‘Opposition’ versus ‘ruling’ party on 2nd May and a simulation for the next General Elections

‘Opposition’ versus ‘ruling’ party on 2nd May and a simulation for the next General Elections

SINGAPORE - The momentum is gradually gathering prior to the AWARE EOGM showdown on 2nd May. Although the clouds of uncertainty still hang over the horizon, there is always the silver lining that we can take comfort in - a defining moment for the online community who is concerned with this issue.

The events that transpired started with a team of virtual unknowns’ election to AWARE’s exco. This unknown team is effectively the current ‘ruling’ party, while the old guards of AWARE has become an ‘opposition’ party. And it seems that this ‘ruling’ party has become all-too-familiar in terms of lacking in transparency, especially when confronted with questions regarding their objectives. They followed up with draconian methods such as exclusion of the past president from meetings, purging of the old guards’ colleagues from their positions and lastly, changing the office locks to prevent anyone whom they found undesirable from accessing the office. The ‘ruling’ party has the backing and assistance of a mentor too!

Meanwhile, the ‘opposition’ party launched an online campaign “SAVE AWARE” to garner support for their cause. The website also aims to create an awareness of the events leading up to the EOGM. And it has provided links to blogs, citizen journalist-based sites and other websites devoted to the issue on hand. Facebook groups were also created to mobilize support, a leaf that is taken out of Mr Barack Obama’s book during his bid for presidency. The ‘ruling’ party on the other hand didn’t have much of an online campaign, save for an email campaign by its members’ church. In fact, one may ask if there was any organized campaign to canvass support for the ‘ruling’ party in the first place.

To the netizens’ credit, they have been responsible and have adopted a mature attitude in their dealings. Despite the religiously sensitive undertones behind the events, care has been taken to avoid any form of religious inflammation. TheOnlineCitizen, for instance, has gone the extra mile to moderate comments, which may be inflammatory in nature. I have to admit that it has been an enjoyable ride for myself personally, because I tried at times to relate the events at AWARE to the greater society at large. Thus, if we the netizens could pass this AWARE test with flying colors, we may even push the boundaries of excellence come the next elections.

As unfortunate as the events at AWARE may have been, it couldn’t have come at a later time like this. This gave netizens a chance to exercise online discourse on a sensitive topic. It also saw the ubiquitous use of Internet platforms such as Facebook and YouTube. In effect, it is some sort of a simulation exercise for the next elections. The outcome of the 2nd May EOGM could be interesting. It could be indicative of the power of an effective online campaign. Such has vindicated Mr Barack Obama in his ascendency to presidency. Hopefully, the online campaign for the past week will bear fruits. And if it does, it will send out a clear signal with regards to the power of online discourse in shaping important events within the Singapore society.

Like the ‘opposition’ team at AWARE, the opposition political parties has to go online to mobilize support. It will be the online citizen journalist sites, blogs and other similar websites that may play an influential role during the elections due to their reach.

Beyond the 2nd May EOGM, hopefully there will be more of such simulations for the netizens to aggregate together for a civil discourse, especially before the actual General Elections. And during the next General Elections, I am confident that the netizens will conduct themselves in an admirable manner, which adds to the maturity of our society. That being said, we the netizens will continue to play a part in any form of discourse pertaining to a major event.

http://forums.delphiforums.com/sunkopitiam/messages?msg=27734.119