I think this whole polemic was bullshit and a circlejerk for nem haters. I can understand easily that UP would would try to keep up the activity of the thread with a sockpuppet. Why would he do it otherwise? one miserable additional stake knowing he would get way more for his role as a Nem officer?
I hope he will continue helping the coin even if it's not as an official member of the nem team.
Yes, the things are just like you were thinking.
The haters just got a little stone, and they throw it against NEM, and again and again, when the stone ricochets back.
When thinking with brains, using logic - not emotions, there was nothing, which makes any harm to NEM community or the actual cryptocurrency. We must just wait the working software.