Harpeet Singh said his legal firm served a summons on Monday on Singapore Democratic Party leader Chee Soon Juan because he has not offered compensation.

Chee told the Associated Press late Tuesday (Nov 20) that the summons does not state the amount that Goh and Lee are demanding.

Chee made a formal apology to the two men after he received a letter demanding one from their lawyers just prior to the Nov 3 general election. The letter also demanded that the apology be published in a local paper and that Chee offer the two men compensation.

Singh said Chee "has not come back with an offer" so it is now up to the courts to determine a figure.

Goh and Lee began legal proceedings after Chee shouted questions to the prime minister about a S$17 billion (US$9.26 billion) loan the government had pledged to Indonesia during the 1997-98 Asian economic crisis.

The incident occurred when Chee and Goh crossed paths while campaigning in a suburban neighborhood.

Chee later said that he wanted to ask Lee "the same question" about the loan to Indonesia.

The leaders have said Chee's questions about what had happened to the loan money implied that they had been dishonest about the matter.

Goh and Lee were both returned to power, and their People's Action Party won all but two of the 84 open seats. Nine other seats are held by appointed members of parliament.

The PAP took 75.29 percent of the vote in the election, a sharp 10-percentage point upswing from the last election in 1997.

The PAP has ruled Singapore since the country's independence from Malaysia in 1965, and the party is widely credited with transforming Singapore from an impoverished, malaria-infested backwater into one of Asia's most modern and prosperous countries.

Chee, who was not elected to parliament, said he was going to speak to lawyers about the summons.

"It's not unexpected," said Chee of the summons. "In opposition in Singapore you just deal with these things."

During the campaign Goh said that maintaining his reputation, both at home and abroad, was his main reason for taking legal action against Chee.

Critics accuse the Singapore government of using defamation lawsuits to silence opposition politicians. However, leaders insist they have the right to protect their reputations.

Singapore leaders have successfully sued a number of their political foes. Opposition veteran Joshua "J.B." Jeyaretnam was ousted from parliament because of bankruptcy after government officials sued him for defamation. Bankrupt politicians are banned from sitting in Singapore's parliament. ( AP )