Precisely, what is REALLY on people's minds?
Estate Upgrading "they" think???
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What's on people's minds?
After three days of campaigning, are voters worked up about any election issues? The New Paper did a straw poll of 150 people at rallies and elsewhere to find out
By Clarence Chang, Maureen Koh and Ng Hui Hui
May 02, 2006
IS there a single burning issue in this election?
Is it estate upgrading?
No.
Surprise, surprise, this was cited by only 14 per cent of those who said they have strong feelings about issues.
Instead, there's greater concern about the cost of living and jobs.
The two factors were cited by 64 per cent of those who said they have strong feelings about issues.
These concerns were mentioned by PM Lee Hsien Loong at Woodlands Stadium rally last night, even as The New Paper was conducting its street poll.
The Government, he said, has spent a lot of time studying what it means when Singaporeans say the cost of living has gone up.
He cited four main factors that fueled such a perception: Globalisation, utility charges, rising medical costs and changes in spending habits.
To people like 34-year-old teacher Serene Koh, the rise of living costs has to be seen in relation to the past: 'Lifestyles have improved tremendously compared to the time when I grew up in a kampung. Back then, a electric fan was already considered a luxury, now we have air-cons.'
For Madam Fazidah Daud, 40, the rising cost of living is something she and her husband are struggling to deal with daily.
She said: 'Previously, for my family of five, $2,000 was enough.
'Now it cannot even last us two weeks. The minute we get our pay, everything goes out.'
Unemployment rates may be at a low of 2.6 per cent but there are those who worry about their jobs and making ends meet.
Said Mr C S Ng, 50, who is self-employed: 'I'm concerned about jobs for people, especially the 'sandwich' generation. We need to find the money to support our parents as well as to take care of our children's education, and then continue to deal with rising costs.'
WORRIED
The economy has picked up, but the rise of economic giants like China and India both sheds light and casts a shadow.
Said taxi driver Tan Chee Leng, 45: 'I'm worried about jobs for my two children who will be starting work in a few years.
'I hear China is taking away investors and I fear the jobs ill disappear too.'
Upgrading of estates is often a hot topic at rallies and walkabouts, but is there another side to consider?
A 42-year-old father of two who declined to be identified said: 'Has anyone ever stopped to consider whether upgrading can create a vicious circle?
'Whenever you upgrade markets or food centres, the rental costs may go up, the food costs may go up and then your cost of living goes up as well.'
PM Lee, addressing cost of living concerns, acknowledged last night that electricity bills have gone up. It is something beyond Singapore's control.
'I think more than 30 per cent over the last couple of years,' he said at the rally. 'It's not because of anything which we have done as a Government, but because worldwide energy prices have gone up, oil prices have gone up.'
On medical costs, he said: 'S'poreans are growing older, they need more medical treatment. They are also demanding better treatment. But better treatment is often more expensive treatment.'
Finally, spending habits have changed. 'I mentioned handphones just now. I asked for a show of hands. A lot of hands went up...
'But it is not just handphones. Nearly three-quarters of homes now have air-cons. The air-cons cost money. To run the air-cons, electricity costs money, a lot of money, $2 a night.
'So we want to be comfortable, we do not want to sweat, be sweaty, we want to have a better life, but it means that we have to spend more, it means our costs have gone up.'
PM Lee said: 'What you cannot do is to prevent the change, to hold back the globalisation and to hope that we can go back to where we used to be.'
