What next? Ministers’ salaries must come down

[Rogue Trader]

What next? Ministers’ salaries must come down: SDP
By Fann Sim | SingaporeScene – Wed, May 18, 2011

SDP chief Chee Soon Juan speaks up about Cabinet changes. (Yahoo! photo/Faris Mokhtar)


Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) chief Chee Soon Juan has called for an across-the-board cut in ministers' salaries in the wake of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's sweeping changes to the Cabinet.

In a media statement, Chee said, "If PM Lee is genuinely contrite and is determined to lead a government that listens to the people, then he will announce an across-the-board reduction in the Ministers' salaries."

He added, "The astronomical wages that the Ministers draw, despite the poor performance of the last government, have caused much anger among Singaporeans", before going on to recommend the PM's salary be reduced to S$60,000 a month and that the "ministers' wages follow accordingly."

PM Lee currently earns an annual salary of S$3,870,000, the highest paid politician in the world.

On the new cabinet appointments, Dr Chee urged Singaporeans to question not who is appointed to which ministry but rather "what policies will emanate from these new ministries."

He gave the example of National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan, who did not reveal the real cost of constructing HDB flats.

"If Mr Khaw Boon Wan.... continues with the Ministry of National Development's policy of not revealing the real costs of constructing HDB flats, Singaporeans will still be in the dark as to how much their flats really cost and how much profit the government is making from HDB sales," said Dr Chee.

He added that being transparent about the costs can lead to better policies that can guide the pricing of HDB flats.

SDP expects newer policies and policy initiatives to be "significantly different" from their predecessors as they should break away from the "politics-as-usual" from the current government.

Community Development, Youth and Sports Minister Dr Vivian Balakrishnan and Minister for Environment and Water Resources Yaacob Ibrahim were specifically singled out by Dr Chee for their poor performance last term.

He raised the question of how the performance and effectiveness of the government can be raised when Ministers are just moved around laterally.
Dr Chee also questioned the roles of Lim Swee Say and S Iswaran, both ministers without portfolio who are assigned to the Prime Minister's Office, and the appointments of second ministers and Ministers of State.

He urged PM Lee to explain why such appointments are needed in the government.

 

[Rogue Trader]

comments

Grateful 22 hours ago Report Abuse
Rotating the ministers among the ministries serve no real purpose unless it's backed by real policies change. For example, what's the point of changing the ministers if housing and public transport remain at status quo. Let's focus on the policies change instead of the person heading the ministries. Minister pay has been an issue because of the apparent lack of performance. I am sure Singaporeans will not mind minister drawing the most obscene pay if we are all living in the swiss standard of living right now. Unfortunately, that's not the case, so ministers should be mindful that while the fellow Singaporeans are struggling hard to cope with the high cost of living, they are completely oblivious of the plight of fellow Singaporeans for the past 5 years. PM Lee, Singaporeans are waiting to see improvements in immigration policies, public housing and public transport. Please work on these 3 immediate areas and you should see at least half the grievances addressed.

 

[longbow]

From talent point of view, I think Ex IMF Boss DSK is extremely qualified but yet the press is harping about how he makes makes US $442K a year which they point out more than what Obama makes.

I think our ministers are way overpaid. Why not just peg their salary to what US pays their President. Then we provide them with a house (one of those black and white bungalows) with 2 maids, car and driver. And that is it.

Most importantly, list everything out. No need to hide. Obama publishes his net worth and annual income.

More transparency lah.


(CNN) -- For Dominique Strauss-Kahn, life inside an 11-foot by 13-foot Rikers Island cell, however temporary, was a major change. For years, Strauss-Kahn had enjoyed every bit of the upper-crust lifestyle, salary and perks that come with his job as managing director of the International Monetary Fund.

