I do have a moral dilemma about this whole episode with Roy Ngerng's valiant attempt to challenge the government on this issue, allow me to explain. Ngerng had made a mistake and perhaps he had been terribly naive to think that he could push the boundaries in Singapore and yes, he has been treated very harshly by the system as a result. Like, come on, this is Singapore lah, what did you expect, honestly? There's a part of me shaking my head, "Roy, what the hell were you thinking?" Is this some kind of misguided martyrdom on his part? What was he hoping to achieve - did he genuinely think that he could have achieved anything apart from getting himself into a lot of trouble?
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| CPF - your money? |
Well, I am cynical. Guilty as charged, I am terribly cynical. Allow me to talk about two other countries just to explain why I am cynical about the Singaporean mindset. The two countries I want to talk about are Sweden and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). I have just returned from a holiday in Sweden and I have worked in Dubai in the UAE in the past. Both countries are extremely rich and citizens in both countries enjoy a high standard of living. But there is a high difference: Swedes pay one of the highest level of income tax (amongst other taxes) in the world whilst those in the UAE pay virtually no tax. What is the difference?
In one word: oil.
There is just so much oil gushing out of the desert in the UAE, this makes it one of the richest country in the world thanks to their immense oil wealth. UAE nationals enjoy all kinds of benefits as a result of this oil wealth: education is free through to university and of a very high standard, health care is also free for all citizens and again, of a very high standard. Citizens do not have to pay any income tax and enjoy preferential treatment in the workplace over migrant labour. Oil companies pay a flat rate of 55 percent on their taxable income in Dubai and 50 percent in the other Emirates. In addition, they pay royalties on production. Given the amount of oil production in the UAE, that is enough for the government to fund everything from infrastructure projects to the police to hospitals to universities.
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| Limpeh diving in Dubai - I loved living & working in Dubai! |
In contrast, the Swedes enjoy plenty of benefits as citizens but this is all funded through taxation. This is something many Singaporeans do not understand: there is a Robin Hood element to the taxation system in countries like Sweden. Many Singaporeans make the wrongful assumption that everyone in Sweden (rich or poor) has to pay a lot of taxes - that is simply not the case! The rich pay a lot more taxes than those on low-income, so your young Swedish nurse pays a lot less income tax than your Swedish CEO of a large company. Those on low-income enjoy the bulk of these social benefits whilst the rich who can afford to pay more taxes are effectively funding it all through their taxes. Your young Swedish nurse does not see half her wages disappear on income tax - that simply does not happen. So Swedes on lower-income do better out of this system than if you're a multi-millionaire Swedish banker trying to pay less tax so you can buy another yacht or sports car.
Let's talk about Singapore in comparison: Singapore shares many things in common with the UAE and Sweden. Like these two countries, the residents enjoy a very high standard of living. Walk down the streets in Singapore and notice just how clean they are, there are always trees and shrubs which are beautifully tended to, one would feel very safe (thanks to the local police) and this is a city which is envied by governments around the world. Well somebody has got to pay for this city to function so efficiently. In UAE, they have oil gushing out of the ground; in Sweden, they have high rates of taxes. In Singapore, you don't have any natural resources like UAE, yet you don't want to have a Swedish social system to pay for all these public provisions. Well, what is going to fund the public services of this city then?
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| Limpeh in Salthomen, Sweden |
You see, it is not just the PAP you can blame for this - but Singaporeans in general love the fact you pay relatively little income tax in Singapore. It's a social contract: so those lower down the food chain in Singapore get less help from the government but those higher up the food chain pay less taxes. The rich do better in the Singaporean system, the poor do better in the Swedish system whilst everyone wins with the UAE system (thanks to the oil).
Now the Singaporean government has been delivering nothing short of a miracle so far. They have somehow managed to find enough revenue to keep this city state running with a level of efficiency even the Swiss would be envious of and yet still keep levels of tax low enough for Singapore to be considered a tax haven for most. All that without a drop of oil revenue that has been funding the good times in the UAE (and other oil rich states like Kuwait, Brunei, Qatar and Bahrain). But this cannot keep going on indefinitely as the population of Singapore grows and grows. Somebody has got to find the money to keep this party going and it is not cheap to keep Singapore so beautiful and efficient.
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| How can you fund public services in Singapore with such low taxes? |
When the population doubles from 2.5 million in the early 1980s to over 5 million in about 30 years, you cannot expect to keep running the same country on the same amount of tax revenue you've been collecting. More people living in Singapore means having to provide far more of everything from public transport to education to health to housing to law & order to the environment: as the demands on public services have to be met with hard cash from somewhere and hey, there isn't a huge oil well somewhere on Singapore. Someone has got to foot this bill.
And something has got to give, sooner or later. Raising the levels of income tax to European levels would tarnish the image of the PAP in the eyes of Singaporeans who don't like to pay taxes - so the government has got to find an alternative source of money and they have turned to the CPF pot. Now I can see why they are doing it - Singaporeans are quite used to the idea of CPF and tweaking the rules would enable them to get away with it. Most Singaporeans would grumble, bitch and moan but eventually just accept the new rules. They would get used to the new rules and the CPF would be simply another form of taxation. Something has got to give. So, are you ready for the punchline?
If you were to look at the numbers, the situation is only sustainable if the government can take this pot of CPF money and invest it wisely such that the return on their investments would plug that gap between a low-tax regime and a high standard of public services. Given the kind of losses Temasek Holdings as made in recent years, well something has got to give. (I recommend this article for more on Temasek's role in this debacle.) Do I blame the Singaporean government? Not really, I must say, because the Singaporean voters have given them the mandate to pursue this strategy, so that they don't have to pay European levels of taxes. Well guess what? It didn't work out and the government has no other choice but to try something else. Someone has got to pay for the public services in Singapore and in the absence of a huge oil well, it shouldn't come as a surprise if it falls to the tax payer.
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| Well the money has got to come from somewhere... |
So for people like Roy Ngerng and others to talk about giving Singaporeans their CPF money back... well, it is not that simple. It is not a question of the government simply keeping the money for themselves to pay their ministers very high salaries (that is another debate for another day, but that is not the problem for now). The harsh reality of the situation is that you cannot expect a government who offers you a low income tax to furnish you with an exceptionally high standard of public services, not unless you have an oil well in your backyard (which you don't in Singapore). If you simply pull the plug on the CPF scheme, it would create such a black hole in system - basic public services that Singaporeans have come to depend on would simply fall apart. And the government is smart, they know that many people will analyze the situation and say, "there may be some problems now, but if you dismantle the CPF mechanism and it will cause more problems than it will solve, so it would be unwise to try to change this."
It is this kind of thinking that keeps the PAP in power and allows them to get away with episodes like that. The only alternative is to raise the levels of income tax so as to solve the issue of the funding of public services without using CPF monies and Singaporeans will never agree to that. But like it or not, whether this shortfall is met from the CPF pot or raised through higher levels of income tax - the money will ultimately come from the tax payers in Singapore at the end of the day, so it doesn't matter which mechanism you choose, ultimately you're still the one paying.
