WHO ARE THE KEY PLAYERS?

At the heart of the family feud are the three children of founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew, and the wives of his sons:

• Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, 65, eldest of the three siblings
• PM Lee's wife, Ms Ho Ching, 64, chief executive of Singapore investment firm Temasek Holdings
• Dr Lee Wei Ling, 62, senior adviser at the National Neuroscience Institute
• Mr Lee Hsien Yang, 59, chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore
• Mr Lee Hsien Yang's wife, Mrs Lee Suet Fern, 59, former managing partner at legal firm Morgan Lewis Stamford

WHAT IS THE DISPUTE ABOUT?

Three main issues of contention have emerged so far in the statements from the family:

• The future of the former family home at 38, Oxley Road: Dr Lee and Mr Lee Hsien Yang, who are joint executors and trustees of their father's estate, want the house to be demolished as per their father's wishes in his final will, but allege that PM Lee and his wife want the house preserved for their own political gain. PM Lee has refuted the allegations and said he will "do my utmost to continue to do right by my parents".
• The circumstances under which Mr Lee Kuan Yew's last will was prepared and executed: PM Lee said his father may not have known that the last version of his will included a reinstated clause stating his wishes for the house to be demolished. He also questioned the role of his sister-in-law and her law firm in the making of the will. His siblings both made Facebook posts refuting parts of PM Lee's statement, which included posting what appears to be a scanned copy of part of the will with Mr Lee Kuan Yew's initials.
• Allegations over the misuse of power: Dr Lee and Mr Lee Hsien Yang say their brother abused his position as prime minister to drive his personal agenda, in particular, to preserve the Oxley Road house. They also allege that Ms Ho has influence "well beyond her job purview" and that the couple harbour political ambitions for their son, Mr Li Hongyi. PM Lee, his wife and their son have denied all this.

HOW DID THE DISPUTE BECOME PUBLIC?

At around 2am last Wednesday, Dr Lee and Mr Lee Hsien Yang issued a joint statement on their Facebook pages alleging misuse of power by PM Lee in relation to the house.

In a six-page document, they said they had lost confidence in their brother and feared the use of organs of state against them. "We feel extremely sad that we are pushed to this position," the statement began.

The situation was such that Mr Lee Hsien Yang felt "compelled" to leave the country "for the foreseeable future" with his wife, they said.

PM Lee, who was overseas on leave at the time, denied the allegations in a Facebook post later that day and said he would consider the matter further when he returned.

Social media was abuzz with reactions and the story was widely covered by local and overseas media.

As part of the agreement, all three siblings issued a joint public statement in December 2015, saying they hoped the Government would allow their father's wish for the demolition of the house to be honoured. That statement also said that PM Lee had recused himself from all government decisions involving the house, and, in his personal capacity, hoped to see his father's wish honoured.

WHAT DID MR LEE KUAN YEW'S WILL SAY ABOUT THE HOUSE? WAS THERE MORE THAN ONE WILL?

A clause was added to Mr Lee Kuan Yew's final will, stating that he wished for the house to be demolished immediately after his death, or, if Dr Lee wanted to continue living there, immediately after she moved out. If changes in the law, rules or regulations prevent this, the clause states that he hoped the house would not be opened to anyone except his children, their families and descendants.

PM Lee said in last Thursday's statement that the demolition clause appeared in the first four of his father's seven wills made from Aug 20, 2011, onwards, but was removed on the late Mr Lee's instruction from the fifth and sixth wills. It was re-inserted in the final will made on Dec 17, 2013.

Earlier versions of the will also divided Mr Lee's estate equally among the three children. In the sixth will, an extra share was given to Dr Lee in relation to her brothers. But the final will reverted to the original equal division.

WHAT QUESTIONS DID PM LEE RAISE ABOUT THE PREPARATION OF THE LAST WILL?

PM Lee said he had "grave concerns" about the preparation of the final will, done without the usual lawyer, as well as the role played by Mr Lee Hsien Yang's wife, Mrs Lee, and her legal firm.

Detailing the events of Dec 16 and 17, 2013, surrounding the making of the will, PM Lee said that instead of having lawyer Kwa Kim Li prepare the last will, as she had the preceding six, Mr Lee Hsien Yang and Mrs Lee had gone ahead to have the last will prepared "in great haste".

Two lawyers from Mrs Lee's firm - called Stamford Law Corporation at the time - spent less than 15 minutes with Mr Lee, and came only to witness him signing the will and not to advise him, said PM Lee. He posed nine questions, including:

• Were the provisions of the last will explained to Mr Lee, and, if so, who explained them to him?
• Did Mr Lee give specific instructions to re-insert the demolition clause in the last will, and, if so, to whom?
• What was Mrs Lee's role in the preparation and signing of the last will, and was there a conflict of interest on her part, and that of her fellow lawyers and her firm?

Mr Lee Hsien Yang replied in a post on Facebook, saying that Stamford Law did not draft any will for his father and the will was drafted by Ms Kwa of Lee & Lee. The demolition clause was drafted at his father's direction and "put into language" by Mrs Lee, then inserted into the will by Ms Kwa, he said.

He added that on his father's written instructions, two lawyers from Stamford Law were asked to witness his signing of the will.