Consideration of 38 Oxley Road's heritage value by advisory board part of 'usual assessment process'

Multiple Members of Parliament (MPs) posed questions on the upcoming National Heritage Board (NHB) study into the heritage value of 38 Oxley Road, in light of the fact that it had already been assessed once in 2018.

Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong clarified that there is still a "usual assessment process" to be followed.

Through written parliamentary replies, Tong said that even though research had been done previously, it was not presented to the Preservation of Sites and Monuments Advisory Board (PSM AB) as the ministerial committee on 38 Oxley Road had concluded that no decision had to be made at that point in time, and "all options would be kept open".

Process initiated after demolishment application

Questions were raised by Workers' Party MP Louis Chua and Progress Singapore Party Non-Constituency MP (NCMP) Leong Mun Wai following NHB's announcement in October 2024 that it will commence a study on 38 Oxley Road.

Chua asked about the terms of reference for NHB's study and how they differed from those of the ministerial committee, while Leong asked why another study was required.

Tong explained in his parliamentary replies that as the current owner of 38 Oxley Road has applied to demolish the building, NHB has commenced the process to determine 38 Oxley Road’s eligibility and suitability for preservation as a national monument.

As part of the "usual assessment process", research on 38 Oxley Road would have to be presented to the PSM AB for their independent assessment, Tong said.

He added that NHB conducts such research on buildings, sites, or structures with the potential to be considered a national monument and would cover technical aspects such as the historical, cultural, architectural, and national importance of the building, site, or structure.

After viewing the research, PSM AB makes an assessment based on objective criteria for all sites. The NHB would then consider the assessment and decide whether to provide a recommendation to the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth to decide whether to issue a Preservation Order for the sites.

Tong reiterates in both replies:

"This follows the usual assessment process before any building, site, or structure can be preserved as a National Monument, and we will apply this accordingly to 38 Oxley Road."

Background

In April 2015, shortly after Lee Kuan Yew's death, Lee Hsien Yang and Lee Wei Ling issued a statement saying that their late father had asked for his house to be demolished after his death.

Lee Kuan Yew had said in the seventh and last version of his will that the house should be demolished "immediately after [his] death or if [his] daughter, Wei Ling, would prefer to continue living in the original house, immediately after she moves out of the house".

He wrote:

"I would ask each of my children to ensure our wishes with respect to the demolition of the House be carried out."

The founding Prime Minister had also, on at least two occasions prior, written formally to the Cabinet to publicly express his wish for the house to be demolished.

It "should not be kept as a kind of relic for people to tramp through", he wrote, asking the Cabinet to "respect [his] wishes".

In 2016, a Ministerial Committee was set up to consider options for 38 Oxley Road.

It concluded that while Lee Kuan Yew had preferred for the house to be demolished, he "had further reflected on the matter and was prepared to accept options other than demolition, provided that suitable arrangements were made to ensure that: (i) the Property was refurbished, and kept in a habitable state; and (ii) the family’s privacy was protected. "

Lee Wei Ling and Lee Hsien Yang later issued statements disputing the ministerial committee's findings.

Upon Lee Wei Ling's death on Oct. 9, Lee Hsien Yang reiterated his intention to demolish the family home as the property's "sole legal owner".

"Lee Hsien Loong said in Parliament in 2015 that when Wei Ling passed, it would be up to 'the government of the day' to decide whether to allow demolition," he wrote in a Facebook post.

"It has been nine years. That day is today."

Top image by Mothership