10 Facts About Lee Bee Wah, The Colourful Former MP Who Made Parliament Interesting to Watch

As dozens of politicians and MPs vacate their positions ahead of the upcoming elections to make way for the new batch, we take some time out to focus on these hardworking individuals, not just as the fine congressmen they have been for previous years…

But also as normal human beings of Singapore.

And so, without further ado…

Here are 10 facts about Lee Bee Wah…

The ‘colourful’ former MP who actually made Parliament an interesting notion.

10 Facts About Lee Bee Wah, The Colourful Former MP Who Made Parliament Interesting to Watch

1. Personal Life

Lee is of Malaysian birth, having been conceived on 6 October 1960 in Johor.

Her parents worked as rubber tappers.

Lee is married with two children and is a Buddhist.

2. Education

Lee received her primary school education at Kiow Min Chinese Primary School, and subsequently went on to Sekolah Dato’ Dol Said, Notre Dame Convent, and Gajah Berang.

She studied at the National University of Singapore in 1981-1982, before moving on to Nanyang Technological University (NTU), where she received a B.Eng degree in Civil Engineering in 1985.

In 1989-1990, she attended the University of Liverpool and attained a M.Sc degree in Engineering.

3. School Accomplishments

Apart from her feats as a Member of Parliament (MP), Lee was also busy contributing to her alumni school. Described as a “passionate” alumna by her University, Lee helped to set up the Class of 1985 Pioneer Fund, a fundraising scheme which produced a few million dollars for academic purposes.

In 1997, she took up the role of President for the NTU School of Civil & Environmental Engineering Alumni Association (NTU CEEAA) until 2008.

And it seems that Lee was well-recognised for her efforts.

In 2000, she received the Nanyang Technological University Alumni Service Award by NTU. Six years later, she accepted the Nanyang Alumni Achievement Award from the same school. She was also presented the Royal Government Gold Medal by the Cambodian Government in the same year.

In 2011, the University of Liverpool handed Lee an Honorary Doctorate. The next year, she received the Nanyang Distinguished Alumni Award from NTU in 2012.

4. Career

Prior to joining politics, Lee set up LBW Consultants LLP in 1996, which was subsequently acquired by global engineering consultancy Meinhardt Group in 2014. She was also a senior engineer at ST Construction and worked as an assistant project manager at Wing Tai.

From 2008-2010, she served as president of the Institution of Engineers Singapore.

She currently operates as a Non-Executive Chairman of listed company TEE Land Pte Ltd, as well as Independent Director of Koh Brothers Group.

5. A Cancer Survivor

According to Mothership who had an interview with her back in 2015, Lee was approached shortly after she was diagnosed with colon cancer.

It was early stage and her doctor managed to secure an operating theatre and removed 22cm of her colon the next day.

She was upfront about her condition when she was approached and said that if they think she can serve, she will.

And the rest, as people say, is history.

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6. Politics

Lee served as MP for Ang Mo Kio GRC from 2006 till 2011, and Nee Soon GRC from 2011-2020.

During her term, she had also helped to nudge into place policies that makes Singapore a more accessible place to live in.

One policy is the train and bus ambassadors during peak hours back in 2015, covered walkways along the roads and lifts at overhead bridges (you know who to thank the next time you take a lift instead of walking up the stairs)

Apparently, she had fought hard in parliament for a lift at an overhead bridge in Khatib. After 3 years of persistence, she finally got what she wanted. After learning how to put a lift at the overhead bridge in Khatib (apparently, it’s quite complicated), the relevant authorities then rolled it out across Singapore.

She is currently serving as the Chairman of the Government Parliamentary Committee for National Development, as well as for the Environment and Water Resources.

7. Controversy

Despite being well-received in general, Lee was not without controversy during her terms. On 27 February 2019, Lee told a story (in Chinese) about an “Ah Gong” during a budget debate in Parliament.

In her tale, she indicated Singaporeans to be “Si Gui Kia” (ungrateful brats in Chinese) because they were apparently not appreciative of what Ah Gong (the Singaporean Government) has done for them.

A video clip of her speech quickly went viral.

8. She Was Colourful In Parliament

Like my handsome colleague, GY, once said, parliament will never be the same again without Sis Flower.

Especially during Budget time:

Her most memorable speech in parliament in 2020 is probably the most intense grilling of Health Minister Gan Kim Yong over the deliciousness of desserts:

9. Farewell Speech

On 29 June, the former MP bade a formal farewell to the political world on social media.

In the post, she expressed her appreciation at the many messages of support from Singaporeans and stated that she hoped to keep in touch with all of them (on social media).

She also wrote that with the end of her political career, she will now have more time with her family, especially her 80-year-old mum.

Lee implored for citizens to continue supporting the PAP even in her absence, and wrote that she has since shared her advice and experiences with new prospective candidate Carrie Tan. The latter will be taking her place in the upcoming elections.

10. Trivia

Did you know that Lee was the President of the Singapore Table Tennis Association (STTA) from 2008 till 2014?

Well, I certainly didn’t. Though one thing seems certain;

Lee has a lot more to contribute to society, even if she will no longer be a part of Parliament.

And with that in mind, we wish Lee all the best in any future endeavours she may undertake…

And sincerely thank her for all the services she has rendered for Ang Mo Kio, Nee Soon…

And Singapore in general.

#respect

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