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| The CPF is all part of this card tower that keeps the PAP in power. |
Singaporeans who expect the PAP to somehow deliver a high standard of public services with very low tax receipts are plain unrealistic and unreasonable. Someone has got to pay for it and if you don't have oil wealth, then it will fall to the tax payer at the end of the day. I invite you to go visit a country like Sweden where people do pay much higher taxes - have a walk around Swedish Stockholm, Gothenborg and Malmo and see how beautiful these great cities are. There's really nothing wrong with paying higher taxes and it is a system that does work as long as you have a government you do trust and can rely on. It's a fact of life - get used to it, you can't have something for nothing. Without a huge oil well funding the good times, you can't pay very low taxes and still expect the best of everything from your government: something has got to give. This is just the way things will have to be in Singapore and you have a choice: get used to it and enjoy your life in Singapore or simply leave and seek greener pastures abroad.
So really, the whole episode about Roy Ngerng's law suit is but a red herring from the larger issue of the CPF rules. Sure, from a PR perspective, the PAP has handled this pretty badly, but PR aside, I can see why they needed to do this and how they are carefully picking the option that will cause the least damage to their image amongst the electorate. At the end of the day, it all boils down to the government finding enough revenue to fund their public services and if you think you're getting a bad deal from the PAP, then I have a simple solution for you: leave Singapore. Move to Stockholm or Dubai - you may be much happier there if you are really that pissed off with the PAP. That's it from me for now, please do let me know your thoughts on the issue - kindly leave a comment below, thank you for reading!
The CPF debacle is very fishy to me as the CPF is behaving like a bank that has overleveraged itself to oblivion and has no more liquidity to hand out to its clients who wish to withdraw from their accounts. It's difficult to take the PAP government's claims seriously when Temasek Holdings claim to have had a 12% yield over the past 10 years, and yet continuously raise the Minimum Sum. Temasek Holdings and GIC have either lost so much money that they are not able to pay out the cash they have promised to hand over, or that there is a serious misappropriation of funds, or the purported profits have been a farce.
ReplyDeleteIn regards to Ngerng's case, I donated US$200. To be honest, when it comes to my personal interests alone Singapore can rot and burn to the ground for all I care. But my parents' and sisters' CPF savings are at stake. I have to worry for them while I carry out my plan of moving to Norway, gaining citizenship there and bring them over to a civilized and well-managed nation before I can truly write Singapore off.
Other than CPF, I suspect that they are using COE and ERP money to fund the country too, which is why COE and ERP gets more expensive as the population increases. They can use the extra money to fund the higher demand for public services, and they can blame the higher prices on the bigger population too
ReplyDeleteThis really illustrates many of the complexities surrounding the CPF, thanks! :)
ReplyDeleteI see two issues with the CPF, which I think the Govt can improve on to benefit lower income Sinkies..
ReplyDelete1. CPF is paying a low interest of 2.5% and 4% on CPF savings. As CPF is a long term saving, it should pay higher interest.
2. The CPF minimum sum and withdrawal rules applies across the board. Whether u earn $1K or $10K per month, you are subject to the same minimum sum and withdrawal rules. So it is unfair to those on lower income.
As of now, I don't see the Govt trying to improve on the above, perhaps because in the past Sinkies don't make that much noise, until this Roy case where a hornets' nest is stirred.
If that is really the case, then is it not plain dishonest of the PAP Govt not to admit that CPF funds are being used by both GIC & Temasek to secure higher returns for the Govt's public spending & what is exactly so secretive that such a relationship cannot see the light of day?
ReplyDeleteWorst still Temasek's spokesman has denied outright that they are managing or investing CPF funds ? But even then if they are receiving CPF funds through our Finance Ministry whether directly or indirectly, & our CPF funds goes direct to the Finance Ministry especially when they share the same kind of decision makers at the top, how can they still deny that is the case?
It is exactly these kind of opaque behind-the-scene maneuvals & denials that has make everyone worried that everything is not really that well with our CPF monies. And the PM is making it worse by trying to silence someone whose biggest mistake is raising some very legitimate & valid questions which still have no answers ?
At the end of it, people are asking why so secretive?
Secretive?
DeleteI think it boils down to bad PR at the end of the day, rather than some kind of grand scheme to hide something. The Singaporean government suck at PR so badly, they never ever had a need for good PR as Singaporeans don't often ask questions, they just do as they're told and we're entering a new phase. A new age. Where Singaporeans like Roy Ngerng are asking questions and making other people think, "yeah we need answers."
The government ought to get a good PR agency involved to handle these questions and with a bit of good PR (gosh just hire a PR agency lah, it's just money at the end of the day and you badly need PR so badly now), the whole episode can be handled so much more delicately. Instead, they have their usual bull in a china shop approach in their response and now the whole Roy Ngerng law suit is having the Streisand effect.
It's just incredible... unbelievable, that the PAP can be so utterly clueless when it comes to handling a PR disaster like that. Everything they do seems to make the situation worse everyday.
All I can say is that it seems to be a "emperor's new clothes" situation in the PAP right now - nobody has the balls to tell the king just what is going on and it's just painful to watch when I know exactly what they need. They need the phone number of the top political PR spin doctors on speed dial right now.
Uniquely Singapore. Only the PAP can screw a PR disaster up so badly.
It all boils down to attitude.
ReplyDeleteAnother misconception that I see with regards to CPF is that we do not pay 36% of our salary as being said by Roy's website. As an employee, we pay a maximum of 20% from our salary cap at $5000. So in total, we pay a maximum of $1000 instead of a total of $1800 to the CPF. Not only that, the employer need to forked out the 16% pay pay it to the CPF based on the employee's salary capped at $5000.
Another thing I find out is that majority of Singaporean really expect to pay the least cost but expect a high service standard. This is not just our public service such as transport. This can also be seen in the retail and F&B service where they expect the waiter to provide a high class service while majority are foreign worker being paid with lower cost. Most SME are expected to lower their cost while providing a high service as well. So, it is not just the public sector, the private sector need to provide high service with low cost as well.
That is the reason why the SME cannot find much local worker with cheaper cost (salary) while providing high service as most Singaporean expect high service while paying lower cost.
The employer's contribution is also your money. If there were no CPF, this money goes to you (I hope). So if doesn't matter whether it goes from employers to CPF, it is still your money.
DeleteI totally agree with what Kelvin Tan said about how Singaporeans expect to pay the least cost but expect the best value for money - I don't know why this is the case but you're totally right. Having lived in many different countries, I think Singaporeans are getting a really good deal in terms of public transport, food, even public services from the government (gosh it now sounds like I am supporting/defending the PAP) and I can only guess that some Singaporeans have not had the chance to live/work abroad and experience what things are like in other countries and not been able to make the comparisons which I have.
DeleteAnother explanation is this sense of entitlement which is rooted in Singaporean culture - I am frustrated with the way Singaporeans students think that they will be 'rewarded' with a well paid job as long as they study hard and produce the straight-As in the exams whereas getting a good job is so much more complex than that!! Maybe Singaporeans have that same expectation, same sense of entitlement, "if I support the PAP, if I serve NS, if I am loyal to Singapore, then I must get all these things in return." That's quite unrealistic really.
