Stop listening to the filtered bullsh1t that your ministries and data analysts are feeding you in painting a nice picture. Data can be manipulated but ground sentiments are genuine.
Want to know why people are not dating or getting married, and young couples are not having as many kids as the country would like to have? Besides the small proportion that is by choice, let me tell you what the people on the ground are facing
1. High HDB prices. You can rely on your stats to say that median income is rising, salaries in certain sectors are top globally etc. the truth is that home prices have vastly outpaced wages. HDB is ramping up supply? So what? Did you see the ratio of applicants vs available units in each launch? 5-7 people applying for each unit? Even in non mature estates? Just ask around incognito, how many people have applied for BTO for many times and cannot get it? Even if so lucky to get a good number, how’s that 4-6 years of waiting time?
you let new citizens apply, you let second timers apply. Your ministry has no conviction in imposing more serious measures like increasing the MOP to 10-15 years, capping resale profits, do a big claw back of the subsidies given. Some households get their BTO and leave it empty, only for them to sell when MOP is up. Some lock up 1 room to rent out the whole unit to bypass the MOP renting rule. You can say that HDB has enforcement actions for such cases, but honestly, how often are they caught?
You turn an almost blind eye to the resale HDB market, allowing it to be controlled by market forces despite it being a public housing, with superficial “cooling measures” that don’t even address the root cause of speculation and lack of supply. You let SPRs buy public flats, competing with genuine Singaporean buyers. In return, your BTO prices are then supported by the “market prices”, letting you price them high. $877k for a AMK BTO? $500k for A Tengah BTO? And you say you want to keep HDB affordable?
you support controlled capitalism as this is a strong voting base, understandably you don’t want to curtail Singaporean’s aspiration of upgrading. These people buy private properties, hoarding their HDB flats to rent out, further worsening the supply situation, depriving people who genuinely need housing. It is in national interest as the taxes that come from such consumption adds to the national coffers.
2. You harp on having a good work life balance, flexible working, yet everything is about “monitor, recommend, suggest” and not “implement, enforce”. Your willingness or rather unwillingness to directly intervene for fear of companies relocating simply means that your words are weak, since there are no actionable plans. It’s just talk, monitor and talk again. How many companies are have unofficial long working hours? SG’s productivity doesn’t originate from its innovation. It comes at the expense of actual working hours, people exchanging their time to administer your GDP tools. This is why you have a hard time getting exponential growth. Young couples work long hours, going home without the mood to date or have any personal life to pursue familihood.
3. Mobility - one of the factors influencing familihood is mobility. Directly, it affects quality of life. Indirectly, it affects your mood, your subconscious habits, you perception towards having to do something vs wanting to do something. You claim that COE is a form to controlling car population. COE itself is already a quota. Regardless of whether COE is at $1 or at $1m a piece, the quota is the same. But you decide to leave COE allocation to market forces. Who bids the highest will get it. What’s wrong with earning more money plus this is the most transparent way of allocation. But is it equitable? Families buy 5-6 cars to park at home, while people who actually need a car for mobility needs (eg young families with children or elderly parents) are priced out of a bread and butter car. You present info that implies fleet owners bid more than half of CAT A COEs, yet say such fleet owners do not impact prices. You claim that SG public transport is sufficient. Of course everything is sufficient. Leftover food can also be eaten, sufficient for sustenance. But for young families, have you tried to push a stroller or a wheelchair into buses or MRT during peak hours? Or the fact that people’s workplaces and childcare are not always next to their houses? With a 1-2 hours travelling 1 way, how many will have energy for familihood or for dating?
Lawrence Wong, if you genuinely want to tackle these issues, you need to first understand the actual root causes and not just look at the data. The data is just a reflection of the RESULT of the root cause. What’s the point of tackling the result when the underlying cause is not addressed? It’s just pasting a band aid over a festering wound. The wound will continue to rot if you don’t treat it.
Want to know why people are not dating or getting married, and young couples are not having as many kids as the country would like to have? Besides the small proportion that is by choice, let me tell you what the people on the ground are facing
1. High HDB prices. You can rely on your stats to say that median income is rising, salaries in certain sectors are top globally etc. the truth is that home prices have vastly outpaced wages. HDB is ramping up supply? So what? Did you see the ratio of applicants vs available units in each launch? 5-7 people applying for each unit? Even in non mature estates? Just ask around incognito, how many people have applied for BTO for many times and cannot get it? Even if so lucky to get a good number, how’s that 4-6 years of waiting time?
you let new citizens apply, you let second timers apply. Your ministry has no conviction in imposing more serious measures like increasing the MOP to 10-15 years, capping resale profits, do a big claw back of the subsidies given. Some households get their BTO and leave it empty, only for them to sell when MOP is up. Some lock up 1 room to rent out the whole unit to bypass the MOP renting rule. You can say that HDB has enforcement actions for such cases, but honestly, how often are they caught?
You turn an almost blind eye to the resale HDB market, allowing it to be controlled by market forces despite it being a public housing, with superficial “cooling measures” that don’t even address the root cause of speculation and lack of supply. You let SPRs buy public flats, competing with genuine Singaporean buyers. In return, your BTO prices are then supported by the “market prices”, letting you price them high. $877k for a AMK BTO? $500k for A Tengah BTO? And you say you want to keep HDB affordable?
you support controlled capitalism as this is a strong voting base, understandably you don’t want to curtail Singaporean’s aspiration of upgrading. These people buy private properties, hoarding their HDB flats to rent out, further worsening the supply situation, depriving people who genuinely need housing. It is in national interest as the taxes that come from such consumption adds to the national coffers.
2. You harp on having a good work life balance, flexible working, yet everything is about “monitor, recommend, suggest” and not “implement, enforce”. Your willingness or rather unwillingness to directly intervene for fear of companies relocating simply means that your words are weak, since there are no actionable plans. It’s just talk, monitor and talk again. How many companies are have unofficial long working hours? SG’s productivity doesn’t originate from its innovation. It comes at the expense of actual working hours, people exchanging their time to administer your GDP tools. This is why you have a hard time getting exponential growth. Young couples work long hours, going home without the mood to date or have any personal life to pursue familihood.
3. Mobility - one of the factors influencing familihood is mobility. Directly, it affects quality of life. Indirectly, it affects your mood, your subconscious habits, you perception towards having to do something vs wanting to do something. You claim that COE is a form to controlling car population. COE itself is already a quota. Regardless of whether COE is at $1 or at $1m a piece, the quota is the same. But you decide to leave COE allocation to market forces. Who bids the highest will get it. What’s wrong with earning more money plus this is the most transparent way of allocation. But is it equitable? Families buy 5-6 cars to park at home, while people who actually need a car for mobility needs (eg young families with children or elderly parents) are priced out of a bread and butter car. You present info that implies fleet owners bid more than half of CAT A COEs, yet say such fleet owners do not impact prices. You claim that SG public transport is sufficient. Of course everything is sufficient. Leftover food can also be eaten, sufficient for sustenance. But for young families, have you tried to push a stroller or a wheelchair into buses or MRT during peak hours? Or the fact that people’s workplaces and childcare are not always next to their houses? With a 1-2 hours travelling 1 way, how many will have energy for familihood or for dating?
Lawrence Wong, if you genuinely want to tackle these issues, you need to first understand the actual root causes and not just look at the data. The data is just a reflection of the RESULT of the root cause. What’s the point of tackling the result when the underlying cause is not addressed? It’s just pasting a band aid over a festering wound. The wound will continue to rot if you don’t treat it.
