A sign of paradigm shift in the PAP’s mindset ?

By Fang Zhi Yuan

The Singapore media, ranked  147th by Reporters without frontiers on its latest Press Freedom Index, is constantly being ridiculed and villified by its detractors for being a stooge of the PAP government, in short “The PAP Times”.

Not only does it churns out daily PAP propaganda to poison and brainwash the minds of Singaporeans (I admit that I am one of its “victims” for the last 18 years before the advent of the internet) to mould them into “obedient, subservient and unthinking citizens”, it is also an indirect conduit for the PAP to monitor the sentiments on the ground through the ST Forum.

Though we know the PAP is an arrogant political behemoth which will never admit its mistakes, it is actually more adverse to public opinion than we have thought. To put it succinctly, it knows cleverly when to “steer the wheel according to the winds”. When it knows it is running against the mill, it will not hesitate to fine-tune, tone down and moderate its rhetoric and stance.

The recent IBA’s critique of Singapore’s human rights record is a slap on the face of the PAP which had spent much time and resources courting the organization. Though it carried a robust defense to exonerate itself through the state media to the extent of dismissing them as a ”Western conspiracy to do us in”, it is well aware that in this digital era where information is widely availabe at the click of a button, most Singaporeans especially the young IT-savvy, remains unconvinced by its desperate attempts to redeem its bruised credibility, if there is any left in the first place.

As such it is not surprising to see a subtle yet significant shift in the state media’s stance on human rights. Initially it tried perhaps too hard to propagate the PAP’s view that human rights is a western fallacy that is inapplicable and irrelevant to the Singaporean context amid some blatant character assassination. Now it appeared to have taken a more conciliatory and balanced approach bereft of the usual political rhetoric as evident by two articles published in the Straits Times today.

In “Human rights: Not whether, but what to debate“, Chua Mui Hoong (the sister of the “Dr” Chua Lee Hoong, the self-proclaimed psychiatrist who diagnosed Dr Chee to be suffering from a personality disorder) tried to put things into perspective by arguing that the two opposing prevailing views of human rights are not mutually exclusive of each other and it is more productive to look at its content and relevance to Singapore. She even offered a mild rebuttal to the PAP’s rigid hardline attitude towards foreign criticism: “But this assertion of sovereignty over political discourse should not close our minds to what has merit in foreign criticism of Singapore.”

The next article “The biggest conundrum in Singapore politics” by Li Xueying bears uncanny similiarities to a communist-style self-confession of faults in which she outlined quite frankly the major grouses and grievances against the PAP such as gerrymandering, GRC, use of HDB upgrading as an electoral carrot and the PAP’s restriction on civil and political rights. She even chided PM Lee for not moving faster in his promise during his swearing-in speech to liberalize the political landscape. The last paragraph strikes me as holding out an olive branch to Dr Chee: “After all, ultimately, everyone is battling for the same team: Singapore”.

I are glad that the PAP is aware of the widespread discontent and resentment on the ground against its political high-handness and repression. However, plain empathy alone is still not enough to win back the hearts and minds which have been lost. Unless the PAP reforms itself and the system it entrenched its power in, it is not inconceivable that Singapore ends up being the First World’s Zimbabwe one day.

The subliminal shift of the state media to a more middle ground is an indication that the PAP is not so monolith and rigid after all. There are liberals in the party who do not agree with how things are done currently. They are acutely concerned about how Singapore’s image and standing in the international community had taken a battling lately.

A first world economy is not commensurate with a third world political system. To the younger generation who are educated and widely traveled, it is not enough just to have basic economic rights such as a roof over our heads. We want equal civil and political rights as rightful citizens and owners of this land to participate in the running of our nation. We do not want to be told all the time by the PAP that only its decisions are right for Singapore and nobody else’s.

Does the post-65er MPs in the PAP really understand our concerns, needs and expectations ? I doubt so. Maybe there are some with a reformist streak, but they will be powerless to effect any meaningful changes in the presence of a certain octagenarian. Therefore, I do not expect any paradigm shift in the PAP’s mindset on the whole though the subtle shift in the official stance do suggest there is some introspection in the PAP on recent developments so far.

It is time the PAP and the state media stop treating Singaporeans as idiots with no minds of their own. The more it tried to impose its views on us, the more peeved we will be and eventually it will lose its credibility and clout completely if not already so.

Let us get this clear that Singapore is built by countless of people – our grandfathers and grandmothers, with their blood and sweat, not by the PAP or one individual. We are not indebted to the PAP forever.

We want the best for Singapore and if this involves reforming the entire political system and tossing out a rotten decadent political entity incapable of keeping up with modern times, we should do so without any reservations. Enough is enough. Tak Boleh Tahan !