Unkown:
DeleteYou are wrong there. If there were no CPF, the 16% that the employer need to contribute will not go to you. Example, if your salary is $2000 per month, you need to contribute $400 towards the CPF while the employer need to fork extra $320 towards your CPF. You will get a clean income of $1600 per month. If there is no CPF, you get to keep your $400 while not getting the extra $320 from the employer. The employer will get to keep the money.
The employer's contribution will only be your money after they had put into your CPF account. That is the extra contribution they need to fork out based on your salary.
Limpeh:
You are right that Singaporean had a very high sense of entitlement. Do you also know that Singaporean are being label as "Complain King/Queen". Just ask people who worked in the retail, F&B or customer service industry. They can clearly explain to you as well. It is not just on the students only.
As an aside, before I left for Japan, a clinical assistant who married a Hong Konger husband had told me this: Singaporean employers expect to pay the least, and get the maximum of profits. Often, this amounts to cutting corners, employing low-grade workers from 3rd World countries, and firing local workers if needed to save these costs(and employ foreign workers instead who are cheaper). That was the reason why her husband who worked in Singapore for a while wanted badly to return to Hong Kong.
DeleteAs for entitlement, I think that I have said enough about how it pervades among Singaporeans in the culture over there, regardless of your political affiliation. I know a lot of people who are like that, but guess that it is just part of the culture and there to stay for a long time. I did not consider "joining them"(in the sense of "if you cannot fight them, join them"), and so, left the country about 10 years ago.
@TheResignedOne, I am going to say very little. Limpeh gave you a perspective from the British perspective. What I am going to say from a Canadian/Australian perspective is this: you need to check the list of professions that are allowed as professions for skilled migration. That is the starting point. In the case of Canada, what you can do is to go there on a student or work visa, learn something there in a profession which is in high demand and lacking willing 'laborers' so to say, and then, extend your stay by obtaining a work visa(you can generally apply for a work visa after you have spent 6 months in Canada as a student). The bottomline for Canada and Australia is this: if you do not have a profession under the list of professions approved for skilled migration, you can only STAY(not live) there for a while under the premise of a work visa, but once the visa expires(and if your employer over there does not renew it), you will have to return to Singapore. It applies to student visas too. You basically need to find a job that can get your foot in the FRONT DOOR as an immigrant/PR. Australia is comparatively more transparent about what they are looking for, including IELTS test scores, working experience(off-shore, as in, outside Australia, or on-shore in Australia), degrees, your living experiences in Australia(you get more points especially if you have already lived in the country before, and that applies to Canada). You also need in both cases to have a full ONE year of working experience related to your INTENDED profession through which you enter the country as skilled labor. If the bulk of that work is in part-time, it does not count in Australia's case, but in Canada's case, you can count them via the number of hours computed. As for the profession, it really depends on what you want to do and are willing to do in that list given to you. Are you willing to undertake time to study a professional trade course as a plumber(which is an approved profession in Australia and Canada as far as I am aware), and THROW ASIDE all those silly ideas that you are fed with in Singapore that there is such a thing called an "undignified" job?
DeleteLimpeh, I would be sympathetic to ResignedOne. He's still young, has little experience as an undergraduate student, and wants to know what chances he has, not to mention that the migration bar (or bar-line) changes almost every few years or so in various western countries, especially Canada and Australia as far as I know. His point about "doing what it takes, even as a taxi driver" might be related to the story of the PRC-turned--Singaporean PhD holder in molecular biology and chemistry back in Singapore who lost his job after departmental politics took over in NUS, and then became a taxi driver as a while, blogging about his experiences with those whom he drove, before going onto publishing this blog as a book. (This story is a REAL one by the way, although I believe that it is rare and not representative of all the stories of PhD holders. I, for one, was jobless for a few months post-PhD, did tutoring in between alongside freelance writing assignments and cameo-ing as an extra for commercials...no joke....but earned hundreds at best.)
I know I know, I got a bit impatient with him. I was getting the impression that he thinks that somehow accountants are more 'atas' than nurses because of the level of entry via the Singaporean system into a nursing course vs an accountancy course and all these geeky Singaporean students measure their self-worth by their grades - and it's like, hello newsflash, nurses get to the front of the queue whereas accountants have to be so highly qualified and experienced before they're even considered for skilled migrant programme. And you think you can easily take up nursing just like that? No way, it takes years of training to climb that career ladder.
DeleteI also got might pissed off when he talks about doing a job that he is overqualified for - as if there's some kind of short cut open to him, oh Mr so-qualified with some accountancy degree. I'm like, dream on dude, dream on, there's no short cuts in this game, ha! Get real, wake up and smell the coffee. You wanna be serious about this, you jolly well spend some time doing some reading and learning the rules of the game.
I think that if he is really keen on leaving, he will and ought to find a legal consultant aware of immigration law(s) to help him in his case. I always got immigration lawyers to help me in the move to Canada and Australia, although I had to pay them. Basically, you cannot expect to do it your way and win, unless you are 100% sure of everything, as I learned from experience.
DeleteHi LIFT,
ReplyDeleteI don't know if you remember me, but I came to you for advice a few months ago regarding my university choices.
Right now, I have resigned myself to studying at a local university. But the situation is so depressing for me. I feel so suffocated and unhappy here in Singapore. I have read more of your posts in the past, criticizing Singaporeans and Singaporean men in particular (the posts where you interviewed your former PRC colleague who has worked in Singapore before and other posts where local women who married Caucasians and emigrated complained about Singaporean guys) and I feel there already is a judgment of me despite being so different to other Singaporean guys. It sucks to be stereotyped because I was unlucky enough to be born a male in Singapore.
More importantly, the people who have commented in these posts and your Chinese ex-colleague have had the good fortune of studying and working overseas. Most of their criticism is also focused on those who have lived in Singapore their whole lives. This somehow makes me feel like I am at a severe disadvantage. Some of us (like me) really do want to get out of the system, study overseas and never look back. But I am unable to due to my parents' lack of finances. I have also gotten the impression that those (international students) who are educated in the West (UK, for example) will have a much easier time finding a job in the UK as compared to people like me who have no choice but to settle for a local university. I know that I can adapt overseas, because I am open-minded and adaptable like the people who have commented on those posts, but I simply do not have the opportunity to. I may not be a scholar who has been to top schools throughout my academic life but I do not think I am unintelligent either (despite what my mother claims). I did alright for my A levels after all.
This leaves me very fearful for my future. I want so desperately to get out of here, but I am unable to. By the time I finish my degree, will I be just another zombie, having had my life and happiness sucked out of me by the government? As it stands, I am halfway there already (Upon reading your posts, I have realized just how much greener the grass on the other side this). I have become so unhappy being stuck here.
I would like to ask you a few questions if you do not mind. 1. Is it really a huge advantage for international students (Singapore, PRC, Malaysia...) who are able to study in the UK (Let's assume the UK universities in question here are well above the UK average) to find a job there as compared to local university graduates? 2. Is there any way at all a local university graduate can find work overseas upon his/her graduation or must he/she be resigned to working locally for at least a few years?
