To all those who responded to my article:

A big THANK YOU to all of you who took time and trouble to respond to my article ‘An Open Letter to the Prime Minister.’ Also a somewhat sheepish SORRY for having made you plough through reams of the stuff, much of which, as the newspaper editors in their rejection notes had told me, was nothing new. Actually, I had had no choice but to bring in most of the themes in my earlier articles (such as the ones on the out-of-bounds markers, and on the climate of fear), and knit them together into one major theme, in order to provide the full political backdrop for my culminating plea for political freedom. I really hope no future article of mine will have to be that long! Read more

The following political commentary, my latest, was offered to and rejected by the local newspapers.

Dear Mr Prime Minister,

This open letter is a plea which, as a concerned Singaporean, I am making with some confidence, since at no time has your government been more sincere and earnest in inviting feedback to make our society an even better place to live in.

My plea concerns the long-standing issue of political openness. It had, in the more than 40 years of PAP rule, been a source of much unease in the relationship between the government and the people. Now and then, the unease would erupt in the open, with the people agitating (usually through permitted channels such as letters to the press, public forums, dialogues with members of parliament, etc) for a long overdue political opening up, and the government firmly, often sternly, reminding them of more important national concerns, such as bread-and-butter matters that affect the lives of everyone. Read more