CPF Board, other gov’t agencies, clarify matter concerning woman whose application for withdrawal of funds was denied

Singapore — The Central Provident Fund (CPF) Board, Housing & Development Board, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health, and Ministry of Social and Family Development issued a joint statement on its Facebook account to clarify an article featured in The Online Citizen (TOC) concerning a woman who was allegedly denied access to her CPF fund, despite her current medical condition and appeals made to her Member of Parliament, Education Minister Ong Ye Kung.

The woman, whose name is Sua Li Li but is referred to in TOC’s article as ‘Ms Soo,’ is said to be suffering from Systemic Lupus Erythemathosus (SLE) and is allegedly unable to work. The TOC article, published on December 17, said that Ms Soo, age 46, has also written to President Halimah Yacob, requesting assistance to release her CPF Funds from Medisave and Special Accounts, claiming that her savings are depleted. She says she needs access to the funds because she desires to help her daughter, a student at Singapore Polytechnic, as well as her elderly parents.

According to the article, Ms Sua’s request for her funds to be released was denied by the CPF Board.

In the joint statement, the CPF Board explained and clarified several points that had been raised in the article, mainly that Ms Sua is being actively supported by several government agencies, which TOC did not mention.

The joint statement pointed out that Ms Sua, who had been admitted to NUH for suspected lupus in 2011, went against medical advice and chose to be discharged. NUH even attempted further medical appointments for Ms Sua, albeit unsuccessfully.

Also, Ms Sua, who has gone for treatment at Khoo Teck Puat Hospital (KTPH) starting form last month, has been told that her expenses there will be fully covered by MediFund.

Thirdly, the statement said that the Board could not contact Ms Sua from November 19 onwards, as she had been abroad. Ms Sua has been advised by the board that her application to withdraw her CPF would be evaluated again when her doctor determines that she qualifies under the medical criteria.

Fourthly, Ms Sua’s daughter at Singapore Polytechnic is a recipient of government bursaries which fully pay for the fees of her classes, as well as provide a living allowance, with the possibility of future financial aid for university studies.

The HDB and the Social Service Office (SSO) at Yishun are also on hand to assist and advise her for her different needs. The HDB has offered suggestions to help her save money, and the SSO, which could not step in previously as she still had savings, would make sure that she would have enough to pay for her daily expenses, as well as provide a channel for emotional support.

Finally, according to the statement, “grassroots volunteers have also visited Ms Sua to render support.”