I don't want to be part of a country who is becoming something of a joke in the international community. I fear that if I stay any longer, I may be judged as soon as I meet people internationally simply on the basis of my nationality. And I do not want to be part of a stereotype simply because I do not have the good fortune of being able to educated overseas. Like you, I have already made the ultimate sacrifice by giving up 2 of the best years of my life serving the country while the government makes the citizens serve the foreigners (I am blaming the government for its policies, not the foreigners). I simply want to be just a normal working person in the West (US/UK/Aus), nothing more. And I would do anything to realize this dream as soon as I graduate. Out of curiosity, how long have you known your Chinese ex-colleague, Yan? And is she still working in China now or has she moved elsewhere?
IF there is any other advice you can give me, feel free to do so. But go easy on me if you have any criticism, I am only 20 after all. Thank you for listening to me.
Hi there, in answer to your questions.
Delete1. No there is no huge advantages for international students who have studied in a UK university. As you have quite rightly pointed out, it boils down to your university. If you're from Oxford/Cambridge, it will be much easier for you to get a work permit at entry level than if you're from a university lower down the rankings. There are about 120 universities in the UK and you would not bother with anything beyond the top 30 (well, at a push top 50 if you're like really desperate for a degree) - but at the end of the day, it boils down to what degree you studied, what skills you have and if there is a demand for those skills. So if you have a nursing or medical-related (from brain surgeon to X-ray technician) qualification, then the red carpet to the hospital will just roll out for you just like that. But if you studied something more vague like business studies or media studies or philosophy, then you're stuffed.
2. Again, same answer. What is your degree in? Do you have a useful skill or a vague degree that points you in no direction ? Our hospitals, our entire NHS is so entirely dependent on foreigners from doctors to nurses to technicians - so if you have the right skills to match the demand in the market (in this case, qualified hospital staff) then it's your golden ticket in, we'll roll out the red carpet. If you don't, then you're stuffed.
It's a simple function of supply & demand. Do you have a skill to offer, a skill that is in demand? What is your degree in?
3. Singaporeans generally enjoy a good reputation internationally - English speaking, rich and hardworking are the three traits that come to mind.
4. Yan and I were colleagues back in the mid-2000s - she is still in Beijing for now and doing really well. She has a great job there, making good money - though she is complaining a lot about the quality of life (pollution in particular) and is itching to move back to the West.
5. Do let me know what your degree is in and I can see if I can evaluate your chances of working in the west. Remember, it boils down to supply vs demand at the end of the day, nothing more.
Thank you so much for you help. My degree will be in SMU Accountancy. I wouldn't mind working in fields relating to the degree such as auditing and accounting or more generic fields like banking and finance. In one of your earlier posts, you commented that degrees like business, economics and finance were not of much use and I am very much in agreement. NUS does not have an accountancy degree. The closest that they could come up with was a business administration degree with a major in accountancy. As for NTU, I didn't choose it based on its location. I live in Yio Chu Kang and the long travel time would definitely be very tiring for me. Also, I seriously considered NTU but my mother vehemently argued against that option. That leaves me pretty worried as I really don't know the reputation of SMU internationally. So what are my chances of finding a job in the West upon graduation? And if there is any way of improving them, please tell me.
DeleteI am also sorry if I was vague earlier. When I talked about people having the good fortune of studying in overseas universities, I actually meant the universities that were definitely in the top 20 in the UK. Examples are the good London universities, Warwick, Bristol, Manchester. I was accepted by some of these universities, but you know the story. For what it's worth, tell Yan that I'm sorry for what she had to face when she was in Singapore. Was she from a top UK university like you? Once again, thank you for your help.
I agree with LimPeh, the chances of getting a job is more reliance on what skills/experiences you have to offer than what uni you are from. (with the exception of the top 30 uni, but then again even if you are from the top 30 unis, you still need a certain amount of ' people' skills to land yourself a career/job.)
DeleteI don't really know what you mean by 'good reputation' internationally.. The first few comments of the local when they spoke to me are 'wow, which part of China is Singapore in?' and 'You speak really good English!'... Sadly many people don't even know where Singapore is.
Employers don't give a hoot about which country you are from as long as you can provide the skills they need and you are within their budget.
Well Seraphim, it does vary lah. Sure there are some very suaku goondu angmohs who are totally ignorant about Singapore and I have lost count of the number of times I have to explain that we don't have a language called 'Singaporean' in Singapore but we speak Mandarin, Malay, Tamil, Hokkien, Cantonese, Teochew, Singlish, English etc Then again, there are also the Angmohs who are very familiar with Singapore and for those who do indeed know about Singapore, they rarely have anything bad to say about it. It's clean, you have strict laws, it's very modern and yes we speak English.
DeleteAnd I totally agree with your last statement about employers not giving a hoot about your nationality as long as you can do a good job.
And as for TheResignedOne: Accountancy. Ah shit. Sorry man. Bad choice. No doubt you can get a good job in Singapore with that degree but if you're thinking about the UK, you're totally barking up the wrong tree. You would have no problems getting through the work permit scheme if you are a qualified nurse or teacher but we simply have no demand for foreign accounts - ie. supply & demand, the demand for accountants can be met from the home market, thus there is no need at all to issue work permits to get foreign accounts to come to the UK to work here.
DeleteWe desperately need NURSES. Oh how badly do we need nurses - our hospitals are full of Filipino nurses and a Filipino nurse can easily waltz into the UK with a work permit and eventually get British citizenship whereas accountants? Sorry, forget it. We don't need it.
I hate to rain on your parade, but it's a simple function of supply & demand. In most western countries, the work permits are issued for skilled jobs that revolve mostly around engineering, medicine/nursing and other niches (like mining, teaching, construction etc). So for accountants ... I'm not saying it's a flat no, but it's just too general. You'll need to be a pretty senior, experienced accountant before you can be considered 'skilled' enough to qualify as a migrant.
Look man, I have no simple solution - it's not going to be easy in the next few years for you to migrate to the west or even get a work permit at entry level. Short of marrying an American or an Aussie, I can't think of any other short cut solutions for you as you're stuck with a degree in accountancy (and not nursing). Short of getting a nursing qualification, you're stuck in Singapore man as an accountant. If you were so desperate to move to the west, why didn't you check if accountancy was on the list of jobs they are happy to provide work permits for?
I hate to say this, but as an accountant, you're stuck in Singapore for the foreseeable future, unless you're willing to consider working in somewhere like Dubai - you'll have a good life there but you'll never gain citizenship.
That is very bad news. Are there other jobs that an accounting degree is useful for? What about these jobs or fields like finance? I chose accountancy because of 2 reasons. Firstly, everyone was telling me that it was a professional and recession-proof degree. Secondly, there was some degree of prestige around it as it was the degree with the highest cut-off grades after medicine and law (I did not know what I want at that time and was influenced by peer pressure).
DeleteWould a degree in computer science or engineering from NUS have been a better option instead? I would not mind working in Dubai. It is tax-free and very pro-expatriate but is it easy for a fresh Singaporean graduate to get a job in Dubai? And does the surplus of accountants apply only to the UK or is it the same for all Western countries ? I heard from someone that Australia was looking for accountants but I'm not sure.
Would it be easier for a Singaporean who went to a top UK university studying accounting/economics/mathematics to get a job in the UK after graduation instead? Because I see that people like you and Yan managed to secure jobs in the UK upon graduation.
Is there anything that I can do in the future to increase my chances? If worse comes to worse, I guess I'll just take on jobs that I am over-qualified for. I'm sorry for my persistent questioning. Thank you for hearing me out.
