My thoughts on Ministerial Pay Hike

I was utterly wrong. I have been harbouring this thought that the PAP government will not announce a 2^nd ministerial pay hike but they did as “promised” in the end.

In my previous post “Glory for Nation or Money”, I mentioned many people are unhappy with the rising cost of living and the few unpopular policies (Annuity Scheme, GST Hike etc) that were announced some time ago and the ruling elites are running a risk of losing that delicate “bond” with Singaporeans. So I wonder, why would they even think of pushing through with the 2^nd wave of ministerial pay hike now?

To be frank, I cannot accept the government’s repeated justification that it must pay high to match the average salary of the top 8 professions’ earners to attract and retain talents in the government. As many bloggers have pointed out, if there is a need to entice potential candidates of ministerial quality with huge monetary rewards to join the government, it might as well be better for these people to remain where they are in the private sector as serving the nation is ultimately different from “serving” shareholders.

But why is the government unable to attract and retain talents? I think the main reason is not because good people are put off by the “low ministerial salaries”. Neither is it because good people dislike PAP. It is a problem with Singaporeans who are generally politically apathetic, unpatriotic and greedy. Imagine if we have the entire population who is truly concerned about the running of the country, theoretically there would be more elites who are willing to serve the nation whether or not the government provides huge monetary rewards.

What we need to do now is not to continue increasing ministerial salaries to obscene levels but to make more Singaporeans engage in discussions on social issues. When more people care about what’s going on in Singapore, surely some of them would feel the urge to come forward to do something about the problems that the country faces. An active citizenry is important for the survival of Singapore in the competitive world of the 21^st century.

The new ministerial pay structure can be found on The Straits Times "Ministers, top civil servants to get 4% to 21% pay rise in Jan"

Earlier payouts may win more Singaporeans over to annuity: SM

The government has responded positively to the grouses of the people to suggest bringing down the payout age from 85 to 80. But this does come with a price or should I say an additional cost. - a higher premium. At the moment, we still do not know how high this extra premium is going to be and I wonder if the extra cost(less the cost of inflation) could be offset by the total actual monthly payout after adjusting the cost of inflation for the 5-year period from a person's 80th birthday to the last day of his 84th year of age. I seriously hope the government is not trying to fool the public this time.

The following extract was obtained from Straits Times Interactive:

Singaporeans would be more likely to support the proposed compulsory annuity scheme if they are able to obtain a payout at an earlier age. And the 'earlier age' for payouts for the longevity insurance, suggested Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong on Sunday, could possibly be 80, instead of the proposed 85. He said if people could draw on their annuities a few years earlier, they would likely overcome the 'psychological mental block' they now have towards it.

He was speaking at the third graduation ceremony of the Young-at-Heart! (Yah!) Community College, which promotes lifelong learning among senior citizens. He said in his speech in Mandarin: 'The proposed age is 85, but I am glad that the Minister for Manpower is prepared to be flexible on the payout age for the longevity insurance. I personally think 80 years will be a good alternative.'

Manpower Minister Ng Eng Hen, who was at another event on Sunday, responding to SM Goh's suggestion, said he thought it was a good one, and noted that the committee set up by his ministry would be asked to consider payouts at different ages because people had different needs - some wanted payouts earlier, and some, later.

The idea of a compulsory longevity insurance - an annuity scheme that will make payouts to Singaporeans from age 85 till their death - was mooted by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong during his National Day Rally speech this year.

Under the scheme, all Central Provident Fund (CPF) members must buy an annuity at age 55 with a small portion of their CPF Minimum Sum. They will then get a monthly payout of between $250 and $300 once their Minimum Sum runs out at age 85. These payouts would help cover their needs if they outlive their CPF savings. Many people - unconvinced that they will live past 85 - have not been persuaded on the need for it. The committee set up to address these concerns and look at proposals will put out a report in about five months.