No wonder we did not see former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew at this year's Chinese New Year festivities yet.

According to a statement by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), Lee, 91, has been in intensive care for severe pneumonia, and was warded at the Singapore General Hospital (SGH) for the past 17 days since Feb. 5, 2015.

Lee's last public appearance was Nov 7. last year, at the People's Action Party's 60th anniversary celebrations. He received a minute-long standing ovation from the audience.

Here are three observations of Lee's stay and PMO's late public announcement:

1. SGH was the safest place in Singapore between Feb. 16-18.

Both our first and third Prime Ministers were hospitalised at the SGH between Feb. 16 to 18. Which means there were many security officers protecting both our leaders.

PM Lee Hsien Long was hospitalised on Feb. 16 to undergo a surgery to remove his cancerous prostate gland. He has since been discharged from SGH on Feb.18.

2. Why didn't PMO announce Lee's hospitalisation last Saturday? 

Maybe PMO did not want to alarm the public, especially since they were about to announce PM Lee's operation the day after.

Perhaps PMO do not want too many unwelcome visitors at the SGH.

3. Why did PMO announce Lee's hospitalisation this Saturday? 

The official statement by PMO stated that Lee's condition has stabilised, though he remains on mechanical ventilation in the ICU.

This is to probably to downplay the severity of the news by a notch.

Another consideration?

Lee's absence in the upcoming CNY events will be conspicuous.

This announcement will pre-empt potential rumours about Lee's health.

There are a few regular events that Lee, as a Tanjong Pagar GRC MP, always attends. One such event is the National Day parade.

The other two events are the annual Tanjong Pagar constituency Chinese New Year dinner and the Istana Garden Party on March 1.

According to The Straits Times, Lee has kept up with his practice of attending the annual dinner over the years, during which he would make keynote speeches. But he missed the event last year for the first time due to health reasons.

This means that 2015 will be the third consecutive year that Lee would be missing his constituency dinner.

Top photo from here.

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