Forum: Rebuild Oxley Road basement dining room at Founders’ Memorial
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I refer to the articles “ Oxley Rd house: Govt to ‘carefully consider’ issues, including Lee Hsien Yang’s application to demolish Lee Hsien Yang’s claim on 38 Oxley Road inaccurate, creates false urgency for demolition: Govt
The Oct 25 article reported that the Government is trying to keep options open, including demolishing or preserving all or part of the property.
We know that founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew preferred the house to be demolished, but we also recognise its historical significance.
I would like to suggest one way in which we can both respect Mr Lee’s wishes and retain the historical value of the house: Reconstruct the basement dining room, complete with as much of the original walls and floorboards, furniture and fittings as possible, at the Founders’ Memorial.
This is a variation of one of the options identified in 2018 by the ministerial committee that gave thought to what to do about the house. The committee said a future government had three options.
These were: to preserve the property and gazette it for conservation or as a national monument; to retain the basement dining room, which has the most historical significance, and tear down the rest of the property; or to allow the property to be demolished fully for redevelopment.
Mr Lee made it clear he did not want his house turned into a public place through which strangers would tramp. To honour his wishes, we should not consider the option of making it a national monument. The third option would mean completely losing yet another bit of our physical history.
The second option makes the most sense. But to retain the basement dining room at 38 Oxley Road and open it in some way for public access would run counter to Mr Lee’s wishes, even if the rest of the house is demolished.
If we remove the room from Oxley Road and reconstruct it at the Founders’ Memorial, the public would be able to view it without tramping through space once occupied by Mr Lee and his family.
One aim of the Founders’ Memorial is to commemorate how independent Singapore came to be. The basement dining room of 38 Oxley Road was where the vision and plans for independent Singapore were shaped. It would be a most fitting exhibit at the Founders’ Memorial.
Margaret Thomas