Whilst it's bad news to you, should it come as a surprise? If this was so crucial to you, why didn't you do your homework and find out earlier?
DeleteYeah there are other jobs you can do apart from accountancy with your degree: http://limpehft.blogspot.co.uk/2013/09/is-degree-that-important-anyway.html anything generally in business really: sales & marketing in particular which was the route I went down, but please note that these jobs rarely qualify you for skilled migration.
As for what your friends said, fair enough, it's not untrue: yes it is a good degree that can get your work as an accountant no matter what, BUT that still doesn't mean will easily get you a job in the west. How can I spell this out to you clearly: YOU ARE NOT ASKING THE RIGHT QUESTIONS.
You should be asking: what qualifications should I get to allow me to migrate to the west most easily? Cos that would get you a different answer compared to what your friends told you - and whilst what they said is true, it still does not help you get a step closer to migrating to the west.
Like I said, it's not rocket science: Supply vs Demand. Hence a diploma in nursing from some Filipino college in Quezon City or Baguio trumps whatever accounting degree you can get from Singapore - it doesn't matter what prestige blah blah blah or cut off grades blah blah blah - none of that matters. What matters at the end of the day is this: we desperately need nurses, not accountants. End of the story, what is there to argue alamak? You only have yourself to blame for not having asked the right question in the first place. Duh. Your friends were probably not thinking about emigrating anyway since that was not the question you asked them.
And since you asked, yes a engineering degree from NUS would probably have served you better, but not a computer science degree.
Yes it would be easier for a Singaporean grad to get a job in Dubai than in the West. Dubai is very expatriate friendly, like Singapore. Again, supply and demand, you just have to see what companies are recruiting nearer to your graduation.
You can move to Oz as an accountant via their skilled migrant scheme - but please note, they will look at your qualifications and they have a points-based system. You have to meet a certain criteria in terms of points gained through your education, work experience etc before you are even eligible for a work permit and as a fresh grad with zero work experience, you will almost certain fall very short of the minimum criteria. If you had worked as an accountant in S'pore after graduation for say 5 or 10 years, then maybe you would have accumulated enough work experience to score enough points in the Oz system to even begin to get a work permit there. The bar is set very high for accountants wishing to move to Oz. Not all accountants are equal and as a fresh grad, you've got a very, very long way to go before you score enough points as a skilled migrant through this route.
DeleteYun and I were in the right place and the right time after we graduated - we had the right skills, met the right employer, had the right job offer and that's why things worked out for us in the UK upon graduation. I can't remember exactly what route she took so I can't speak for her, but I had a useless arts degree from a top UK university, so even then, my degree did fuck all to help ,me apart from proving that I am smart enough to get a scholarship to a top university. The contents of my degree were utterly and totally bullshit and useless. You could say that I did all the hard work during my A level days (which scored me my scholarship to a top university) and I spent most of my time at university doing the minimum amount of work to get by. But you must remember, Yun and I are quite a lot older than you - so you need to consider what your options are, rather than what someone else has done all those years ago. I fail to see how my experience (or Yun's experience) could possibly be of any relevance to your situation today.
Do you want to be an accountant? If so, be prepared to stick it out in PAP-land for 5 to 10 years at least whilst hoping that you can score a job in somewhere like Dubai or Qatar. The question you should be asking is what you wanna do with your life, because I have no short cut or magic wand to wave, I have no simple solution to get you to the west, short of asking you to get a nursing qualification!
I sorry for causing so much misunderstanding. I only decided that I would do whatever it takes to get out of Singapore within the last few weeks, as I have only realized the severity of the damage Singapore has been dealt in the last few weeks by reading your posts. By then, it was too late to change my degree as the application period ended in March. And nursing is not really my calling. If Dubai is as welcoming to fresh Singaporean graduates as you said, I would definitely go for it.
DeleteTo be honest, being an accountant is my backup plan depending on the state of the economy when I graduate. At this point in time, I am looking at the finance industry.
Well, in the worse case scenario, I guess I could take on a job that I am over-qualified for or do jobs that do not fall under the skilled migrant program. But we'll see in the next few years. Thank you.
I don't know what you're talking about in this worse case scenario, either I am misunderstanding you or you're talking about something that simply does not exist. What on earth do you mean when you talk about doing a job that you're over-qualified for? Like what a taxi driver or a waiter? What makes you think that countries like the UK or Australia would give out work permits for that kind of work? Never in a million years mate, dream on, that's not how it works. Work permits are given out to highly skilled migrants - not lowly skilled ones. So brain surgeon, yes. Taxi driver, no. X-ray technician yes, road-sweeper no. Chemical engineer yes, waitress no.
DeleteAnd you make NO SENSE at all when you talk about taking on a job that does not fall under the skilled migrant programme. What the hell are you talking about? I repeat, rich Western countries do NOT give out work permits to taxi drivers and unskilled labour! I know Singapore may be mad enough to open its doors wide open to PRCs who are unskilled, uneducated and can't speak English but this is certainly NOT the case in the West.
Listen for someone who wants to migrate, you seem to know practically NOTHING about the rules about moving to the west and what it takes, who gets a work permit etc. Like for crying out aloud, I don't even know where to begin with you man, you need to do your research, you need to do some reading. I can't believe you think you can actually get to move to the west doing a job that is not a highly skilled, highly paid professional role. Duh.
PS. Nursing is a highly skilled profession BTW.
Thanks Limpeh, you gave me another idea to get to work overseas. It seems that that there are shortages of medical technicians in Singapore and employers are willing to fully sponsor your course if you sign a 3yr bond with them. I'll sit and think it through and maybe consider a mid life career switch while l'm still not that old.
DeleteAbsolutely Choaniki! I know of two guys in my gym who are from non-EU countries and have secured work permits in medical technician roles. One is an expert on X-rays (radiographer) http://www.nhscareers.nhs.uk/explore-by-career/allied-health-professions/careers-in-the-allied-health-professions/radiographer/ and the other one is some kind of high level lab technician - ie. the doctor takes a tissue sample and sends it to this guy in the lab who then runs the various test to help give the doctor the right diagnosis.
DeleteNeither of them are doctors, but both work with doctors in hospitals - both are highly qualified experts in their fields and yup, both are paid a lot of money for what they do. I think people often restrict their views on medical professions to doctors & nurses whilst there are so many other technical roles to be filled in a hospital and the pay is usually pretty good too. And especially in the UK, there is a huge shortage for many of these medical technicians cos these are quite specialist niche areas.
In the spirit of sharing I will post the link I found since I believe in paying it forward:
Deletehttp://www.wda.gov.sg/content/wdawebsite/programmes_and_initiatives/L701Eiv-1-DiagnosticRadiographers.html
Hi choaniki, I've answered your questions on my blog about the WDS PCP program. As nursing has high supply from countries such as Philippines and India, nursing tends to drop in-and-out of the "wanted skills" list in Canada. Thus if Canada is your target host country, you may also want to consider other medical options such as Speech Therapist, Physiotherapist and Occupational Therapist under the WDA program if your aim is to emigrate. These other options have managed to remain on the "wanted skills" list for Canadian migration despite nursing dropped out in May-2013 (and then re-added in May-2014). Plus there is a possibility PT Assistant or an OT assistant while you seek to regain recognition for your qualifications in Canada, but please Google to find out how as I did not take that route. VERY IMPORTANT NOTE: Do not tell anyone that you're doing the WDA program to emigrate, see my blog post on "The Art of Bond Breaking" for details.
