President Tharman pays tribute to Lee Wei Ling

President Tharman Shanmugaratnam paid tribute to the late Lee Wei Ling, daughter of first prime minister Lee Kuan Yew, by recalling her sporting achievements when she was young, as well as his meetings with her when he was in government.

President Tharman: "Determination written on her face"

In a post put up on Oct. 9, in the wake of her passing, President Tharman said his earliest memory of Lee was when she was an "outstanding medium distance runner".

The president recalled how he had watched her as she ran in the National Schools Track and Field Championships at Farrer Park.

"She had determination written on her face," he wrote.

He then became acquainted with her many years later when he was a minister in government.

According to the president, they would occasionally meet over lunch where she would share about her work in medicine and her views on education.

The president highlighted:

"She was passionate about her work in medicine, where her contributions chiefly lay. She also had strong views on education, that were always worth listening to."

He then concluded:

"That same determination she had from her youth took her through life. Rest in peace, Lee Wei Ling."

Heng Swee Keat: Visited me after my stroke and advised me on how to recover

A tribute was also penned by Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat who said he had known Lee since 1997, while he was serving as Principal Private Secretary to then Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew.

He recalled how he became involved with Lee in several discussions, including in the learning and development of children.

"Wei Ling had strong views and convictions, and articulated these well. As a neuroscientist, she was especially passionate about the learning and development of children," he wrote.

Her insights on how young children learn languages were "particularly valuable" when he was Education Minister and working on Singapore's bilingual policies.

Heng also praised how Lee as an "outstanding doctor" who was devoted to caring for her patients and their families.

In addition, Lee had visited him at Tan Tock Seng hospital after he regained consciousness, following his stroke in 2016.

He said:

"She spent almost an hour with my wife and me, advising us on how to recover well and to stay physically and mentally active to rebuild my neural network. We deeply appreciated her care and concern for me."

Heng then concluded his post by expressing his condolences to her family.

He added:

"Wei Ling will be well remembered by us, and the many patients she helped, for her professional care, and her concern for others. Our young ones have benefited from her views on learning, especially of languages."

Janadas Devan: Met Lee at Fort Canning Park, where she also shared her symptoms

Janadas Devan, director of the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS), also paid tribute to Lee by recounting how he had met her at Fort Canning Park, where she described her symptoms to him.

He noted that she had done so in an objective and clinical way, as though she was speaking about a patient.

He also said, "She was walking painfully, depending on one leg to propel herself forward, the other dragging along the ground. She was determined to exercise."

Laid in the ditch until dawn waiting for someone to find her

The next morning, Janadas said he received an email that described what happened after they had parted ways at the park.

According to the email, Lee had tripped and fallen into a ditch.

In addition, she had twisted her ankle and could not get up, and did not have a phone with her.

No one had passed by where she had fallen, Janadas wrote.

Meanwhile, her domestic worker alerted the police when she did not return home.

"They found her the next morning. Ling had lain patiently in the ditch, knowing someone would find her, sooner or later. Nothing to be done, she told me later, but wait for dawn," Janadas added.

Wanted to continue exercising by swimming

A week after the incident, Lee messaged him to ask if he could help her arrange for the use of a private pool that she was familiar with.

Janadas said, "She figured it would be easier to swim than walk. She was determined to carry on exercising for as long as she could."

He then concluded his post by describing her as "the fiercest, bravest, most fearless and determined person I knew in my generation".

Top left photo by Jacky Ho for IPS, right photo via Lee Wei Ling/Facebook