[redbean]

Budget – Why so little?

$6.6b with $3.2b angpows for the people were announced by Tharman in his budget speech yesterday. My immediate reaction is why so little? The Americans printed US$600b or nearly S$800b. This is roughly $2,600 per American. We are giving out about $1,000 per citizen. And we are so much richer than the Americans. They are in debt and we have a huge reserve and surpluses every year. We could do much more to help the people in a time when inflation is eating up the income of the people.

In 2009, during the financial crisis, the Resilience Budget was $20b. This year we have a bumper harvest and only a $6.6b giveaway. Definitely not good enough. The few thousand dollars are spread too thinly and will disappear in no time.

The most crucial issue is how to curb high inflation. Actually no lah, inflation only 3 to 4% according to the latest official reports, where got high. Why are the people complaining about such miniscule inflation? I am also scratching my head. The monthly inflation seemed to vary from 3 to 5% and the whole year inflation is only 3 to 4%. If one simply compound a 3% monthly inflation over 12 months, I am sure is it more than 4%.

If really the annual inflation is 3 to 4%, and with income rising above 5%, there is real income growth for the individuals. In that case, the budget is actually a big bonus. There is no real need for an angpow budget and nothing to worry about.

What is real? The cost of everything is still rising and unstoppable. This is the frightening part and no amount of angpows and handouts can do much if the outflow is faster and more than the income, angpows and handouts included.
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what i posted is just my personal view. feel free to disagree.

[redbean]

People, go down on your knees

The people of Singapore, new and old citizens, must go down on their knees for this windfall of money given to them by the govt. Do they know where the money comes from or is coming from? Never mind, be grateful and just say thank you.

And please stay there, on your knees and don't get up. For the next spate of price and fee increases will make your knees wobble. And you may have to be on your knees to beg for mercy. Just my imagination. It won't happen...not again and again.

For those who have a gripe about treating foreigners or new citizens better, they may want to ask whether a new citizen of yesterday would also receive the full benefits of an aging citizen who have threw in his lot with this country for the last 50 or 60 years, contributing to the reserves and everything to produce this windfall? Maybe new citizens would not get the same amount, at least those who did not do NS will get $100 less.

It is a very beneficial option to be citizens and be given cash just being a citizen. I think the application queue will get longer by another mile. Applying to be citizens is like applying to get free money.
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what i posted is just my personal view. feel free to disagree.

[redbean]

When the right ball does not know what left ball is talking

When this happens, someone can go on screwing everyone. Ok, kopitiams and hawker stalls, do not anyhow raise your price, it will lead to higher cost of living. Inflation is the most dangerous beast lurking in our midst. The worst bugbear is housing. Look at the lovely prices in the sky and all the happy developers and speculators, and HDB owners!

Now who is aiding the high prices? Would the hike in worker’s levy raise the cost of housing? Maybe not. Who knows, nobody I think. It is very difficult to understand building and construction cost when no numbers are available.

Will the hike in redevelopment fees for properties raise property prices? Definitely no. There are unrelated, two different things. The high cost of housing is imported, imported together with foreigners coming here to work and to be residents. And also the high cost of materials, definitely beyond our control.

I am still trying to figure out why property price is still rising. Maybe I am really dumb. After so long still unable to find out why.
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what i posted is just my personal view. feel free to disagree.

[redbean]

Dictatorship of a political party

A dictator controls everything in a country, the people, resources, finances, power and ideas. A political party can also behave like a dictator, controlling everything in a country. Have we reached such a state?

I was reading Tharman’s reply to Low Thia Khiang in Parliament and I came away with the feeling that everything he said was true, right and the best for Singapore. He and his team had thought through everything in detail and came out with the best solution available. ‘There is more than enough for lower and middle income households in the Grow and Share package in this year’s Budget to tide over this period of high inflation.’ Period. Believe it or not, agree with it or not, like it or not, that’s it. That’s the final answer.

‘A retired couple is likely to see their costs of living increase by $400 this year….A three generation middle income household’s living expenditure for the year is estimated to rise by $1,850….’ Undisputed hard numbers and hard truths.

And the GST issue… The current system is the best. The other variations, permutations, modifications, are either not effective, bad or too difficult to implement. GST is not regressive taxation. Next please.

And despite all the questions and questions, the answers given by Tharman are all the answers that will be given, and that’s it. The party has all the correct and perfect answers and solutions to all problems.
Do we need another alternative party or alternative voice?

As for the dictatorship of the party, we are not there yet. At least there are some who acknowledged that they did not have the monopoly of ideas. They only have all the answers.
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what i posted is just my personal view. feel free to disagree.

