PM Lee recovering well, two weeks after surgery: ESM Goh

SINGAPORE – Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is recovering well, nearly two weeks after his surgery to treat prostate cancer, said Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong on the sidelines of a community event at Marine Parade today (Feb 28).

Mr Goh himself had successfully undergone prostate surgery. “For Prime Minister Lee, his is totally unexpected. Mine is unexpected, but caught it in time so my prostate surgery is successful. I’m now back in good health, up and about. I’ve spoken to Prime Minister Lee, he’s also recovering very well,” said Mr Goh.

“He tends to do so many things at this stage. But thankfully some people advised him to take some rest. But beyond that, his prostate surgery is successful and the pathological test shows that he’s okay, he’ll be all right. But again that reflects life’s uncertainty,” he added.

Mr Goh also spoke about former prime minister Lee Kuan Yew. He noted recent rumours on Mr Lee’s health and urged the public to go with official sources for updates, and avoid spreading rumours.

“Given the condition of, say, Mr Lee, people always expect something to happen to him suddenly. But I would advise: Go by an official statement from the Prime Minister’s Office.

“If there is no statement there is nothing to worry about. Just don’t jump to the wrong conclusion. But it’s natural that people will talk about it and speculate what’s happened but people sometimes go one step too far,” Mr Goh added.