PAP Splitting Into Two Factions In Near Future - Is There A Possibility?

[Conqueror]

During the election, they were constantly mocking the PAPzis for their million-dollar ministerial salaries. But once they entered parliament, all they did was to propose more of the same. Some opposition eh?

At least, we see eye to eye on this issue and SDP.

 

[methink]

Pray tell, what good policies have the PAPzis pushed forward?

Bringing in more foreigners for integration!

 

[tanwahp]

During the election, they were constantly mocking the PAPzis for their million-dollar ministerial salaries. But once they entered parliament, all they did was to propose more of the same. Some opposition eh?

I wish I could agree with you and conqueror so that I can join their happy SDP family along with yellow and methink. But facts are facts. WP stated that the salary range of ministers would be $55,000 for entry grade ministers to $99,000 for the PM with no bonus. Which means only the PM, and at most the 2 DPMs, have annual salary exceed one million per year.

Secondly, a lot of people miss the point that WP's proposal is different from PAP's new proposal and even more different from PAP's old pay scales. When WP opposed ministerial salaries in the past, it was opposing the old, long-time-held pay grade, not the new one that PAP "auto" cut themselves significantly after suffering the 2011 losses. Rather than WP agreeing with PAP, I think it is PAP now agreeing with WP since it is PAP who adjusted their salaries to match WP's proposals.

Thirdly, don't recall that WP used the phrase "million dollar salaries" or something along that lines. This phrase appears to be more of an SDP invention. Indeed, in SDP's proposed scales, no minister gets more than a million a year.

 

[Cruxx]

I wish I could agree with you and conqueror so that I can join their happy SDP family along with yellow and methink.

I don't recall yellow, methink and I mentioned anything about SDP in this thread. You, with that silly hammer avatar of yours, are the one putting the partisan interests of the blue PAP above that of the opposition cause, not us.

But facts are facts. WP stated that the salary range of ministers would be $55,000 for entry grade ministers to $99,000 for the PM with no bonus. Which means only the PM, and at most the 2 DPMs, have annual salary exceed one million per year.

So they did propose for million-dollar salaries to remain, did they not? Facts are facts. Pegging ministerial salaries to MX9 runs counter to what their GE2011 manifesto campaigned on. In other words, they cheated those who voted for them on the basis that the WP would benchmark ministers' remuneration internationally against that of the political office of the developed world. Is Barack Obama's annual base salary the equivalent of SGD$498, 000 or SGD$1 188, 000?

Thirdly, don't recall that WP used the phrase "million dollar salaries" or something along that lines. This phrase appears to be more of an SDP invention. Indeed, in SDP's proposed scales, no minister gets more than a million a year.

You're not recalling enough then. Care to tell us what was uttered 3 mins 2 secs into the clip?

[video=youtube;ynusdPyINu8]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynusdPyINu8[/video]

 

[wwabbit]

LHL's 2011 salary: S$3.8M
LHL's 2012 salary (after the paycut): S$2.2M
CSM's proposed salary for LHL: $99k x 13 = S$1.3

Not quite proposing for more of the same.

 

[tanwahp]

I don't recall yellow, methink and I mentioned anything about SDP in this thread. You, with that silly hammer avatar of yours, are the one putting the partisan interests of the blue PAP above that of the opposition cause, not us.

I didn't say that yellow, methink and you mentioned SDP in this thread. Giving someone a bad name to hang him? However, yellow and methink are SDP supporters and I was saying it in jest that the three of them (excluding you) were a SDP family.

The history of my hammer avatar has been explained long ago. Well, I am a WP supporter and not shy about it, neither am I blindly supporting. My thread on WP's lack of use of CSM garnered many criticisms as well and I take it in stride unlike how you react to most criticisms. Supporting political parties doesn't mean national interests come after it, otherwise, you can take out PAP, SDP, NSP etc. and there would be no one left who is for national interest.

So they did propose for million-dollar salaries to remain, did they not?

I leave to you how you define but I would not consider Creative, or Hyflux, or SembCorp, or Singtel, or Starhub or whichever company to be paying million dollar salaries when only the CEO's pay is above a million.

Facts are facts. Pegging ministerial salaries to MX9 runs counter to what their GE2011 manifesto campaigned on. In other words, they cheated those who voted for them on the basis that the WP would benchmark ministers' remuneration internationally against that of the political office of the developed world. Is Barack Obama's annual base salary the equivalent of SGD$498, 000 or SGD$1 188, 000?

Since you observe WP closely you would not have missed out a release before the parliamentary debate stating that they favour the international practice of having salaries of political office holders benchmarked against MP salaries which in turn is benchmarked to civil service salaries. It identified 12 developed countries - Australia, Canada, Finland, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, Sweden, Taiwan, UK and US. The reason why ministerial salaries end up high under this proposal is because Singapore's civil servants' high salaries compared to the rest of the world. I think the manifesto could have been better worded in this area, but commonsense would tell the difficulty in benchmarking to a country when each country's cost of living and value of money is different.

You're not recalling enough then. Care to tell us what was uttered 3 mins 2 secs into the clip?

You are right that I don't recall everything and I stand corrected on that. But it doesn't moot my other points. I however can see you're observing PAP's strongest opposition rather closely.