This problem partly has to do with the issue of diversity within the party's ranks. Bukit Timah branch secretary Gho Sze Kee pointed out that only 26.9 per cent of branch chairs and 12.9 per cent of branch secretaries are female - notwithstanding the fact that last year, the PAP fielded its largest-ever group of women candidates.

The challenge is not only about putting out messages on the website of Petir, the PAP's official publication. Nor is it about party activists posting on social media to already-converted followers.