[redbean]

Who pays GST?

I must repeat what I said about GST again.

1. Unborn babies pay GST. Mothers to be have to visit gynaecologists for consultancy. Pay GST.
2. Babies pay GST. All baby food, clothing and utensils, including pampers and pacificiers subject to GST.
3. Children pay GST. All their food and clothings and accessories include GST.
4. The jobless pay GST. They pay GST for food and clothing and whatever.
5. The retirees pay GST. They pay GST for food and clothing and medical bills.

Since people like to use percentage as a measurement or for comparison, how many percent of the incomes of the above goes to GST?
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what i posted is just my personal view. feel free to disagree.

[redbean]

Comforting words

Raymond Lim spoke in Parliament about his ministry’s plan for public transportation. More trains, more buses, higher frequencies, and best of all, more comfortable rides. Gone were the comparisons with Tokyo’s sardine can trains. It used to be the reference point, that if our trains were not as crowded as Tokyo’s, we are still not there, not up to Tokyo’s standard. Now comfort and higher frequencies are important. Thank you.
And there is more money for everyone. The students are going to get more assistance with their school fees and the qualifying income has been raised. The poorer groups of citizens too will be seeing more help coming their way.

Is this part of the election process or what? If it is part of the election process, a pre election morphine jab, what will the post election process be like? For sure, the fares will go up. The delay in fare hikes is only temporary. And for sure, someone is going to say, hey, all this costs money. And money must come from somewhere.

Anyway it is a nice change. I am hoping that Boon Wan will also say that medical fees are too high. But no, when an open heart surgery cost only $8 out of pocket, it cannot be too high. In fact it is too cheap. And then we have seen medical bills in the tens of millions. Seriously, there is no reason to say that our medical bills in govt privatized hospitals are too high. The only way to say that they are too high is to ignore the $8 open heart surgery as only good for the likes of Boon Wan. Hope he will share with the people how he could do it.

And also the $24.8m medical bill must be seen in a different light. Taking these two examples as anomalies, perhaps, maybe, we can then take a serious look at those $150k or $200k bills and say yes, honestly, undisputably, they are extraordinary high and not suitable for ordinary people. In reality, any bill that is above a couple of thousands is high. Any bill that is in 5 digits is very high and very unaffordable to the average Singaporeans. But they are lucky, with so much money in their Medisave and all the Ms to pay for them. What if they have no Ms?

And would somebody admit that the prices of public housing is no longer affordable to many average Singaporeans? It will be a pleasant sound to hear. But I just heard a loud No, they are very affordable. Hey, this is pre election time, would it not be nice to say something nice?
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what i posted is just my personal view. feel free to disagree.

[redbean]

Message from Parliament

We need more foreign talents. And we need more foreign talents. We have more than 5 million bodies in this piece of rock. And we need more foreign talents. When we are at 6 million, we still need foreign talents. When we are at 10 million, we still need foreign talents. When we are at 20 million, we will still need foreign talents.

We need the bodies to ensure economic growth. Our economic growth is vital to our survival. Without economic growth, we will be history. And our economic growth depends on bodies. We need bodies to fill up our trains and buses. We need to fill them to the brim or else it is inefficiency and unprofitable. We need bodies to fill up our shopping centres and food courts. If not, business will be bad and rentals will fall. We need more bodies to fill up the factories and offices, or rentals will fall too. We need more foreign talents.

We need more bodies to buy up all the properties, housing or commercial, or else prices will fall. And when all the properties are bought, we need to build more to generate more economic growth, and we need more bodies, and we need more foreign talents.

And our roads must also be filled with cars or else it will be a waste of resources. A jammed pack road system is a sign of prosperity and high economic activity. Also good for COEs and ERPs.

Our world class hospitals need to be filled. Can’t imagine if they are half empty or 70% filled. We need more bodies to fill them, from staffing to patients. Every head counts for economic growth.

For the sake of economic growth and efficiency, we need to keep growing our population. And since the locals are not reproducing enough, we need to bring in more foreign talents. Don’t worry, economic growth is everything and it will not stop. We will keep growing, and keep needing foreign talents, and more bodies.
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what i posted is just my personal view. feel free to disagree.

[redbean]

$4,267,500 for the President

Up from $3,376,800, the President's pay is now $4,267,500. And the govt announced this in Parliament and believing that it will go down well with the people, or the people will quietly accept it. I am not sure if this is arrogance or what? Maybe the govt knows that the people will accept everything as long as it is passed in Parliament.

It happened. What can you do about it?

