Blog started with aim 'to call for change'

Health-care worker Roy Ngerng has been blogging since 2012, focusing on social issues.

He told The Straits Times yesterday that he started his sociopolitical blog The Heart Truths "to write about social issues and advocate for change".

This interest stemmed from his days as a sociology major at the the National University of Singapore, where he made the Dean's list in his second semester.

"CPF (Central Provident Fund) was one thing that I looked at because I noticed there were changes to the policies," said Mr Ngerng, who has two sisters, and is son to a hawker and housewife.

"It's something that all Singaporeans are concerned about... and I hope we can have an open conversation about it."

Mr Ngerng, 33, came to prominence in 2011, when he revealed in his blog, My Right To Love, that he is a homosexual.

He has since penned posts on issues affecting Singapore's gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community, such as relationship woes and Aids.

While he claims to have no political affiliation, Mr Ngerng has attended rallies such as the Labour Day protest at Hong Lim Park earlier this year, where he spoke about income inequality.

He now faces damages for alleging that the Prime Minister misappropriated CPF savings in a May 15 post on his blog. After the news broke, Mr Ngerng had to explain his blogging activities to his family, who were unaware of them.

He has not "made many plans" in the event of him being taken to court and is "worried" about bankruptcy. Admitting that he "could have handled matters better" on his blog, he added: "I still hope that everything can be amicably resolved."

jianxuan@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on May 29, 2014.
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