Prime News
SM's call to wealthy: Give 0.5% of annual pay to needy
Li Xueying & Ken Kwek
608 words
3 February 2007
Straits Times
English
(c) 2007 Singapore Press Holdings Limited
He hopes Singapore will one day become a country known for philanthropy
THIS is a call from Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong: If you are wealthy, donate at least 0.5 per cent of your annual income to help the needy.
Mr Goh made it yesterday, saying he hoped Singapore will one day become a country known for philanthropy.
'I hope that one day, Singapore will earn the honour of being a 'Giving Society',' he told about 80 members of Singapore's well-to-do community at a dinner to mark the opening of the refurbished Singapore Cricket Club (SCC).
To be such a society, philanthropic leaders are needed, said SM Goh, citing Microsoft founder Bill Gates and his wife Melinda, and former United States president Bill Clinton.
While many wealthy Singaporeans have set up their own foundations to benefit society, SM Goh urged more to take philanthropy a notch higher.
'I hope that more high net-worth individuals would put aside at least half per cent of their annual income to help others and worthwhile causes,' he said.
High net-worth individuals are commonly defined as those with at least US$1 million (S$1.5 million) in liquid assets.
For a person making $1 million a year, 0.5 per cent would amount to $5,000.
In applauding SM Goh's suggestion, the well-heeled interviewed last night said they were already doing it.
One of them is lawyer Adrian Tan, 40, who gives to the Catholic Church and Kidney Dialysis Foundation. He said: 'Half a per cent is not enough. It should be more.'
'It's a question of luck whether we make money or not. But it's a question of ethics as to whether we share what we make,' he added.
In his speech, SM Goh also referred to recent charity scandals, including the National Kidney Foundation saga.
He said: 'It is unfortunate that Singapore charities have been recently given a bad name because of the abuses and excesses of a few people.
'But we should not stop giving just because of this.'
There remain many people and good charities that require help, he stressed. Leading by example, SM Goh announced that he has started his own charity golf tournament, called the GCT ChariTee Invitational, with 13 close friends.
Each will invite one guest, with each donating $5,000, making it a total of $140,000 for an afternoon of golf.
Appropriately, SM Goh was bestowed the rare title of 'Visitor' by the SCC yesterday - in part due to his 'care and compassion for the less privileged members of society', said club president Anwarul Haque.
In the club's 155-year history, the title has been given to only one other person: Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew. That was in 1970.
The SM also called on private clubs such as the SCC to reach out to new citizens. Drawing laughter, he quipped: 'The Chinese from China are probably not the clubbing type, but I think many Indians are.
'Who knows? The Indians may even strengthen your cricket team!'
Turning serious, Mr Goh noted that countries are competing more for creative and entrepreneurial talent, people who are 'crucial to Singapore's long-term prosperity'.
Besides making them feel at home through social interactions at the clubs, Singapore values can also be imparted.
'These are values such as tolerance and inclusiveness, which have bound our multiracial, multi-lingual and multi-religious society together,' he said.
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