SINGAPORE - Within a week of revealing his identity publicly as an editor of socio-political website TR Emeritus (TRE), IT businessman Richard Wan (picture) found himself on the receiving end of two Letters of Demand from Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Fraser and Neave chairman Lee Hsien Yang for defamatory comments made about them on the website - an outcome he had "absolutely not" expected when he made the decision to allow the public to put a face to the controversial website.

"To be frank, if I knew what was coming I would have hesitated coming out. But now that I'm out I have to face the music and deal with it," said Mr Wan.

The storm has blown over for now, with TRE able to resolve matters with the lawyers.

But speaking to TODAY at a cafe in Bishan on Thursday - before Mr Lee Hsien Yang's lawyers and TRE reached a resolution later that evening - Mr Wan expressed some regret about his decision, which he had pushed for, even in the face of resistance by the other TRE members.

In fact, the events in the last few days had led him to question his involvement with TRE. Should he continue to face legal troubles, he will have to resign, Mr Wan said. "My family members are not happy with me. At a certain point, you've got to ask yourself, what are you doing?" said Mr Wan, who is married with a 17-year-old son.

Mr Wan, who joined TRE in 2010 when he volunteered as a moderator, pointed out that he is "doing this on a voluntary basis".

Nevertheless, Mr Wan said he is convinced that he did not make a mistake by stepping forward into the spotlight: There was a need to break away from the "old" Temasek Review website - which was "running like a renegade organisation" - and instil "responsibility" into the website.

The original website was suspended last August after its owner could not be contacted.

On Dec 18, five members of the old team - including Mr Wan - re-launched the site. Among the group, four are editors and the other member handles the technical side of things. Editors write opinion pieces and source for articles online. They also help put up pieces submitted by contributors.

Since they are based in different countries, they communicate via email, which is "not a problem", said Mr Wan.

According to Mr Wan, TRE now pays special attention to personal attacks from their users and defamatory comments about public figures. Such postings would be let through without moderation previously, he said. Now, those who do so will be "warned".

If someone has a valid complaint about a comment, for instance, Mr Wan said moderators will remove the comment swiftly.

But given the high volume of postings, some offensive comments could slip through, he said. When this happens, members of the public should alert TRE and remedial actions would be taken, Mr Wan pledged.

When it comes to articles put up by the TRE team, Mr Wan reiterated that they strive for accuracy. "The old (Temasek Review) will just shoot without checking," he said.

The team now tries to check its information for facts. For example, with the relevant public agency - and this is also why Mr Wan felt he had to reveal his identity as a TRE editor. Otherwise, "it's very hard for us to talk to people, agencies, interview witnesses", he said.

According to Mr Wan, his TRE team members, who had questioned his decision initially, are "using me as test case". And given the current situation, the other members are going to "remain anonymous", he added.

He reiterated his belief that TRE's followers - many of whom want a return to the previous "no-holds-barred" approach - will be able to adapt to the website's new direction, one in which his name will be the first in the firing line.