In Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew's one party totalitarian police state in which Chee is an hapless lone opposition politician single handedly fighting for democracy, he was sued, as expected in that island, through the corrupt state appointed judges for the usual defamation charges for criticizing the almighty Lee Ruling Family in 2001 and bankrupted after an outrageous judgment award of $500,000.00 which he naturally could not pay.
According to this and earlier reports in the state controlled newspapers there, which the Lee Ruling Family orchestrate, he had made an offer to settle this amount in the sum of $30,000 which the Lees have, not surprisingly in the present circumstances in the island, accepted and hence his payment and release from bankruptcy. As a result, he will now be able to contest the 2016 impending national elections.
In my opinion, this whole thing is wrong. Chee should never have agreed to pay one cent let alone $30,000.00.
And the powers to be in Singapore, the Lee Family themselves look silly and their judgment award hollow, when they settle for $30,000.00 when their Kangaroo court's award was no less than $500,000, which begs the question, would they have accepted $10.00!
Tell me would any reasonable person settle for $30,000.00 for a judgment sum of $500,000.00 unless they themselves have no respect for their own judgment award!
And what has Chee done by paying? This is what he has done. He has by implication, stated in no uncertain terms, that he accepts the validity of this ridiculous court judgment of $500,000.00, that Singapore has in fact the rule of law and that the Lee's have a lawful government there, instead of a banana republic.
By paying this sum, regardless of the amount, he is in fact giving his seal of approval to these totalitarian judges who dispense telephone justice, meaning they pass sentences after receiving a phone call from the Prime Ministers Office (Lee’s Son).
By paying, Chee has compromised his entire position which he has so far admirably and nobly taken which is, that
Chee should not have done that. He shouldn’t have paid a cent. If that meant not being able to contest elections in that one party police state, so be it. His should have taken the fight to the streets, in a lawful manner, through peaceful protests and demonstrations, rights which are guaranteed under the Constitution of the island for a complete change in how things are run. Chee should have demanded democracy or none at all. There is no room for compromise when the Lee Ruling Family literally denies every single human right under the constitution of the island.
The Lee Ruling Family is now on the defensive, anyone can see that. The public are overwhelmingly against them. The Internet is overwhelmingly against them. If Lee were going to give a speech today in the island, you would have had to pay a handsome sum to persuade anyone to hear it. The brain drain continues and mounting, there are no children born and the population is ageing and dying in that order. Even if Chee did nothing, this Lee Ruling family as well as
Of course Chee sees things differently and it is up to him. But that is not how I see it. Of course I wish him well.
Gopalan Nair
A Singaporean by birth in exile
Attorney at Law
Tel: 510 491 4375
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