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- Jul 18, 2008
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Hi all,
if we drop the 5 plates of char kway teow analogy and use Mercedes Benzes (MB) to measure the ministers' pay, what would we get? For simplicity's sake, I will use $100K as the price of a MB.
President - >35 MB per year
Prime Minister - >30 MB per year
MM, SM - >25 MB per year
DPM - >20 MB per year
Minister - >10 MB per year
Total = >305 MB per year (and that's not counting in the bonuses and other perks yet)
What's more, they will get a pension (equivalent to 0.5 or 2/3 of their last drawn pay, I forgot which) when they retire.
I think most Singaporeans would be struggling to even earn 0.5 MB a year and have no safety net other than CPF when they retire.
I am just a lowly plebian and I don't think the price is worth it as I measure politicians by how much my needs have been addressed. My needs are as follows:
1) A roof over my head
2) A stable income
3) Education opportunities for my children
4) A less stressful life
5) To retire with dignity
1) HDB flats (cheapest form of housing other than renting) have become less and less affordable.
2) Wages have stagnated and jobs have become scarcer.
3) My children now have to fight for education opportunities with tons of FTs, many of whom get scholarships to study at our tertiary institutions.
4) Even during weekends, there are queues and crowds everywhere, so much so that it is more enjoyable to just stay at home. This wasn't the case 20-30 years ago.
5) What retirement? I would probably be working until I drop dead provided I can still find employment.
Granted that the government is in no position to guarantee most of the points above and I am responsible for my own life, but if they are not there to improve my life and my children's lives, why do I need to pay so much to keep them there? I don't think I need to pay such exorbitant sums of money just to keep the place running (and they can even let Mas Selamat do the Great Escape). Every solution they come up with involves some kind of payment and they wonder why Singaporeans are not thankful and are so eager to curse them when they make mistakes. There will be some that argue that if we don't pay these amounts, we will be struggling for daily survival and not even have the above points to worry about. But remember that in Singapore's early days, there were men and women who devoted themselves selflessly to building a viable future for all Singaporeans without the promise of such obscene salaries. If we can no longer find such people in Singapore, is there still hope that this country can survive into the future? Has the selection process been manipulated to ignore such people?
This greed has to be stopped now so that all Singaporeans will work together to weather through the stormy seas. Even then, I have a nagging feeling it is too late now.
if we drop the 5 plates of char kway teow analogy and use Mercedes Benzes (MB) to measure the ministers' pay, what would we get? For simplicity's sake, I will use $100K as the price of a MB.
President - >35 MB per year
Prime Minister - >30 MB per year
MM, SM - >25 MB per year
DPM - >20 MB per year
Minister - >10 MB per year
Total = >305 MB per year (and that's not counting in the bonuses and other perks yet)
What's more, they will get a pension (equivalent to 0.5 or 2/3 of their last drawn pay, I forgot which) when they retire.
I think most Singaporeans would be struggling to even earn 0.5 MB a year and have no safety net other than CPF when they retire.
I am just a lowly plebian and I don't think the price is worth it as I measure politicians by how much my needs have been addressed. My needs are as follows:
1) A roof over my head
2) A stable income
3) Education opportunities for my children
4) A less stressful life
5) To retire with dignity
1) HDB flats (cheapest form of housing other than renting) have become less and less affordable.
2) Wages have stagnated and jobs have become scarcer.
3) My children now have to fight for education opportunities with tons of FTs, many of whom get scholarships to study at our tertiary institutions.
4) Even during weekends, there are queues and crowds everywhere, so much so that it is more enjoyable to just stay at home. This wasn't the case 20-30 years ago.
5) What retirement? I would probably be working until I drop dead provided I can still find employment.
Granted that the government is in no position to guarantee most of the points above and I am responsible for my own life, but if they are not there to improve my life and my children's lives, why do I need to pay so much to keep them there? I don't think I need to pay such exorbitant sums of money just to keep the place running (and they can even let Mas Selamat do the Great Escape). Every solution they come up with involves some kind of payment and they wonder why Singaporeans are not thankful and are so eager to curse them when they make mistakes. There will be some that argue that if we don't pay these amounts, we will be struggling for daily survival and not even have the above points to worry about. But remember that in Singapore's early days, there were men and women who devoted themselves selflessly to building a viable future for all Singaporeans without the promise of such obscene salaries. If we can no longer find such people in Singapore, is there still hope that this country can survive into the future? Has the selection process been manipulated to ignore such people?
This greed has to be stopped now so that all Singaporeans will work together to weather through the stormy seas. Even then, I have a nagging feeling it is too late now.
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