Is there any wonder why Chiam See Tong left SDP when he had a
dispute with Dr CSJ? Yes those who admire Dr CSJ close to a degree
that resembles a worship, you will brand Chiam See Tong as being
"too soft" or "too meek" to stand up to the regime. To me, he
represents the shrewd politician who is able to survive as an
opposition in spite of the policies which are significantly
unfriendly towards the opposition.
Is Dr CSJ then comparable to people like Mandela, Gandhi or
Martin Luther King? Hardly so. Those people were smarter because
they were able to mobilise widespread support through the correct
actions. Do we see a similar degree of support for Dr CSJ in
Singapore today?
All in all, the above represents my personal opinion.
For those who are displeased because I said something negative
about Dr CSJ, go ahead and label me a "PAP dog". I have only 2
things to say to you. First, your close-mindedness to criticisms of
Dr CSJ is nowhere better than the close-mindedness of the regime to
criticisms. Next, I don't believe that the regime is flawless. Just
that we need to know HOW to fix it even though we
may already know WHAT to fix.
For those who are more rational, I hope this gives an insight
into what I think is hindering Dr CSJ from ever achieving the
ideals which he holds dear and fights so fervently for. That is the
reason why I will never support him unconditionally.
To be fair, as things stand, Chee probably offers the best hope
of toppling this dictatorship.
Let's set the record straight on some points - Chee isn't wrong
to envisage civil disobedience being an effective tool to
trouble a despotic regime; if anything, his mistake stems
from assuming a bunch of ill-informed, misguided, propaganda-fed,
delusion-induced citizenry would achieve the feats through civil
disobedience (which requires the cooperation of the masses to be
effective) in the same manner the populace under the
illustrious leaderships of Ghandhi, Walesa, King and Mandela
did. That said, it hardly renders Chee brainless to engage in his
actions - after all, Aung San Suu Kyi (and hordes of others
worldwide) is in the same boat; what separates the latter from the
former (Ghandhi, Walesa, King, Mandela) is the end-result of which
the struggle is an inevitable by-product. To drive home this point,
would you therefore be labelling the likes of Ghandhi, Walesa, King
and Mandela as brainless if their titanic efforts had not been
successful?
More importantly, the concept of being effective in the
conventional sense of the word hardly crosses Chee's mind - he
doesn't give a damn about winning an election; neither does he care
about becoming a Prime Minister someday. If anything, he's more
interested in toppling this regime than reaping the benefits of his
labour (you could always argue he's cut out to be an activist, but
not a politician; that said, that is probably what this regime
needs now). In that regard, while it's probably fair to suggest
Chee is the last man you'd bet on toppling this regime through the
electoral process dictated by this regime, he probably offers a
much likelier bet of bringing about a lasting democratic
change.
After all, for all the civility and diplomacy Chiam offers (as
opposed to Chee), what hope can you realistically pin on what is
effectively a toothless sycopant who is a hopeless political
strategist? For all his rhetoric about the merits of running a
"by-election" campaign in the past (where he openly encouraged the
electorate to vote for the opposition by ceding power to the
fascists on nomination day), what has he achieved - or for
that matter, is there anything to suggest he even has more to offer
than Chee? - in terms of empowering the opposition? While
you could pin the blame for the opposition's poor showing on a
shambolic electoral process and a substantial bunch
of misinformed electorate who aren't necessarily empowered to
make an informed decision, Chiam's failed campaigns clearly
reinforce the notion that - as Chee rightly points out -
you don't vote out dictatorships (and this is a trend observed the
world over).
What are the chances of Chiam bringing about the long-lasting
democratic changes he so vehemently champions (albeit through a
conciliatory and accommodating tone in line with what the regime
expects) through an electoral process that takes on farcical
proportions? As likely as having a monkey type out the complete
works of Shakespeare if you asked me...