One thing the people can do, clap, clap and say the President deserves it. It is peanuts really, compared to the medical bill a good surgeon can charge. It is peanuts really, as it cost less than $1 from every resident in the island of more than 5m people. Cheap, cheap.
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what i posted is just my personal view. feel free to disagree.

[redbean]

Why the President’s salary is pegged higher

This is a reply from Chen Hwai Liang, Press Secretary to the Prime Minister in the ST forum page. I am wondering why is it a letter in the forum page and not an official statement, say in the front page of the ST. The kpkb in cyberspace about the more than 20% increase in the President’s salary must be making people uncomfortable. So here is the official explanation.

The salary is pegged to the private sector benchmarks. ‘The principle and benchmarks have been extensively debated in Parliament, most recently in 2007.’ He forgot to add that this was also approved by Parliament. Who and how many MPs voted in favour of this formula? Let me guess, 82 for and 2 against? I am not sure, forgotten already. The vote in favour was almost unanimous. Do the citizens agree with it? Sorry the latter is a non issue since the people voted the MPs as their representatives in Parliament and are indirectly saying that the MPs represented them and voted on their behalf.

The other reasons given by Chen Hwai Liang, ‘The President occupies the highest office in Singapore. He exercises custodial powers to protect our past reserves and over the appointment of key public officers to protect the integrity of the public service. As head of state, he represents the country and advances our interests internationally. This is why it is appropriate to peg the President’s salary higher than ministers’ and just above the Prime Minister’s.’

I think the first sentence should be sufficient. It is the highest office in Singapore. Period. But the explanation added that the President’s job carries a higher responsibility, though the ministers may be running their ministries and their thousands of staff. The people may agree or disagree, but this is the official position. Now that the people understand the rationale, let’s move on.
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what i posted is just my personal view. feel free to disagree.

[redbean]

Parliament opening today
After the May general election, nearly half a year gone by without the convening of Parliament. Is this the new normal for the Parliament to sit after a new govt is elected? The newly elected MPs will finally have a chance to warm the seats in Parliament, to be seen and to be heard in Parliament. How did they feel being kept out of Parliament for so long? Were they short changed, or the people shortchanged?
The election went by as if it was a non event. The only thing that the new MPs did was getting to know the people and perhaps meet them in Meet The People session which is not really an official function of the MPs. The key roles of MPs must be in Parliament, legislating laws and debating on national issues and the well being of the country.
The new MPs will have a chance to say their piece tonight. And even before they say anything, some jokers already presumed that the opposition MPs will be there to talk nonsense, just to make noise in Parliament, and they would rather such MPs not to represent them. There are also many people who did not want the majority of the MPs to represent them in Parliament. There are 40% of such people who just want other MPs to represent them, not those who will be in Parliament. Do they also think that those MPs they did not want to represent them will be talking nonsense as well, or not speaking for their interests?
Some views wanted opposition MPs to be more like the ruling party MPs, to be part of a symphony. For that, they might as well join the ruling party and be part of the ruling party, and to sing the same tune as ruling party MPs.
Then there are calls from the ruling party MPs saying that they must behave and play the role of opposition MPs, to be more critical of govt policies.
So what? People want opposition MPs to be ruling party MPs and ruling party MPs want to act more like opposition MPs. Sounds like LPPL to me.
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what i posted is just my personal view. feel free to disagree.

[redbean]

Cheng Bock’s next move
As an experienced fighter in Parliament, and being a veteran in PAP, Cheng Bock knows how the system works, how PAP works. He is the man to watch what is happening in Parliament. He will know what is real and what is unreal, and if there is any wayang, he too will know.
He is now telling the PAP MPs to stand up and speak for what they truly feel and want for the people. But there is a limit to this when the Whip is enforced. So how? Can the MPs go against the Whip?
So very likely the MPs can only speak out violently if the Whip is lifted. And when they do, Cheng Bock will be watching to see who is speaking out of their conscience or just doing it for show.
Then what if Cheng Bock knows the real McCoy versus the MediaCorp variety? Is he going to call them up for a lecture? Or is he going to write them a nasty letter to tell not to bluff? Or is Cheng Bock going to build up a new base for the next GE, hand picking those that he thinks will be of like minds, as an alternative party?
While Cheng Bock is watching, everyone else will also be watching.
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what i posted is just my personal view. feel free to disagree.

