Latest CNNGo.com "Say What? with mrbrown" column: Politicians and the perils of hawker center walkabouts
Excerpt:
Recently, a lady Member of Parliament (MP), Lim Hwee Hua, was doing her pre-election walkabout at Serangoon Gardens' Chomp Chomp Food Center, to get hawkers there to pledge not to raise their prices for the next six months.I think it is very important to keep prices stable for the next six months at least, because the elections are around the corner and we don't want angry voters just because a plate of char kway teow has gone up from S$3 to S$3.50 (US$2.40 to US$2.80)
It could all come down to a simple plate of char kway teow.
While Ms Lim was diligently doing her rounds and shaking diners' hands, the newspapers report that a "heckler" approached her and accused her of making her rounds only during election time. She later told reporters that she visits her area once every two to three weeks.This kind of open hostility must be very unusual for members of the ruling party because why else would the papers dub him a heckler? MPs look like they always meet with love and hugs everywhere they go, judging from the smiling faces we see in photographs in the papers. So this man must be a "heckler". I assume because he gave her heck. (cont'd)