“Some people have accused the young lady, Miss Jessica Tan, of spreading the rumour so that she could gain instant fame. But I, for one, doubt it. If you had followed the developments closely, you would have noticed that Miss Jessica Tan was very unwilling to talk to the media after the riot. Even when she eventually did, she stayed clear of the incident and did not at any time claim to be a victim of a sexual assault. So my question is, who pushed her to the forefront and into the limelight against her will?”

Dr Lao paused. His audience raked their memories, but no one could recall the details.

“The very first media interview Miss Jessica Tan gave was to Online Citizen, and the interview was conducted at the premise of Migrant Workers Count Too. Now we all know that Online Citizen thrives on its anti-establishment articles and reporting, while Migrant Workers Count Too is never government-friendly. Which makes us wonder… What is their hidden agenda in coaxing Miss Jessica Tan into the public eye against her will?”

“They want to stir shit!” someone shouted. Many among the attendees laughed out loud.

“I would say that is a very good guess,” Dr Gimme Lao beamed. “If we study it closely, we will realise that an organisation like Migrant Workers Count Too has its own agenda. On the one hand, they put up a front that no one can fault, for they are volunteering their time and effort to help the migrant worker community. But on the other hand, they leverage on a very popular blog called The Tornado to, like the gentleman so succinctly points out, stir shit!”

Amidst the laughter, the same gentleman shouted again, “Shut down the bloody website!”

“Now we are a democratic society that respects free speech. We cannot simply shut down a website at will.” Dr Gimme Lao raised a finger. “What we can do, though, is hold them accountable for their articles. Which is why the Minister of Information and the Arts fully supports the newest regulation imposed by the Media Development Authority of Singapore. Every website and blog that chooses to carry political content shall have to put up a $50,000 performance bond. This is to protect the public from fake news.”

Sharon chortled when she came to this part. So this was what it was about—the Minister of Information and the Arts was attacking the online dissidents via the proxy of Dr Gimme Lao. She glanced across the dining table at Yu Chin, who was similarly browsing on his laptop. “Did you read Gimme Lao’s attack on Migrant Workers Count Too? I thought it was very smoothly executed.”

“Yes, I did.” Yu Chin smiled and tapped on his laptop. “But I must say the online forum discussions are even more exciting!”

“Really! What am I missing?”

“Dr Gimme Lao’s son has publicly and vehemently denounced his own father.”