Deletehttp://winkingdoll.blogspot.ca/2013/10/migrating-via-student-visa-part-2.html
http://winkingdoll.blogspot.ca/2013/05/canada-has-enough-nurses-re-fswp.html
@ TheResignedOne, FYI, there are skilled trades (i.e. don't need a lot of education) that would open the doors to migrants. E.g. Canada has a FSTP (Federal Skilled Trades Program).
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/trades/apply-who.asp
You need to change your mindset if you want to consider this route. In Canada, trade workers can earn good pay, sometimes more than "professionals" such as Software Developers, depending on demand and supply. And please do not come to Canada if you're going to hold on to the notion of "some degree of prestige" from working on "professional" jobs (i.e. white-collar jobs by the typical Singaporean's definition). In Canada, anyone working in legal jobs are seen as holding respectable jobs, even domestic maids (known as live-in caregivers here). Please don't come to Canada bringing long your typical-SIngaporean class-divide attitude and spoil the reputation of Singapore migrants here. Most of the Singaporeans I've come across in Canada who are able to adapt are the ones who are willing to start from scratch -- even ex-doctor in Singapore is willing to work in factory. Are you really ready to "anything" to emigrate from Singapore?
Regards, WD.
I forgot to add that I don't know why the hell 60.14% of the population were stupid enough to vote the PAP back to power in the last election. Another example of me being different from most of the Singapore population and yet having to pay the price for their idiocy. If I have to stay here after graduation, I would be resigning myself to a life of mediocrity and I would do anything to avoid that.
ReplyDeleteListen man, don't get upset or dejected okay? I think so much of being happy depends on getting a career that you find fulfilling, being able to find job satisfaction and to feel that you're getting somewhere in your career, that you're doing what you really want to do and enjoy.
DeleteI may be a British citizen today but I am still faced with the challenges of making my career as successful as it can be and I still have to wake up and work hard. There's more to life than just getting out of Singapore, although having said that, yes I do empathize with your frustration.
Limpeh,
ReplyDeleteI would like to challenge your facts. Public service is solely funded by tax revenues and not CPF. “CPF is separate from the budget. CPF monies are invested by the CPF Board (CPFB) in Special Singapore Government Securities (SSGS11) that are issued and guaranteed by the Singapore Government. The proceeds from SSGS issuance are invested by the Government via MAS and GIC, just as it invests the proceeds from the market-based Singapore Government Securities (SGS).
No CPF monies go towards government spending. Government borrowings, whether via SGS or SSGS, cannot be used to fund expenditures. Under the reserves protection framework enacted in 1990 in the Constitution and the Government Securities Act (enacted in 1992), the monies raised from government borrowings cannot be spent.” (http://app.mof.gov.sg/reserves_sectionthree.aspx)
The govt collects revenue from multiple sources such as income tax, corporate tax, GST, COE, excise duty, gambling tax, etc (excluding land sales) and maintains a surplus year after year without digging into CPF funds. The surplus is then channelled to the reserves to be managed by Temasek, GIC and MoF.
It is true that income tax in Singapore is very low compared with Western countries, but Singaporeans pay a lot of indirect tax like GST, COE, excise duty, etc. When you purchase a car, you contribute at least $100,000 to the govt over the lifespan of the car through COE, road tax, ERP, GST for parking, etc and if you buy four cars over your lifetime, that is over $400,000 in indirect taxes to the govt. When you purchase a $1 million condo (99 lease and not freehold), at least $600,000 goes to the govt through land sales ($600,000 being the price the developer pays for the land). So if you own 4 cars and buy a condo over a 40 year period, you are contributing $1M in revenue to the govt or $25,000 a year. The govt is also making money off HDB flats by selling them way above construction costs.
Singapore may have one of the best public service system in the world but its citizens pay the highest out of pockets costs in the world to use it. Local universities fees is close to $10000 a year and not all students can enrol local tertiary institutions like in Sweden or UAE, some have to pay full fees for privates or overseas courses. Singapore public healthcare spending as a proportion of GDP is one of the lowest among the developed countries. Citizens of Sweden and UAE enjoy free or heavily subsidised healthcare but Singaporeans pay at least two thirds of health expenditure while the govt foot the other one third.
Your argument that Singapore’s tax revenue does not increase with increasing population is not correct. More people means more income tax, property tax, GST,excise duties, gambling tax and higher COEs. The govt also collect more foreign worker levies as it imports them to build more infrastructure. The increase in population also bid up the price of land and the govt profits as developer bid higher and higher prices for land. Ultimately rentals will have to increase and companies will have to raise prices to cover rental increases. Increase in rentals, property prices and consumer prices will net the govt more revenue thorough rental income tax, property tax and GST.
Thanks for your comment, very interesting observations indeed.
DeleteI did cover some of these points in a previous post about the price of being a Singaporean: http://limpehft.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/homeland-or-hotel-limpehs-reflect-on.html in which I did discuss the various aspects of life in Singapore (CEO, Road tax, GST etc etc) which is part & parcel of life in Singapore.
If public services are not reliant on CPF funds (if they are well and truly ring-fenced), then I say, whilst it eliminates one argument but it raises more questions than it answers: why the minimum sum now and how is this different from another form of taxation (and if it is as we all acknowledge a form of taxation, then what is the government going to do with that money then)?
As for the other point about increasing the tax base with a larger population, it is not a linear process. Singapore is a finite space, it is a small island, as you squeeze more and more people onto this island, the cost of maintaining public services increases exponentially - take water for example, back in the 1980s, all it took was a pipeline from Johor to meet our needs. Now we have NEWater and if the population increases even further, one will need desalination plants (Dubai style) - this makes a resource like water more and more expensive as the demand for it goes up. It's not like there's an unlimited supply of water and one simply uses twice as much water at the same price if the population doubles - it doesn't work like that.
Likewise for public housing - the price of the land depends on supply & demand and as you pack more and more people into Singapore, the scarcity of the land drives up prices at such an alarming rate. Building twice as many flats doesn't cost x2 as much because you then have to consider the effect it has on land prices on a small island like Singapore.
I could go on - but the maths about tax revenue vs what it costs to provide x2 public services is not as straightforward as you make it out to be.
And here's another thought (something I remembered from my university days). If the CPF minimum sum is a stealth tax (well, hardly stealth when it's out in the open like that), then unless the money is clearly ring-fenced, there is the opportunity for the government to use it for other purposes which are strictly speaking not restricted to the pension-role it is meant to fulfill (such as covering up the big holes in Temasek Holding's finances after they have made big losses).
DeleteLet's say that there is a hole to be filled in Temasek Holding's finances and they're using the CPF minimum sum to plug that hole instead of other forms of tax money. That still means that those participating in the CPF scheme are bearing the brunt of this burden whilst the huge expatriate community in Singapore who don't participate in CPF are spared that burden. Using money from something like GST to plug that hole would be more fair as it would mean that the expatriates living in Singapore would have to contribute as well.
