First posted on 7 Dec 2008 - rally organised by The Online Citizen
1) Our society should be more egalitarian.
2) The elected leaders should represent the people.
Wages
What is being egalitarian? It is being more equal. It means that the gap between the rich and poor should be narrower. In the past 10 to 20 years, the gap has widened.
We know how much the high income earners earn each year. Salaries of $1 million, $2 million, $5 million or $10 million are quite common in Singapore, in the business sector. Even our government leaders earn more than $1 million in salaries, as they are benchmark against the top earners.
I do not mind people earning higher salaries, if they are able to build the economic pie. But, the economic pie must be fairly shared with the other members of society.
I am worried that the low income earners are not earning enough to make a decent living. Many people have to work hard on two jobs, and they hardly earn enough to survive, to meet their monthly expenses. It is important that the salaries of the low income earners should be raised.
In many countries, there is a minimum wage that is tied to the cost of living. Everybody working a decent day’s work should receive a wage that is sufficient to pay for their living expenses, at a frugal level. They are not well off, but they should not starve.
Apart from an adequate wage, we must also give people some security against unemployment, especially if they fall victim without any fault of their own.
In some countries, there is unemployment insurance to give them some benefit for 12 to 24 months. It allows them to adjust a period to adjust. This type of payment ensures that they can continue to pay their mortgage and meet their living expenses for a period of time. They do not have to borrow on credit cards or from loan sharks and pay a high rate of interest, which adds to their burden.
Even America, which is the champion of the free market system, has a minimum wage for their workers. It also has an unemployment insurance scheme that makes payment for 12 months or slightly longer.
Singapore has schemes such as the workfare and assistance given by the community development council. We need to review the effectiveness of these schemes to make sure that they are able to address the real problems. I suspect that these schemes take a lot of work to administer and do not provide adequate assistance to the people in need.
Represent the people
Our elected leaders can represent the people and be the voice of the people. This requires the leaders to be freely elected at the general and by-elections. We should move back to the old days when most elections are contested and the candidates have to go out to win over the votes of the people.
The trend in recent years, where many elections at the group representation constituencies (or GRCs) are won through walkovers is not satisfactory. Some members of parliament have never been directly elected for several rounds, as they continue to win through walkovers.
We should move towards smaller GRCs and eventually to move back to the single member constituencies, which was the case in the 1970s and early 1980s. A free election will bond the leaders to the people. It will lead to a more united country. It will go back to the old days when the people are proud to be Singaporeans.
In recent months, more than 10,000 people have lost their hard earned savings by being misled into investing in the mini-bonds and other credit linked notes. They have signed a petition for the authority to carry out an independent investigation into the possible wrong doings by the financial institutions that created and/or marketed the products.
I hope that the authority will act on this petition, which has been signed by nearly 1,000 people. The signatories need to know if their appeals have been heard and have been fairly considered. They also like to know the progress and outcome of the investigation. As the goes, “justice has to be done, and seen to be done”.
Let me wish the very best for the future of our people and nation, and for Singapore.
Tan Kin Lian
I support you on this.
ReplyDeleteEveryone in Singapore have a problem to speak up what they think is right. They just waiting for things to happen or depend on the other.
Is lucky that they have you Mr. Tan in Singapore else they will have no one to help them. They will to have lost their hard-earned savings without any answer.
Singaporean, you are too QUIET, come on speak out. There are 10,000 investors why there are so less voices, what happened to the rest waiting for miracle.
Mr. Tan, they need more people like you in Singapore.
Can you all remember this words from Highly PAID TOP Talents, "There will be MORE GOOD YEARS to come".
ReplyDeleteWhat happened NOW ?
Everything damm things just went UP except our Salary and LESS Jobs more us.
We hv lost our hard earned money, hv lost our savings,
ReplyDeletehv lost our faith,
hv lost out trust in big org.,
hv lost our jobs to FTs,
hv lost.....
How to hv more good years????
Someone from one of management i know of ever made this striking remark
ReplyDelete"Reality is Reality. Ideal is Ideal."
How many of today MPs have similar background like the late Ho See Beng, who can empthaise with the plight of the ordinary folks and is willing to take the gamut on their behalf. Most of them comes from well-to-do families. Are they really talented? Only some. They managed to get ahead of others is because of better head start and connections as most of them come from well to do families. Unlike the late Ho See Beng, they care more for themselves, their carrers and their future rather than the interest of the ordinary folks. Many failed to speak out on many issues when such action is in conflict with the executive. A better gauge of their commmitment to the welfare of community is to let all MPs contest in single wards and let the electorate judge their commitments. Failure of the MP to do the right thing will endanger their electability in the next election rather than the present practice of hiding in the Group Representative Constituencies
ReplyDeleteHi Mr.Tan,
ReplyDeleteI read your blog and was much inspired by your statement.
