to almost all of the questions. Like in Dr Chee’s cross-examination he chose to sit passively in the witness box and let his counsel make all the objections.
Was it because he was afraid to say the wrong thing? Or was it because of his father’s presence that made him reluctant to speak up? Whatever the reason, the impression that he gave was that he was not his own leader. Below is the exchange between Ms Chee and the Prime Minister.
CSC: Mr Lee, how long have you held the Prime Ministership?
LHL: Since Aug 2004.CSC: During those years, how many defamation suits have you initiated?
Singh: Objection.
Judge: Sustained.
CSC: You initiated two or three while in office.
Singh: Objection.
Judge: Sustained.
CSC: As a leader, the people have the right to know –
Singh: Objection.
CSC: You said that the responsibility of the Prime Minister is to feel the pulse of the people.
LHL: I try my best.
CSC: As PM, can you feel when your policies are making people unhappy?
Judge: Disallowed.
CSC: Have you been to the hawker centres, seen old people working washing dishes, cleaning toilets….have you taken rides in the MRT, buses where its over crowded –
Singh: Objection.
Judge: Sustained.
CSC: For people to squeeze into MRTs –
Singh: Objection.
Judge: Sustained.
CSC: Singaporeans go across to Malaysia to buy medication where in Singapore they can’t afford.
Singh: Not relevant.
Judge: Irrelevant. This is not the place for this discussion.
CSC: That you are paid S$3.7 million a year –
Singh: Objection.
Judge: Sustained.
CSC: You are the highest paid leader in the world, six times more than the US President, 8 times more –
Singh: Objection.
Judge: Sustained.
CSC: Tell me how much your assessment for damages that you are worth –
Singh: Objection.
LHL: I’ll leave that to the court to assess.
CSC: How much do you assess you are worth as a public servant.
Judge: Irrelevant.
CSC: If you do not know me…words like revulsion, venom, deep seated hatred. Because we held a banner that said ”Free Spore from the Lee’s”.
LHL: They are not the only things, your CEC members have apologised and there is prove of the defamation.
CSC: Is it true that your father is Lee Kuan Yew, you are the PM and your wife is the CEO of Temasek Holdings?
Singh: Objection.
Judge: Sustained.
CSC: What is the current population of Singapore?
Singh: Irrelevant.
CSC: I’m raising the issue of The New Democrat being widely circulated and in this documents it sold 5.000 copies.
LHL: 4.6million.
CSC: Can you do the math of 5,000 out of 4.6 million people.
LHL: Your honour –
CSC: Do you need a calculator , I’m sure as a person of your intelligence –
Singh: If Ms Chee has the figures then she should tell us.
Judge: Ms Chee?
LHL: About 1 in a 1000 including babies, foreigners.
CSC: So it’s about 0.0001%.
LHL: I think that’s one too many zeros.
CSC: Thank you Mr Lee, so its 0.001% of the public. Yet the claim The New Democrat is widely circulated and large segments of the people read it.
LHL: It’s listed in –
CSC: What is the outlandish remark?
Judge: Disallowed.
CSC: Francis Seow said that Singapore Ministers are not worth the money –
Judge: Disallowed.
CSC: You know as a leader, your Government deprives the people, the HDB flats is artificially inflated, CPF savings are withheld, Singaporeans are left poor while you are a millionaire –
Singh: Objection.
Judge: You have 2 more minutes.
CSC: One last question. Do you agree that you are the highest paid in the world and –
Singh: Objection.
Judge: Sustained.
CSC: I’m finished.