[Zoepfli]

Any Singaporeans here? What's preventing you from chatting up the government and ask for free elections? They don't seem that evil to me..?

You know, tell them "thanks, you did a great job developing this country, but we would like to take it from here and control our own future...".

What would happen? Is there any way to do this that would be successful?

[EliRivers]

It's gradually happening. The PAP hold fewer seats now than at any time in Singaporean history.

[ValentineC]

I should add that Singapore politics is somewhat complex, and it takes months, if not years, of following Singapore news to have a grasp of what the sentiment on the ground is. Some of the points that I think are relevant to this thread:

(1) Much of the older generation and many newly naturalised immigrants feel that the incumbent government brought them to where they are today, and are willing to give up some liberties for economic success.

(2) Many of Singapore's constituencies are banded into groups for election and town management purposes. [1] The party in power has the advantage in that Cabinet ministers are members of the majority party appointed by the leader, enjoy a much higher media profile by virtue of their jobs, and are more often than not the heavyweight in a group electoral contest. This makes it difficult for opposing parties to win in a positive publicity contest, since they enjoy far fewer opportunities for positive media coverage.

(3) The perception of opposition quality in Singapore is still very negative. While there were opposition candidates with stellar educational and professional backgrounds in the previous election, much of the talent willing to enter politics tend to be courted by the leading party. Also, no opposition party thus far has spoken out against this policy.

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Group_Representation_Constituen...

[ValentineC]

Just to follow up on point #3, one of the opposition parties in Singapore has raised some concerns over the policy:

https://www.facebook.com/nicoleseahnsp/posts/494238060647270