Back in the 1980s, the UK was providing food aid to Ethiopia because it suffered loads of serious droughts and famines. The Ethiopian government gladly accepted the food aid whilst still spending loads of money on its military - some argued that if the UK were to cut off the food aid, the Ethiopian government would be forced to divert money from their military budget to food; claiming that this food aid is ring-fenced for food and humanitarian purpose did not stop the Ethiopian government from building its military in a time when they really should have spent every spare penny they had on feeding their population. Many argued that allowing the Ethiopian government to behave like this and get away with this is not solving the problem, thus UK's food aid is indirectly funding the Ethiopian military. Thus you can see that claiming a pot of money is 'ring-fenced' for a purpose still gives a government room to manouvre when it comes to not having to spend the tax money on certain things. So we can split hairs about the definitions of CPF and it's purpose, but as long as we agree that the minimum-sum is an alternative form of taxation, we still have to establish why it was necessary to have a minimum-sum in the first place and what hole this is plugging.
There are no simple answers.
The current level of public service in Singapore is sustained alone by tax revenue as the govt is still running surpluses. In fact spending in healthcare and transportation services have not kept up with population increase resulting in overcrowding and long waiting times. The govt can afford to spend more. $40 billion of land sales receipt collected annually is not allocated for govt expenditure but channelled to a special reserves account (to be drawn down in the event of nuclear meltdown).
ReplyDeleteRoy Ngerng has his own agenda to go to court instead of reaching an out of court settlement. People may not approve of his actions but they still donate to him because they want transparency from the govt on their CPF money. Many are struggling with the costs of living and need cash urgently to pay for hospital bills, university education and property downpayment for their children ,Hajj pilgrimage, etc. Why is the minimum sums and withdrawal age always increasing? Is CPF money used to cover losses in Temasek and GIC? Why can’t the CPF interest rate be higher or peg to returns in Temasek and GIC so that they can meet the minimum sum at 55 and withdraw some spare cash. Did the govt use CPF funds to inflate Temasek and GIC returns since money in both entities is not used for govt expenditure. Did the govt purposely increase the size of the reserves so that they can earn more director fees as many cabinet ministers sit on the board directors of Temasek and GIC. A lack of transparency will always give rise to suspicion and baseless allegations of misappropriation. PM Lee can put a stop to all these by being transparent.
Taxes are higher in Sweden because Sweden has pension funds while CPF is a self-funded retirement fund. The CPF minimum sum is an implicit form of tax that is similar to social security tax in the UK.
To conclude, your argument that CPF money is used for govt expenditure is flawed and incorrect. Singaporeans pay a lot of indirect tax like GST, COE, ERP, land sales, gambling tex,etc and pay the highest out of pocket cost among the developed countries for healthcare and education. Moreover Singaporeans don’t have pension and have to fund their retirement through CPF. Contributions to the CPF minimum sum must be acknowledged as an implicit form of tax that is similar to social security tax in the UK.
I totally accept and agree with your point ref: surplus + levels of spending, the government could and should spend more, particularly to help those who are lower down the food chain in Singapore. However, they get away with it because Singaporeans don't demand it. Many Singaporeans look at the kind of welfare culture in the West and think that it is utterly disgraceful, even immoral, that unemployed people should deserve anything apart from scorn and disdain, that if you're poor it's your own bloody fault for not having worked hard enough.
DeleteAs for Roy Ngerng, I can't figure him out. I think he's making a big mistake based on a misguided sense of martyrdom. He has bitten off more than he can chew and he will pay the price for it.
I felt that CPF is a 'poor man tax'. The ceiling is 5000/month, which also means the people earning above 10,000/month will pay a lesser amount of extra 'tax' and still receive the same benefits as someone who earns 5000/month. So why are poor Singaporeans being taxed while receiving no benefits? Please note that according to the Government, an average family earns 7000+/month...
ReplyDeleteThe way the government is acting is as if they are trying to cover fire up with paper... It will only be a matter of time before they collapsed and have to disclose it unwillingly...
Like I said before, the government only gets away with it because Singaporean society frowns upon helping the less well-off, like "you're poor? It's because you didn't work hard enough. You're stupid? Why you never revise for your exam? You don't have a good job? You have only yourself to blame because you should have studied harder at school." It's a double-edged sword. Whilst it can promote a sense of self-reliance and create very hardworking people, those who do not succeed in this system get very little help and sympathy from those who do have the means to help them. It's a cruel, harsh system indeed.
DeleteIt is an unforgiving culture in Singapore. Most of my friends who left all agree about this. When you are successful, people will salute you for working hard, and show a lot of envy, but when you are down and out, the blame all falls on you. The government and even Singaporeans naive enough to accept the "quitter-stayer" rhetoric have basically used this move to stigmatize those who left, whether for studies, work or immigration, but if they go hard enough on this, it will backfire for sure. In fact, quite a sizeable number of Singaporeans and former Singaporeans can be found in a lot of countries right now. Call it pragmatism or whatever, the rhetoric of scapegoating will not last for long.
DeleteIt is not just the case that Singapore has low taxation but taxation in Singapore is not progressive - the rich are not taxed as highly as most developed countries. In Singapore, taxation is capped at 20% max! This is very very low - in the UK, this is capped at 45% while in the USA it is 39.6%! You can see why Singapore is considered a tax haven for the rich.
ReplyDeleteTrue - something cannot be made out of nothing but if the PAP makes something out of taxing the poor and rich equally then that is not fair. They are clearly favoring Singapore to be the playground for the rich in order for them to initiate the 'trickle down' effect but we all know that having ultra-rich people in a country does very little in improving the lives of the lower income level - contrary to what many economists claimed. Examples like Singapore, USA and UK already show that high income inequality (the presence of ultra rich individuals in the country) does not improve the livelihood of the lower income. Trickle down effect does not work in practice.
What trigger the whole range of unhappiness is that the huge presence of foreign talent population. Foreign employers who themselves are foreigners do a great disfavour to the local government by favouring their own kind for employment or promotion opportunity. This is something that could not be avoided when foreigner themselves may already producing more than half of the economy output. Talent, just a title and could be an excuse by preference. Then again, why to give opportunity to a local when their own kind is a good preferred alternative?
ReplyDeleteHardly would citizen want to think about CPF or even floods or frequently breakdown MRT if job security is at peaceful stage. Citizen being stress out on bread and butter along with National liability is a terrible pain on the ass. What ultimately “kill” the incumbent during election and almost as instant is that the foreign employer upfront verbal said will not to offer employment when one has national commitment.
@Maths Remy's Way
DeleteReally.. you want to blame the foreigners for CPF? blame them for floods and frequent breakdown of MRT.. seriously? everything seems to go back to foreigners? Lets be honest, a lot of Singaporeans have this entitled mindset, take away all foreigners and they will still find things to complain about.
If foreigners don't come, singapore won't grow nor will it be wealthy. As stated in this article, Singapore does not have a method of obtaining money except through its people. How many people are willing to do the jobs that the foreigners do? are you willing to be a garbage man? construction worker? bus driver? maid? are you willing to the job at the pay they are being paid? It is free market economics, if you are willing to do the job for a lower pay and have the same skillset, why would they not hire you? Unless you are stating racism, at which point you are a hypocrite cos you yourself is racist against the foreigners.