According to his contract, Strauss-Kahn's salary in 2010 was $441,980.00. That's more than President Barack Obama makes, and Strauss-Kahn pays no taxes on his income. In addition, Strauss-Kahn receives a yearly allowance of $79,120.00 in monthly installments which, the contract says, comes "... without any certification or justification by you, to enable you to maintain, in the interests of the Fund, a scale of living appropriate to your position as Managing Director."

That's separate from entertainment expenses, which, according to the contract, he's reimbursed for. Travel and hotel expenses, for Strauss-Kahn and his wife, are covered by the IMF. It's in Strauss-Kahn's contract that he and anyone in his family fly first class, whenever he's on official business. Details of Strauss-Kahn's contract are posted on the IMF's website.

 

[steffychun]

From talent point of view, I think Ex IMF Boss DSK is extremely qualified but yet the press is harping about how he makes makes US $442K a year which they point out more than what Obama makes.

I think our ministers are way overpaid. Why not just peg their salary to what US pays their President. Then we provide them with a house (one of those black and white bungalows) with 2 maids, car and driver. And that is it.

Most importantly, list everything out. No need to hide. Obama publishes his net worth and annual income.

More transparency lah.


(CNN) -- For Dominique Strauss-Kahn, life inside an 11-foot by 13-foot Rikers Island cell, however temporary, was a major change. For years, Strauss-Kahn had enjoyed every bit of the upper-crust lifestyle, salary and perks that come with his job as managing director of the International Monetary Fund.

According to his contract, Strauss-Kahn's salary in 2010 was $441,980.00. That's more than President Barack Obama makes, and Strauss-Kahn pays no taxes on his income. In addition, Strauss-Kahn receives a yearly allowance of $79,120.00 in monthly installments which, the contract says, comes "... without any certification or justification by you, to enable you to maintain, in the interests of the Fund, a scale of living appropriate to your position as Managing Director."

That's separate from entertainment expenses, which, according to the contract, he's reimbursed for. Travel and hotel expenses, for Strauss-Kahn and his wife, are covered by the IMF. It's in Strauss-Kahn's contract that he and anyone in his family fly first class, whenever he's on official business. Details of Strauss-Kahn's contract are posted on the IMF's website.

that's real peanuts compared to Singapore's Ministers. DSK's deserves his pay--his responsibilities are far greater than Obama's or Lee's/

 

[steffychun]

From talent point of view, I think Ex IMF Boss DSK is extremely qualified but yet the press is harping about how he makes makes US $442K a year which they point out more than what Obama makes.

I think our ministers are way overpaid. Why not just peg their salary to what US pays their President. Then we provide them with a house (one of those black and white bungalows) with 2 maids, car and driver. And that is it.

Most importantly, list everything out. No need to hide. Obama publishes his net worth and annual income.

More transparency lah.


(CNN) -- For Dominique Strauss-Kahn, life inside an 11-foot by 13-foot Rikers Island cell, however temporary, was a major change. For years, Strauss-Kahn had enjoyed every bit of the upper-crust lifestyle, salary and perks that come with his job as managing director of the International Monetary Fund.

According to his contract, Strauss-Kahn's salary in 2010 was $441,980.00. That's more than President Barack Obama makes, and Strauss-Kahn pays no taxes on his income. In addition, Strauss-Kahn receives a yearly allowance of $79,120.00 in monthly installments which, the contract says, comes "... without any certification or justification by you, to enable you to maintain, in the interests of the Fund, a scale of living appropriate to your position as Managing Director."

That's separate from entertainment expenses, which, according to the contract, he's reimbursed for. Travel and hotel expenses, for Strauss-Kahn and his wife, are covered by the IMF. It's in Strauss-Kahn's contract that he and anyone in his family fly first class, whenever he's on official business. Details of Strauss-Kahn's contract are posted on the IMF's website.

World President earns even less:

http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXT...68445~piPK:64168309~theSitePK:2838572,00.html

 

[Rogue Trader]

The minister salary level is one of the worst damages Pap had done to this country after GE2006. The fucking bill was drafted and passed in parliament without any debate. WTF?

The people must take PAP to task about this issue.