Singapore, Oct 12: Singaporean Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, tapped to succeed Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong by 2005, hopes Goh will remain in the cabinet as a senior adviser after the succession, the Straits Times newspaper reported today. Lee also said he wants his father, Lee Kuan Yew, to remain in his current position as senior minister.

Speculation about the hand-over scenario has been rife since Goh announced earlier this year that he would hand the reins to Lee at least two years ahead of the next elections, slated for 2007. Many have wondered what role Goh would play and whether Lee will be able to exert power over his father, the powerful and outspoken architect of modern Singapore.

When asked if he would compel his 80-year-old father to step down eventually if he became unfit to serve in politics, Lee was quoted as saying ``I would have to do that. That would be my job.'' But he added that it was a hypothetical question, the newspaper said.

Critics have also questioned whether the younger Lee's wife, Ho Ching, should remain as head of Temasek holdings, a state-run holding company which controls national carrier Singapore Airlines, Singapore Telecommunications and DBS Group, after the succession.

Lee said that was a decision for her boss Temasek chairman S Dhanabalan. Bureau Report