Peaceful wind down to Mr Lee Kuan Yew’s lying in state

SINGAPORE – After three days of crowds thronging the City Hall area to pay their last respects to Mr Lee Kuan Yew, the fourth and final day of Mr Lee’s lying in state wound down peacefully today (March 28).

Some came dashing in, just making it in the nick of time when the queues closed at 8pm. A few who were moments too late asked if they could be let in, but when politely turned away, bore their disappointment well enough.

Mr Ping Teck Huat, 44, came with his wife at midnight, but seeing as the queues had been temporarily halted — it was closed around 11pm last night due to the size of the crowd — they had left. Mr Ping, who works in IT, said: “My wife had to work on some nights, so we couldn’t go until yesterday. And because of my condition (he is an albino), I can only come at night. We came last night but couldn’t get in. So today we came again.”

Mr Ho Yong Seng, 48, who works in maintenance, said they were waiting for their son at school and ended up late. “Tomorrow, we’re hoping to position ourselves where the cortege passes in Bukit Merah,” he said.

As of 10pm today, about 442,297 have paid their respects at Parliament since 10am on Wednesday. Yesterday night, the crowd grew so thick that the state funeral organising committee had to close the queues temporarily around 11pm, reopening them only at 6.15am today.

The state funeral organising committee said in all, about 1,000,000 visited the 18 community tribute centres as of 9pm today and 125,450 condolence cards were issued as of 10pm.

Throughout the day, the lines were unceasing. Free food, drinks and snacks continued to be given out, including cut fresh fruit and packed lunches. Social enterprise The Shiok Collective came in the afternoon to hand out stickers bearing the popular black ribbon logo that incorporated Mr Lee’s profile. Mr Andrew Tan, partner at The Shiok Collective said, "It is a little support for us to carry on and remember the spirit of Mr Lee.”

Foreign dignitaries also continued to come, among them former US president Bill Clinton, former US Secretary of State and diplomat Henry Kissinger, the king of Bhutan Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck and his wife, former Indonesian presidential candidate and leader of the Gerindra Party Prabowo Subianto and Alibaba Group Chairman Jack Ma.  In all, about 170 foreign dignitaries from 27 regions, countries and international organisations visited Parliament House for the lying-in-state over the four days.

About 1,020 volunteers were involved over the four days. As evening drew closer, ushers began telling those they handed out umbrellas to that they could keep them, unlike previous days when they were told to return them so that others could use them.

At 7.30pm, people were still streaming onto the Padang steadily from City Hall MRT. Army officers waved people into the Padang, urging them to “take (their) time” and not run, saying “safety first”. Several held a stack of flyers in their hands, preparing to give them out to latecomers. The flyer read: “We are sorry that you are unable to pay your last respects to the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew at Parliament House. Please visit any of People’s Association’s 18 community sites to leave a condolence message. You may also wish to line the streets during the State Funeral Procession on Sunday, 29 March 2015.”

Five minutes before 8pm, a siren wailed — a signal that it was almost time to close off the queues. When the clock struck 8, the men in green moved bright yellow barricades across the walkway, closing off the path. An announcement was played, informing the public that the Padang queues were now closed. At the MRT station, the exit leading to the Padang was also closed.

A crowd of about 50 surged towards the barricade. But they soon turned away one by one, after learning that they would not be let in. Army officials apologised to them and handed out the flyers to them. Within 15 minutes, the crowd vanished.

The estimated time for those who were in line at 8pm was about eight hours. In a Facebook post, Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen said every person in line would be allowed to pay their respects, even if it was past midnight.

He added that there were many areas in which the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) could done better. “I want to thank everyone for their understanding, patience and words of encouragement. Volunteers touched our hearts with their spontaneous acts of goodwill and their actions lifted our spirits,” he said adding that he was also proud of the SAF men and women for their dedication despite many days without sleep.

Mr Ernest Tan, 29, civil servant, said he waited in line for four hours. “I am glad I did not miss the opportunity to come down. We owe Mr Lee a lot, and I would have been very sad if I was not able to see him off like the many other people,” he said. “My hours are a bit odd, so it was difficult to come down on a previous day. Today was my first off day, so I made it a point to come down.”

Madam Lee Gin Hong, 86, arrived in a chartered ambulance from her home at Upper Thomson, and was wheeled to the queues on a stretcher. Her daughter Jena Yeo, who is in her mid-40s, said her mother — who is bed-ridden after suffering a stroke — had been pressing her family for days to bring her down to pay her last respects, but they had been concerned about the large crowd size. When she learnt that today was the last day for the public to pay their respects, she was adamant that she came. “She (would) like to show him her last respects and thank Mr Lee for building the nation,” said Ms Yeo.

Principal engineer Tee Zhen Xiang, 33, arrived with a suitcase in tow, and was with his wife, two kids and his mother-in-law. “I went to Penang for a business trip on Wednesday. My flight was at 1pm and I was actually wondering if I should take half day leave in the morning to come here but it was too rushed. I landed at Changi Airport at 5pm and took a cab here because I wanted to pay my last respects. Mr Lee made a tiny country successful,” he said.

Mr Brandon Goh, 34, engineer and his wife came with their two daughters at about 7.45pm. “I feel quite honoured to be able to make it. I’d wanted to come earlier (today) but the weather was hot and I wasn’t sure if my kids could take it,” he said. ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY MATTHIAS TAY, LEE YEN NEE, AMANDA LEE, JORDON SIMPSON, TAN WEIZHEN, SIAU MING EN, LAURA PHILOMIN, YVONNE LIM, NG JING YNG AND ANGELA TENG