Apart from Mayan eschatology, 2012 is also significant—for me, at least—in another respect. It marks the 20th anniversary of my involvement in politics, or more accurately, in the struggle for freedom in Singapore.

During the period, I have raised a plethora of issues—from the high-profile to the more obscure, crossed swords with the rulers of this country and partaken of significant political events in Singapore. I hope that I have been able to influence, to whatever degree, Singapore’s politics; it certainly has influenced me.

Through it all, one word has always occupied the centre of my political work. Indeed, it is more than a word. It is a belief, a way of life that has eluded this nation and her people. It is a goal to which I have dedicated my life to achieving. That word, that belief, that goal is democracy.

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I admit that democracy is not a subject that lends itself to urgent attention in a society preoccupied with material riches. But I can no longer wait to warn the people of the dangers that lie ahead than can society afford not to pay attention. Unfortunately, by the time the situation turns so dire, we may rue the lost opportunity to defend our political rights and ourselves.

There is much that we can do to change course and we must apply ourselves with urgency. For this reason, as unattractive and as unenviable as the task maybe, the effort to rouse the nation from its political slumber must continue. This book, a summary of all that I have been saying and doing for the last two decades, is my contribution to that effort.