PM Lee sues The Online Citizen chief editor over article, Facebook post
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is suing the chief editor of The Online Citizen (TOC), Mr Terry Xu, over an article TOC posted on its website and Facebook page on Aug 15.
According to a TOC Facebook post yesterday, the court documents said that the article contained "statements that are false and baseless and were calculated to disparage and impugn PM Lee as well as his office as the Prime Minister".
This statement of claim, together with the writ, was served on Mr Xu at his house yesterday by PM Lee's lawyers Davinder Singh Chambers, TOC added.
TOC also said that Mr Xu has eight days to file notice in court that he will be defending himself against the claim by PM Lee.
The article, titled "PM Lee's wife, Ho Ching weirdly shares article on cutting ties with family members", had commented on a Facebook post by Ms Ho Ching and her relationship with PM Lee's siblings, Mr Lee Hsien Yang and Dr Lee Wei Ling.
Ms Ho had shared a link to an article titled "Here is why sometimes it is okay to cut ties with toxic family members".
The TOC article also referenced a Facebook post made by Dr Lee in May, in which she said that PM Lee had misled their father, the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew, into believing that the family house in Oxley Road had been gazetted by the Government.
FALSE ALLEGATIONS
On Sunday, PM Lee's press secretary Chang Li Lin said in a letter to Mr Xu that the article and post repeat several false allegations against PM Lee previously made by Dr Lee. Ms Chang said these allegations are "completely without foundation".
She said PM Lee asked Mr Xu to remove both the article and post as well as to publish a full and unconditional apology, and an undertaking not to publish any similar allegations, by Wednesday.
But on Wednesday, Mr Xu said in a Facebook post and a letter on the TOC website that he would not comply with PM Lee's demands.
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