Can the government be more successful in its
recent efforts to connect with the public online? (Facebook
photo …
By Andrew Loh
One of the "reforms" the government is undoubtedly looking into
is the way it engages the online community. It is new territory for
the government as a whole, although some of its Members of Parliament have made forays into it
previously, most notably former Foreign Affairs Minister
George Yeo.
The ill-fated P65 blog, which was the People's Action Party's
(PAP's) post-1965 MPs' endeavour onto the online landscape, met its
frigid death not long after its birth, only to be revived later
with a new set of faces. The government's other attempts at
establishing a foothold in cyberspace have
also not been very successful.
So, how exactly can the government succeed in this?
There is no magic bullet, really. No blue pill to take. No
simple wave of the wand to conjure success. And indeed success
should not be the aim. I would argue that it is the process itself
which should be the goal. As it is, and as can be seen from the
recent elections, the PAP's engagement process needs lots of
upgrading.
But before we get to that, there needs to be a recognition that
social media and the online community are worth engaging. Why?
Because Singapore is one of the most wired
nations on earth, and the way its people
communicate has changed forever. Thus, any government which wants
to rule effectively in Singapore must realise and accept that the
way this is done also needs to change. Singaporeans online are still Singaporeans.
And social media (and new media) will play an increasingly
important role in this new-generation way of communication going
forward.
Suggestions
I would recommend that the government be ready to face or do the
following:
1. Accept that the end-goal is a moving target. There is no
"final destination" where an online utopia can be reached, as far
as the government is concerned. There will always be critics of the
government, no matter what it does.
2. Be more courageous in engaging the online community. The
government should shed its mindset of wanting some sort of
guarantee — that it will not be slammed or flamed — before it wages
into cyberspace. What some PAP members are currently doing is to be
encouraged. Mr Khaw Boon Wan, Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Mr Yeo and BG Tan Chuan Jin all
are showing how a little courage can win them friends.
3. Don't restrict engagement to cyberspace. The government
should entwine its online engagement with real-life, face-to-face
ones as well. There really is nothing holding the government back
from inviting bloggers or its "fans" on Facebook to dialogue
sessions. I am sure not a few netizens would
welcome this.
4. Understand that most netizens are very opinionated people who
will speak their minds no matter what. But most of the time these
opinions are formed out of limited insights or available
information. The government's job, therefore, is to fill in the
gaps. By doing so (without being condescending) the government
would not only be engaging these netizens, it will also bring a
certain reality to the discourse.
Even if the government does all of the above and more, however,
there will still be detractors. This should not bother it too much.
I believe there are more sensible and
rational Internet inhabitants than those who are irrationally
vocal. What the government wants to pay attention to are the silent
readers and participants of discourse on the Net. One group which
would be of particular importance are the opinion leaders of
cyberspace. Thus, the government only needs to engage these few —
for a start — and not try to win over the entire battlefield, which
it will never be able to do anyway.
Don't be dismissive
The truth is that netizens are so critical of the government for
basically two reasons:
1. That they are dismissed, ignored or seen as irrelevant by the
government, that they are an insignificant group.
2.That the government is not being accountable to them, the
people.
All other expressions of anger or unhappiness arise from these
two sentiments. So, it would seem that it is quite simple for the
government if it wants to get a foothold online — don't ignore or
dismiss netizens, and be patient in taking time to explain its
positions on issues.
Pragmatically, going about doing these will take some effort, of
course. Ministers are very busy people, for example, and it is not
fair to expect them to spend hours online typing out individual
responses to queries and criticisms.
What I would suggest is that ministries engage those whom it
feels are reasonable and sensible. Surely, out of the hundreds (or
even thousands) of bloggers and Facebook fans, there are a few whom
the government finds not so repulsive? Start with these and work
from there.
So, the starting point is to sieve out those who will never be
open to being engaged and who thus will continue to be vehemently
opposed to whatever the government does, and those who are sincere
in wanting to see changes for the better of the country.
Believe it or not, there are quite a few people in the latter
category, even if the government does not think so. They may be on
the other side of the fence, from the government's perspective, but
whichever side one is on, it will be old fashioned sincerity,
honesty, openness and courage which will win their hearts and
minds. Yes, even in this cyber age.