If you are so xenophobic please stop supporting the foreigners.. please stop buying anything foreign, like macdonalds, KFC, sony, samsung, fujitsu, apple, please only buy creative products as they are home grown. Please also only eat food grown from fish and prawn farms in singapore, which btw most probably hire foreign workers so I guess thats not on the table for you.. Show your support for local companies, only buy local products... oh wait.. there aren't many local products for you to choose from... please.. without foreign talent / companies Singapore would be worst off than malaysia. We live in a global world, stop being xenophobic.
LIFT sorry if this sounded a bit harsh and personal but I feel this needs to be said... having been on the receiving end of xenophobic mentality.
Hi Ian, no worries man, say whatever you need to say, get it off your chest and express yourself!! :)
DeleteEhh... Ian,
DeleteI blame on the foreign talent policies; not foreign talent ok. I think you have made too much assumption. By the way, if you think foreign talent policies affects not only those industries you have just mention, then you can continue to be self entertained . Never mind, say anything u please... lol...
Hello LIFT. If you ask me, I think we should just go back to basics and remind Singaporeans CPF is just a pension system meant for retirement.
ReplyDeleteActually, the PAP is giving a lot of leeway as to how the CPF money is used. You can use it to pay for housing which most Singaporeans do now and you can use a portion of it invest via the CPF Investment Scheme (CPFIS) for those who think that 2.5% is crap and can manage their money better than the govt. So to say that govt totally don't allow Singaporeans to use the money is an unfair statement.
I think using CPF to pay for housing coupled with the Assets Appreciation Scheme is the worst mistake that PAP has done. Because of this, housing prices has risen tremendously, making it out of reach for young Singaporeans like me and the CPF is major factor for that. Selfish Gen X Singaporeans won't want their property prices to drop but it is making Gen Y Singaporeans like me suffer.
I also understand that some Singaporeans are pissed the MSS but put yourself in the govt shoes. When they allowed Singaporeans to withdraw full amount back then, guess what happen. Old Singaporeans men spend their money on prostitution at Geylang or have a second wife from Batam or PRC. I remember back then that a lot of PRC xiao mei mei like to go to Chinatown and prey on old men knowing they just withdraw their CPF money.
I think the govt just don't want to raise taxes on the financially responsible to help those who are financially irresponsible. Granted, I still think the MSS is still too high and they can lower it and allow more flexibility to use the CPF for medical use but the main aim is to prevent Singaporeans from wasting their retirement funds.
Hi and thanks for your comment. I think your comment about older Singaporean men wasting their CPF money on whores and PRC mistresses is somewhat unfair lah. Come on lah. as if all older men are that stupid?! Being responsible with your money is something some people are good at whilst others are not - you just can't assume the worst of everyone just because some people are bound to be stupid. So are you saying that everyone should be subject to the strictest rules of CPF just because a minority of people will be bad with their money? That does come across as incredibly unfair to the vast majority of Singaporeans. You're punishing the vast majority of financially prudent, sensible Singaporeans just because there have been a small number of idiotic old men.
DeleteMy father is financially well off - he lives in a terraced house and has a 2nd condo (buy-to-let), he has loads of money without even having to dip into his CPF yet he would slap you if you suggested that the fact that he has money would mean that he would be thinking of prostitutes, mistresses and sex outside his marriage. OK he may have made some poor investment decisions when playing the stock market, but that's hardly the same as frittering away your life savings on China whores.
The fact is, if you wanna go visit prostitutes or have an affair - what's stopping you from doing so? A session with a Geylang whore costs under $100 - you don't need to dip into your CPF just to visit a whore, you will be able to find the money to do so if you're determined to. A meal out with your family probably costs more than a visit to a whore in Singapore.
I suspect that you've never visited a prostitute or had an affair - that's why you have no idea how easy it is to do either of those things. The fact is, it's REALLY REALLY easy to visit a prostitute or have an affair if that's what you wanna do. You don't need all of your CPF to be able to do that.
So to draw a link between the two is just... a stupid lie the government has sold you to convince you that you cannot have your CPF back, ever. And you are gullible enough to believe the government's lies.
Don't blame the gen X people. Most have one or no property and already overleveraged. Its the baby boomers who have multiple cheap paid off properties that they don't want to depreciate and they are also the ones who keep voting PAP back in power since they don't like to rock the boat.
DeleteHi Alex,
ReplyDeleteHope you are well and had a good time in Sweden.
Well, I'm going to take a step back and compare/contrast 2 systems - UK and Sg.
The way I see it, the CPF works in somewhat similar ways to UK's pension and NHS. However this is self funded vs a collective pension pot. The lines do blur when the funds are used for 'investments'. The difference here is that the Sg government decides on the investment whereas you get to decide your investments for the DCS scheme.
Agree that in Sg, there are no feelings for people who are not doing well. However, I've also seen the other side of the coin where tax payers money are supporting the bone idles. I was speaking to a senior civil servant in the UK and you'll be surprised how much of the annual budget is spent on benefits. He knows the Sg system well and admires it so much. However if any government will to change the system, they would be voted off first before it happens.
Personally, I don't mind paying high taxes if it was used properly - to fund infrastructure, to pay for public services and to help the really needy. What I resent was paying so much but knowing it's going to help the people i absolutely detest. I've had experiences where staff intentionally under-perform to be made redundant so as to live off benefits.
On the topic of emigration, I have a controversial observation and it might offend some people here. I fully support the point that if you don't like Singapore, the door is open and you can go. However do also have a good look in the mirror and ask yourself, what capabilities do you have? what can you do? Focus on self first instead of blaming on everything else. Once you have sorted out your capabilities, you will be surprised how much you are in demand and could enjoy a reasonable quality of life in Singapore (or anywhere in the world). If you are crap, you will be crap where ever you go.
And forget the idea of 'this job is beneath me'. I have massive amount of respect for jobs that people don't want to do - e.g. nurses, builders, plumbers etc. Several years back I was talking to a Polish mechanic who came to UK with nothing (he wasn't a mechanic when he first came). He learned a skill and put his heart and soul into doing a good job, building his reputation enough to open his own workshop. His workshop is full of very expensive cars - trusted by well-to-do owners. I reckon he's earning £20+k per month nett in cash (abit dubious about the tax though).
Morale of the story, to be successful, work pass the difficulties and you will succeed somehow.
Just being blunt.
Cheers.
Its the baby boomers who have multiple cheap paid off properties that they don't want to depreciate and they are also the ones who keep voting PAP back in power since they don't like to rock the boat.
ReplyDeletechoaniki 15:54
You mean the 60% who voted PAP are the baby boomers who have multiple cheap paid off properties meh? How many are even as rich as Limpeh's father who own 2 properties, let alone multiple (more than 2) properties?
No way in my post did I say that the 60% are all baby boomers and all owning multiple properties but the large proportion of them are. In fact a good example apart from LIFT is also my dad, he has a cheap paid off HDB and owns 2 properties in KL. I'm struggling to even pay off rental on a 1-room to another baby boomer landlord. So there you have it. Most of the property owners now in Singapore belong to the baby boomer generation like it or not.
DeleteAnother well-written article, keep it up!
ReplyDelete