Payback can be a bitch. Eugene Tan had made it well known - online, offline and maybe kopi-tiam circuit - that he was seeking another term as Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP). He was not chosen. Chairman of the Special Select Committee of Parliament Halimah Yacob explained: "We looked for eligible candidates who had distinguished themselves through their contributions to society or to their respective field, and who could bring their specialised knowledge to add to the depth and breadth of debates in Parliament."
Tan fits the descriptive to a T, as he is an Associate Professor of Law at Singapore Management University (SMU), and teaches Constitutional & Administrative Law as well as Law and Policy of Ethnic Relations in Singapore. He has participated in many televised discussions, so many that detractors awarded him the unsolicited sobriquet of media whore. Problem is, he takes his job too diligently and seriously, so seriously that he dared point out to the Speaker in the nick of time that quorum was not met when two bills were about to be passed in parliament. Leader of the House Ng Eng Hen saved the day by asking for an adjournment instead of summoning the MPs back into the Chamber. Ng is also one of the eight select committee members.
The first rule of the wayang fight club is, don't make them lose face. In the immortal words of Robin Williams in "Good Morning Vietnam", who sadly passed away today, "This will not look good on my resume."
Former NMP Siew Kum Hong nailed it when he observed of the nine fresh faces selected: "they do seem safe." Notable newcomer is President of the Society for the Physically Disabled Chia Yong Yong, a dedicated professional and wheelchair bound for more than 20 years due to muscular atrophy. What they were looking for ideally is someone blind, deaf and dumb - in line with Yaacob's dictates of see no evil, hear no evil and speak no evil. Chia is too nice a person to do it, but someone else may just still reach out from his wheelchair to deliver a few tight slaps if and when they pull another Population White Paper stunt.
Tattler
*The writer blogs at http://singaporedesk.blogspot.com/