[redbean]

Would there be real change in govt policies?
The first session of Parliament is showing some promise that the ruling party has finally got the message, that the people are pissed off with the arrogant attitude and past policies. Many are now questioning why now when things had already gone badly wrong in the past. The younger MPs are saying that they need to listen, really listen, seriously listen, and engage the people about their unhappiness and their aspirations. I think they are speaking from their hearts. The years of blanket policies and parroting party positions they did not agree may be changing. Cheng Bock is telling them to be themselves, to speak up for the people, not for the party.
While talk is easy, just like blogging, what is real is the substance. Could there be real change? While on one hand there were talks about changing with the time, the moribund mindset of the old quickly appeared. Believe me, some of them still did not know what is going on. They are still deeply embedded in old mindset and old ways of doing things, and would not question if those ways were right in the first place.
The empty your wallet policy must go. Oh dear, none of them will understand what this policy is all about. They did not know there is such a policy in the first place. They must be scratching their heads now, first time hearing this. One even suggested that 3 room resale flats must be reserved only for the lower income group. See how thick it can be? The 3 rm flats are no longer cheap. And the problem, where is the problem? Do they know what is the problem, what is the cause of high demand for flats? It is the empty thy wallet policy. Affordability is the govt’s pet catchphrase.
Why is it a sin for people who have a little more savings, or earning a bit more but to want to buy smaller flats? Why can’t people be allowed to save for their old age or other needs? Why must people be forced to buy bigger and bigger flats or private properties? This is sick thinking. And it is sicker that many Singaporeans did not know that they are being forced to buy bigger flats or more expensive properties they do don’t need, do not want, and cannot afford because of other commitments and priorities. Some still quipping freely that no one is forcing the people to buy flats they cannot afford!
Public housing policy must change to meet the needs of the people, not the needs and demand of the govt. And the govt got the cheek to complain that the people have very little savings for retirement? How so? Don’t need to search, it is the affordability policy, the empty thy wallet policy.
And this policy is also practiced in hospitalization. The very mean testing procedure is meant to empty thy wallet. Why must people be forced to use more expensive wards and pay for bigger hospital bills?
Oh, the supply of C class wards is limited. So is the supply of smaller flats. Come on, stop the bull. The supply is not enough because the govt does not want to provide more C class wards or smaller flats. Is it that difficult to provide more C class wards or build more smaller flats when every flat is going to empty the wallets of the people?
Will there be real change? Unless the basic assumptions and thinking are changed, there can be no real change. How about flushing the brains with a water hose? And they may harass the people again by the use of authority. And all will be back to square one. Talk is cheap. The people are trying to engage the govt for real change that will be good for them and the country. Will the govt be willing to change for the good of the people and not using its own parameters and prescriptions? More bulls coming?
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what i posted is just my personal view. feel free to disagree.

[redbean]

Are opposition parties enemies of the state?
This issue has cropped up with Chen Show Mao telling the ruling govt that they are just providing an alternative voice, maybe a govt in waiting, and not the enemy of the state. For decades, the political opposition has been tacitly seen or projected as enemies of the state with many ended up in jail or humiliated. In earlier days there were the communist inspired doctrine of armed revolution to topple legitimate govt and practicing the art of statecraft is a matter of life and death. Has anything changed? Are the opposition parties still being seen as enemies of the state?
Who are looking at opposition parties as enemies of the state or enemies of the people? Is such a label valid and deserving? Political parties naturally see each other as opponents in the political contest for the right to govern a country. The mature western polities have accepted and are willing to live with multi parties and no longer see each other as enemies. In third world polities, the immaturity and ruthlessness of their political leaders will conveniently put opposition party members behind bars as enemies of the parties but dressed up as enemies of the people and the state. And they have full control of all the govt machinery, including civil servants, the military and the police to be their hatchet men, to do the dirty works for them. The motivations of their civil servants, the military, police and grassroots organizations are varied. What is fearful and frightening is that these people refused to think, refused to differentiate between right and wrong, or for self interests, willingly do harm to fellow citizens simply because the ruling govt made them to do it.
The unthinking civil servants and uniformed officers could unintentionally or intentionally become accomplices in oppressing the people, the opposition parties, as if they are the enemies of the state. In the course of political development and the maturing of statehood, civil servants and uniformed officers tend to distance themselves from becoming cronies of unscrupulous political leaders and refuse to have innocent blood tainting their hands. The war crime trial in Phnom Penh against Khmer Rouge leaders is a living example of how civil servants went about killing fellow citizens without questioning their conscience.
The maturity of statehood, of arriving at the first world of civilized nations can be measured by such developments. Civil servants and uniformed officers must develop an independent mindset, and not be compromised into oppressing citizens on grounds of political differences. It is also unbecoming for govts to compromise civil servants and uniformed officers by expecting them to conduct political inquisition or persecution of the people.
In mature polities, such things are now passé. Civil servants and uniformed officers are well educated, sophisticated and know their rights and duties as public officers of the state and not officers of a ruling party. They are public servants paid by public money to serve the people and the state, not to serve any political party. When such a state is arrived, statehood has reached manhood.
And political parties, including dissenting and diversed views and voices will be accommodated as part and parcel of, or family, of the polity. The new term for such a development is inclusiveness. They are not enemies of the state but patriots wanting to make the country a better place for all. The western states are quite comfortable at this level of their political development.
Are we in the same happy state of affair? Can we claim that we are a mature polity where politics and affairs of the state are quite distinct to everyone?
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what i posted is just my personal view. feel free to disagree.

