According to a source who works for a Public Relations organisation, the Facebook Page of Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong engaged in Facebook likes-buying and the creation of fake profiles to “like” his posts and attack critics.
The ex-employee who wishes to stay anonymous stated that he was hired to post comments on government Facebook pages and mainstream media pages like Straits Times, to “defend government policies” and attack critics.
Refusing to disclose his paymaster, the source who wished to stay anonymous stated that it is impossible for Lee Hsien Loong to achieve 1.2 million likes “given how unpopular he is”.
A typical fake profile would have only a few photos and no actual friend links. Below is an example from Lee Hsien Loong’s Facebook page:
A check with the “Adrian Chew” profile only shows two photos of a cat and no other references, and the “Gan Veronica” profile shows a wall of gibberish comments displaying fervent support for the PM.
There is also zero criticism in Lee Hsien Loong’s Facebook page, and that it is filled with comments praising the Prime Minister, posted by similarly shady profiles. At 1.2 million, Lee Hsien Loong has the most Facebook likes in Singapore and the state media often made references to his Facebook “likes” as a front of how popular the dictator PM is.
According to the source, the PR organisation – which he declined to state if its government-linked – have created many fake profiles in a “bank” and deploy them to make comments and click “like” on fellow fake profiles.
When asked about the leading PAP supporter page, Fabrications About the PAP, the source said that the government engages in several PR companies and that the page is likely one of them.
The source said that there is a high turnover of these employees as many feel guilty for engaging in underhanded tactics. He however said that he was paid to achieve a certain outcome and that “what is right or wrong does not matter”.
Alex Tan is also the clown behind Singapore Herald lah.....