Trying to Touch, His Untouchable Money
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DISPUTE OVER EARLY WITHDRAWAL OF CPF
Accountant: I may never work again
Docs: He's fit for work
By Shree Ann Mathavan
October 10, 2006
HE CLAIMED he lost his job as an accountant in May because he is hearing-impaired.
Mr Lim studying the CPF website. He has been to 30 interviews but hasn't found a job. -- KELVIN CHNG
Mr M Lim, 46, said he has acute hearing loss in his left ear and is partially deaf in his right.
Now, the father of two teenage boys is trying to secure early withdrawal of his Central Provident Fund savings for his daily expenses.
In assessing his application, the CPF Board considered a medical report from Alexandra Hospital and another from Raffles Hospital.
A CPF Board spokesman said: 'Both doctors certified Mr Lim as not permanently unfit for any employment. (See report on next page.)
But Mr Lim has another story to tell.
He claimed he has gone for close to 30 interviews in the last five months. But has been unable to land a job.
Mr Lim's problems started about a year ago when he began to lose his hearing.
He would hear loud 'woo' sounds in his left ear which would bug him 'for 24 hours non-stop'.
The situation gradually worsened.
In March, he was diagnosed at Alexandra Hospital with asymmetric hearing loss - which results in different hearing levels between the left and right ears.
Usually this form of hearing loss can be cured if treatment is administered within the first three to four days. Otherwise, recovery may be difficult.
According to a hospital spokesman, Mr Lim suffered a 62.5 per cent hearing loss.
NEW CLAIMS
While speaking to The New Paper, Mr Lim made two other claims.
He said that he suffered a heart attack in mid-September and that he lost his hearing completely at the end of August.
He also claimed to be suffering from a bloated stomach earlier this month.
However, the Alexandra Hospital spokeman said they could not verify these claims as he has not been to the hospital in recent months.
Mr Lim's wife, 48, is also an accountant, while his sons, aged 15 and 17, are in secondary school.
Mr Lim claimed his hearing disability cost him his job as an accountant this year after working for two months at a company.
The company declined to comment on why Mr Lim left.
Mr Lim's last-drawn monthly pay was $3,200. Before this, he earned $4,250 monthly as a finance and administrative manager at a construction company, which has since folded.
He feels his handicap has been a major obstacle in looking for a new job.
'I answered advertisements for accountants or accounts executives. But somehow when I go for the interview, they seem to be able to tell I have a hearing defect.
'I think it's because I say 'excuse me' too many times and I always ask them to repeat what they just said.'
Mr Lim said he can hear when the speaker is standing close to him - but not if that person is 2m or more away.
But during his interview, The New Paper observed that he could carry out a conversation in person even though he did not use a hearing aid.
Why? Because we were seated less than 1m apart, he claimed.
Currently, his wife, who earns about $3,000 a month, is the sole breadwinner.
She declined to speak to us.
They live in a four-room flat in Potong Pasir.
Mr Lim's claimed his savings are now under $10,000.
He estimated that their average monthly household expenditure is around $3,000.
This includes about $600 for both his sons' tuition fees and about another $600 for his maid.
Too extravagant?
Mr Lim said he is keeping his maid only till her contract ends this month.
PUBLIC TRANSPORT
He tries to save, he said, by taking public transport instead of his eight-year-old car.
Why not sell the car then?
Because it will not fetch much, he said.
Instead, he has been trying for the past year to take out his CPF savings from both the ordinary and special accounts - 'easily about $300,000'.
But he can't because he is not yet 55, the minimum age for the withdrawal of CPF.
He is currently using $400 a month from his ordinary account to pay his mortgage, with another 15 years of repayments to go.
That adds up to about $72,000.
PERMANENTLY INCAPACITATED
A CPF Board spokesman said CPF members can apply for early withdrawal only if they are certified by a doctor to be 'permanently incapacitated from ever continuing in any employment, terminally ill or found to be of unsound mind'.
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What CPF Board says
October 10, 2006
A CPF Board spokesman said Mr M Lim's case was reviewed twice.
Besides looking at the medical report from Alexandra Hospital, they sent him to Raffles Hospital for a separate review by a specialist, paid for by the CPF.
The spokesman said: 'Both doctors certified Mr Lim as not permanently unfit for any employment. As such, we have informed Mr Lim that he is not eligible to withdraw his CPF monies early.'
She said if Mr Lim's condition deteriorates, he should provide the board with an updated medical report and his application would be reviewed again.
She added: 'As Mr Lim has indicated that he has difficulty getting a job, we have notified the Singapore Workforce Development Agency to assist him with his job search.' (See report below).
According to the CPF Board's 2005 annual report, the number of early withdrawals due to physical incapacity totalled 646 last year. -
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This is bad but what i am trying to say is is there anyway to enhance his hearing or is it bad to the extend that nothing can be done in terms of medical aid? I know of hearing aid hardware and devices that can be worned to the ear like an in-ear type earphone. But i am not sure how much it costs and if its possible to use his medisave to pay for it. Calibration and maintenance of the device aside it may only be a one-time payment. If the accountant post is a deskbound job having a hearing aid should not affect this guy's ability to perform his duties.
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isnt the law amazing?
you need the board's permission to withdraw your own money.
imagine asking the bank for permission when you try to withdraw 100 dollars from the uniteller.
