The MDA’s actions of shutting down The Real Singapore has been seen as hypocritical by many Singaporeans, who feel that there are also other websites, such as the above-mentioned ones, which have been conducting their misdeeds but have been allowed to continue to operate. This has given rise to the perception that the People’s Action Party (PAP)-run government is intentionally persecuting The Real Singapore because it is the top “alternative” news website and which has been on the forefront of exposing the misdeeds of the PAP, and that the PAP wants to shut down The Real Singapore to stop it from doing so.

On 15 Apr this year, the Special Select Committee invited the general public and functional groups to submit names of persons for its consideration for appointment as NMPs. Submissions closed on 20 May 2014 and a total of 36 applications were received. One of the 36 applicants was the incumbent Prof Eugene Tan. He actually wanted to serve for another term as NMP to help Singaporeans. He was the first MP who said that immigration is the ‘mother of all issues’ in Singapore. He also caught the Parliament on a few occasions trying to pass bills without the minimum quorum.

Political observers were surprised by the People’s Action Party’s (PAP) move to expose potential candidates early to the public eye, with the next General Election expected to be some time away. This is a significant change in tactics, they said, adding that it was in response to one of the lessons the ruling party drew from the 2011 GE — that voters need time to familiarise themselves with new candidates. Said Singapore Management University’s Associate Professor Eugene Tan, who is also a Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP): “The fact that they are not keeping it under wraps does suggest that, certainly, one aim (of the PAP leadership) is to create awareness that they are exposing potential candidates to the voters at this early stage.”

In the aftermath of the Little India riot, the focus and dominant narrative, unsurprisingly, have been on law and order issues.

The Government’s narrative is that the riot was a “one-off” spontaneous mayhem; the proximate cause being the inebriated state of some foreign workers reacting angrily and violently to a fatal accident involving one of their own.

Yet, the law and order narrative does not sit well with the long-standing issues in Little India, such as the easy availability of alcohol, jaywalking, littering and other public nuisances, as well as overcrowding.