[redbean]

Why need to help first timers?
Why the need to help first timers buy a HDB flat? Why the need to help newly weds to buy their first flat? What is the problem? Why is housing such a complex problem?
When the big fire flattened Bukit Ho Swee, it was a serious problem. Thousands of families were homeless. That was compounded by the thousands living in cubicles, squatters, attap and zinc huts across the whole island. It was a huge problem. But it was solved quite easily. And the only thing that the govt needed to do was to build and build and build until everyone had his flat. Nothing complicated at all. Big problem simple solution.
Then someone screamed that there was a huge stock of unsold flats. And some statisticians started banging the computers and claimed that so many billions of dollars were stuck because of unsold flats. So it was a big problem. Really? Or was it a big mistake?
It was a big mistake alright, but not because of over building. When one joker was panicking that so much money were tied down and furiously trying to get rid of the unsold flats, another joker was happily bringing plane loads of new migrants into the country. And they all needed housing. Obviously the two jokers were not on talking terms and it ended up in a hilarious situation when all the unsold flats were gone in no time, and now a bigger shortage problem.
And this shortage seems so complex that even our super talents could not resolve it and needed many years to hope of unwinding the mess. Could anyone believe that the housing problem today is worst than in the Bukit Ho Swee days?
The problem is so complex, very true. It is like travelling to town from Yishun. It was quite a straight forward thing. People used to walk or cycle to get to town, or to take a bus. Today it is a very complex problem. They need to computate which is the shortest route, the fastest route, the cheapest route. They have to check the number of ERPs, their operating hours and how much each will cost. They need to weigh whether it is better to take a bus or a train, or drive. They need to time when to leave the house, how late to stay in the office.
Why is life so complicated and so complex? Still didn’t get it? Just add more rules and regulations, add more obstacles and fees to get from point A to point B. And bring in more people into the island to keep the GDP growing. Then we have a very serious and complex problem that needs very talented super talents to try to unwind the mess. And because the problem is so messy, so complicated, you need to pay the super talents higher salaries to work on them.
In the times of Bukit Ho Swee, working class couple getting married only need to rent a room. Today, there are a thousand and one regulations and conditions before they can buy a HDB flat. And they are expected to wait for 3 or 4 years for a flat. And some can buy, some cannot buy, some dunno can or cannot buy. It sure is a very complex issue. It is like creating a maze and then help the people to navigate through it and claim credit. Why don’t they just remove the maze? KNN.
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what i posted is just my personal view. feel free to disagree.

[redbean]

The worrisome things said by opposition MPs
The opposition MPs are trying to make an impact in Parliament by making recommendations on what could and should be done. The intention is good, but the approach is flawed from the word go. How could they think that they can teach the ruling party how to do their job? How could they think that they are more talented than the super talents and have better solutions? How could the super talents accept their suggestions? Would it make them look bad if they do? See the problem?
And the reactions and replies by the ruling party MPs are quite expected. No need to guess. Every suggestion will be met by opposition or cold water. The more they try to suggest, the more the suggestions will be thrown out. For instance Yaw Shin Leong was asking the govt to place Singaporeans first against foreign talents in employment opportunities.
What he could have done and get a better result is to propose that foreign talents should be treated better than Singaporeans. Propose that more trainings and funds be allocated to train foreign workers and foreign talents. Then let them attack his suggestion by calling him silly and tell him that the govt will not do things to favour foreign talents and workers. And instead they will proudly pronounce that the govt will allocate more funds and resources to put Singaporeans first.
It is all about strategizing to achieve the same objectives. Appear to be pushing right but really wanting to go left. When the reaction from the other side is expected and predictable, then they should just play the game according to how it is being played.
To try to teach the super talents and tell the super talents how to do their jobs is a wrong way to go.
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what i posted is just my personal view. feel free to disagree.