When our gamen said" MORE GOOD YEARS",Yes is for some of the elite who are in the high earners brackets.Certainly is not for peoples who work in the offices and construction sites.
They planned for GRC and almost captured them all,100 %.
Now.with the demised of Bt.Batok MP,THE WHOLE JURONG GRC is short of one MP,how can they deprived them of a MP?And they are now in the mid term,which means there are abt 2 to 3 years before next GE,how can that be?
WE, and the Singaporean hope that you could offer yourself in the next GE or Elect.President and work for the good course of the citizen of Singapore.
Cheer !
Fish-ball noodle hawker
I support this too. My area is GRC and he has 2 walkovers. I remember once seeing my MP for some issues at my block. When my turn came, all he did first was to pull out a file, and told me that he already know all my past records, fines, etc... (threatening me that he has my past history, do don't play play with him). I think I want a new MP not this current one. However, I have no chance to vote.
ReplyDeleteInequality happens in any country. However, to the gahmen, they are more concerned about whether there is social stability and peace and they can remain in power. That's why even in communist China their gahmen is worried when there are mass unemployed and social peace is affected which they think will affect their grip on power.
ReplyDeleteBut in Singapore, peace and stability is assured no matter how the ordinary folks suffered in terms of low wages, unemployment or inflation. The worst is the MP has to stay back later in "meet the people" sessions. So not really much of a concern to the gahmen as long as there is only one Tan Kin Lian so far. If there are more or become a serious threat, there is always the "hard ball" option. Again 50% or more walkovers on nomination day. Uniquely Singapore because this cannot be applied to other countries even if they try.
More good years to justify the ridiculous pay increase which is even higher than the US president's annual income. More GRC to ensure "poa chia" in election. But more Tan Kin Lian will ensure this country is truly democratic and the poor, cheated or deprived has someone to turn to for their hardship.
ReplyDeleteVote against them the next time, that's all I can say. It took me 20years to realise, but I now know how should I vote for the next 40 years
ReplyDeleteIts too late,by the time they implement the single ward poll,we all will be too old to vote or may won't be around to vote. I thing 50percent of Singaporeans would die without ever having a chance to vote at least once in his lifetime.
ReplyDeleteIts all over folks,long live PAP.
Maybe we all still can vote in the yahoo straw poll.
G Jay
Speaking of Lifetime, remind me of this joke
ReplyDeleteOne my friends named his son after his passed away father in honour of him.
I recalled we had a good laugh whenever election times come by.
We merely thought its quite 'fortunate' there are actually very few places on Earth where someone can spend 'TWO' lifespans NOT having ONCE VOTED in a proclaimed Democracy!!
We are NOT saying where, but its that we note come these times, we are ALWAYS 'reminded' that we SHOULD feel 'blessed' ha!
Now, THAT ONE had us bellyover always
President Barack Obama imposed a $500,000 cap (4 Feb 2009) on senior executive pay for the most distressed financial institutions receiving taxpayer bailout money and promised new steps to end a system of "executives being rewarded for failure."
ReplyDeleteThis is part of the "CHANGE" we are witnessing in the USA now after he became President and his comments on "the Height of Irresponsibility".
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong was quoted to have commented on the United States presidential election: “The opposition party campaigns on the message of ‘change’: Change, change, change. Never mind change to what — just change ... The new government comes in on that message and then they start to think change to what.”
Singapore's SWF lost so much during the crisis.
Are Singapore leaders still resisting "CHANGE"?
Yes, I think the PAP is one step ahead of us. I think the real reason for importing so many foreigners to become citizens is to ensure the grip on power forever. They know that Singaporeans are disgruntled. They are not taking steps to turn back disgruntled Singaporeans from migrating overseas. The logic is simply so those who may vote against them are naturally lost and those who are happy to be Singaporeans will naturally vote for the incumbent party. So simply by adopting a disinterested stance in Singaporeans migrating and an active stance in welcoming new citizens, this is a strategic move to ensure there is a consistent inflow and outflow of the desired voters profiles. Coupled this with high salaries for the core ministers would mean the Prime Minister will remain in power for a long long time. The govt understands human psychology very well.
ReplyDelete