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Who are they to think they can control how we want to use our money? CPF is even worse than loanshark.
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they should take it on a case to case basis.
knn, if you cant survive now will you be bothered about whether you can survive upon retirement? -
I wonder how much money CPF board really has.Originally posted by dragg:isnt the law amazing?
you need the board's permission to withdraw your own money.
imagine asking the bank for permission when you try to withdraw 100 dollars from the uniteller. -
I feel that the public, SHOULD start questioning our gov about the usefullness and purpose of one's CPF savings.
I urge everyone to write in to the Forum in ST, to the MPs, or to the PM's office and really press them into relooking into their policies governing CPF.
If they don't want to help us, at least let us help ourselves with our own money!
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Bro,Originally posted by ShutterBug:I feel that the public, SHOULD start questioning our gov about the usefullness and purpose of one's CPF savings.
I urge everyone to write in to the Forum in ST, to the MPs, or to the PM's office and really press them into relooking into their policies governing CPF.
If they don't want to help us, at least let us help ourselves with our own money!
Don't forget to send some Se-Hum to LHL & LKY.
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heheheheee...!Originally posted by Lowclassman:Bro,
Don't forget to send some Se-Hum to LHL & LKY.
yah bro with shell still intact.... -
Poor thing, unable to use his own money after working so hard for many years!
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The only way this guy can get his money back is to emigrate. Leave the country and the govt will have no choice but to hand over his money.
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thats indeed the only way.Originally posted by anonymouscoward:The only way this guy can get his money back is to emigrate. Leave the country and the govt will have no choice but to hand over his money. -
With the kind of money in his CPF, and afterall he's qualified and educated, he should seriously consider immigrating out of Singapore.
And I suggest all other locals do likewise if they have what it takes to rebuild their life elsewhere.
Singapore is NOT worth it anymore....
I have similar intentions too.. I can't stand all these CRAP anymore! -
HAHAHA when the docs said that he's fit for employment, they mean foot massueue with pay of $1,800 a month? Or road sweeper or toilet cleaner of $1,000/mth?
How this govt works amazes me
Let me laugh again. HAHAHAHAHA -
This is exactly the position that some contributors believe in retraining - without considering if those who have been retrenched are suited for retraining to upgrade their career, or to downgrade their career plan to head in a different path.Originally posted by Rock^Star:HAHAHA when the docs said that he's fit for employment, they mean foot massueue with pay of $1,800 a month? Or road sweeper or toilet cleaner of $1,000/mth?
How this govt works amazes me
Let me laugh again. HAHAHAHAHA
Is it any use of all the hoopla - splashed across bold headlines in the newspapers - about the 23,000 jobs created, when there is no indication as to where the jobs are to be found, and in which sector of the economy - but some simply boastful vague claims ?
Even if the economic sector is identified, which retrenched sector of Singaporean society will stand to benefit from these newly created jobs ?
The blue colloar or white collar sector ? The managerial or worker level ?
Biomedical or manufacturing or service sectors ?
Many managerial and executive levels have quit from their profession completely, and some have even taken up hawking licenses to operate in HDB hawker centers.
After spending a fortune to graduate from university, and with a wealth of experience at senior management, will the full potential of these 'new highly qualified hawkers' be realised for the benefit to the Singapore ? -
BRAVO! So well said, your Honorary Member!Originally posted by Atobe:This is exactly the position that some contributors believe in retraining - without considering if those who have been retrenched are suited for retraining to upgrade their career, or to downgrade their career plan to head in a different path.
Is it any use of all the hoopla - splashed across bold headlines in the newspapers - about the 23,000 jobs created, when there is no indication as to where the jobs are to be found, and in which sector of the economy - but some simply boastful vague claims ?
Even if the economic sector is identified, which retrenched sector of Singaporean society will stand to benefit from these newly created jobs ?
The blue colloar or white collar sector ? The managerial or worker level ?
Biomedical or manufacturing or service sectors ?
Many managerial and executive levels have quit from their profession completely, and some have even taken up hawking licenses to operate in HDB hawker centers.
After spending a fortune to graduate from university, and with a wealth of experience at senior management, will the full potential of these 'new highly qualified hawkers' be realised for the benefit to the Singapore ?
Everytime I see your red color texts, I find true meaning in this forum! -
Originally posted by Atobe:Is it any use of all the hoopla - splashed across bold headlines in the newspapers - about the 23,000 jobs created, when there is no indication as to where the jobs are to be found, and in which sector of the economy - but some simply boastful vague claims ?
Yeh, propaganda So bloody effective huh?
Many managerial and executive levels have quit from their profession completely, and some have even taken up hawking licenses to operate in HDB hawker centers.
Any stats or articles so that we may refer? Tks. -
Statistics and news articles on such subjects will never be found in any public domain, nor from any official publication.
Seeing the many opening of new eateries at food courts and hawker centres, go up and have a chat, and you will be surprised to learn that the 'white collar' executive have moved into the food industry at the very basic level.
Some, who could not afford to start a shop, will head to a hawker centre to take up a stall space, but with an up-market sounding name for their stall - such as 'Chocolate n Spice'.
Many have sunk their life savings in carving a future for themselves after being forced by circumstances beyond their control, and midway in the shattered lifelong dream-career.