Singapore's Lee Kuan Yew hospitalised with fever

Singapore's Lee Kuan Yew hospitalised with fever

SINGAPORE - Singapore's first prime minister and the man widely credited with the city state's economic success, Lee Kuan Yew, is in hospital recovering from an infection.

Lee, who turned 90 last September, was admitted on Sunday with a fever and bad cough, according to a statement issued by his press secretary on Tuesday. He is on antibiotics and recovering.

Although Lee has receded from the public and political scene, his health is watched closely as he is still seen as an influential figure for the government of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, his elder son.

The Cambridge University-trained lawyer built the small Southeast Asian island into one of the world's wealthiest nations during his 31 years as prime minister.

"He has been advised by his doctors to avoid public appearances," his press secretary said, adding that he would not be attending a lunar new year dinner in his Tanjong Pagar constituency on Tuesday evening.

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