Government Says Welfare Should not be a Crutch
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... First World and World Class aren't we?
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Singapore's poor turn to temples to fill bellies
Fri, Jun 06, 2008
Reuters
SINGAPORE - WEARING a pair of worn grey slippers and dirty Bermuda shorts, Mr Quek hungrily chews mouthfuls of free vegetarian noodles on the second-level canteen of a Singapore temple.The unemployed 31-year-old is one of many Singaporeans increasingly turning to free meals at temples to fill their stomachs, as surging global commodity prices hurt, even in a country that is one of the richest in Asia.
The Singapore Buddhist Lodge, where Mr Quek eats every day, is now serving up to 5,000 people on weekends. It has seen a 30 per cent rise this year in the number of people coming for meals, as well as a rise in donations.
'We saw the increase happen when the markets started to go bad and inflation started rising,' said Mr Lee Bock Guan, the temple's president. The Buddhist Lodge cooks about 400 kg of rice every day and up to 10 vegetarian dishes to serve to the masses.Long lines of strained faces wait inside to scoop up ladles of rice, noodles and stir-fried dishes. They then stand next to walls to shovel in the food if they can't find a spot at packed tables.
Most are elderly or labourers, in a country that has the second highest GDP per capita in Asia after Japan but ranks alongside the Philippines and Guatemala for income disparity.
Singapore says combating inflation, at a 26-year high, is a priority and the government is worried about a widening income gap. A dozen opposition party members were arrested earlier this year for protesting about rising prices.
The government says welfare should not be a crutch and there are no food subsidies, unemployment benefit or minimum wage.
Buddhist, Christian, Taoist and Sikh organisations in Singapore give out free food to help the poor. The country is 54 per cent Buddhist, 13 per cent Christian and 15 per cent Muslim.
Kong Meng San Phor Kark See Monastery, which gives free meals to about 200 people daily, has also seen a rise in numbers.
'We don't count how much it has gone up, we just keep cooking. Once one batch is finished, we keep refilling,' said Mr Sheng Hua, spokesman for the monastery.
Food prices have been a key driver of Singapore's annual inflation hitting 7.5 per cent, the highest since 1982. Global rice, corn and wheat prices have all hit records this year.
'I have no choice. You go outside and eat, food now is very expensive. Here it's free so I can save a bit of money,' Mr Quek told reporters.
At the Central Sikh Temple, which serves free vegetarian Indian meals to 600 daily, the rising cost of food is affecting handouts.
'Our costs have doubled since last year. We are already curtailing the number of hours we give away food. We will have to be more prudent - if it really gets out of hand, we may have to reduce further,' said Mr Dilbagh Singh, vice president of Central Sikh Gurdwara Board.
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Just because the govt is afraid that a few black sheep will take advantage of social welfare, the genuine ones have to suffer for it.
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31 years old? Hold your horses. That's 1977, why is he unemployed and living off food from temples?
Sorry, for this I have to be hard hearted a little- while I emphatize with the poor and all, why doesn't he have a home to cook food in? I myself don't eat out, but pack food from home. At the most I just buy drinks outside.
Is this a genuine case of people who are poor or just someone kiasu trying to cut even more costs and living off charities?
Is he really that disadvantaged?
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The very kind PM called Lee Hsien Loong has more than twice mentioned that he is not making Singapore a welfare state. It is not too much for the people to expect some help from the govt during bad times.
Much is taken from the society, so when it is time to help, just do their part as govt and provide help to lighten the load. What is so difficult?
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I do agree with the PAP that Singapore should be prudent in giving welfare to her citizens.
But but but...
Being a wealthy nation, sure the government can afford to give some welfare in times of escalating inflation. The PAP is so stingy that, in my opinion, they only care about their own pockets and not the citizens.
They only give out monetary aid during election time. And after election, they will take back even more in all sort of ridiculous ways.
Certainly the PAP government can do something more to lessen the burden of ordinary Singaporeans, who have slog so hard just to survive. They can cut ERP rate, do away with petrol tax etc and other unnecessary charges/taxes.
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My heart bleeds when I read stuff like this.
How can LHL sleep at night ?
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Originally posted by jojobeach:
My heart bleeds when I read stuff like this.
How can LHL sleep at night ?
Of course our "capable" PM leehsienloong can sleep well at night. Singapore is run like a business, we are all employees and our bosses are PAP. In business, what matters is profit making. Businessmen will not be able to sleep when business is not doing well, company about to face bankruptcy and other related reasons we can think of.
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Originally posted by HyperFocal:
The government says welfare should not be a crutch and there are no food subsidies, unemployment benefit or minimum wage.
don't want to subsidise.....nvmdon't want to give unemployment benefits.....nvm
but whats wrong with having a minimum wage? at least the person is willing to look for a job.
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Originally posted by alwaysdisturbed:
don't want to subsidise.....nvmdon't want to give unemployment benefits.....nvm
but whats wrong with having a minimum wage? at least the person is willing to look for a job.
Minmum wage is counter productive to lowering unemployment in the lower income group.
They need to STOP the INFLUX of foreigners !!!
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Originally posted by jojobeach:
Minmum wage is counter productive to lowering unemployment in the lower income group.
They need to STOP the INFLUX of foreigners !!!
I agree with you, there definitely needs to be a stop to inflow of foreign workers. -
Originally posted by Civilgoh:
Of course our "capable" PM leehsienloong can sleep well at night. Singapore is run like a business, we are all employees and our bosses are PAP. In business, what matters is profit making. Businessmen will not be able to sleep when business is not doing well, company about to face bankruptcy and other related reasons we can think of.
He must hate Singaporeans so much.
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Is it not ironical that the Government should be afraid that social welfare become a crutch for needy Singaporeans,
but do not see the MILLION DOLLAR wages as a crutch for Ministers not to be corrupted ?
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I've posted the following article by Tan Kin Lian in another thread, and these are things our 'big hearted goverment' can do, but refuses to.. for fear of losing money.
So, they've now accumulated much wealth... but is anyone benefitting? Basically, are people cared for in the REAL sense?
Answer is a Flat No.
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Giving equal access to social benefits
4 June 2008
Tan Kin Lian
A Government needs to collect sufficient tax to pay the expenses of running the country and to provide the social benefits to its citizens.
The tax should be collected fairly from the citizens. Those with higher incomes should pay more tax. A high income earner should pay more tax willingly. It is better to earn more and pay more tax, rather than be in the opposite situation.
After paying a higher amount of tax, the high income earner should be entitled to the same social benefits as other citizens. They do not expect to receive more social benefits, but they should not be given less.
I am against means testing for subsidized health care. I believe that all citizens should be entitled to education, safety, security and the other benefits of living in Singapore, including access to subsidized health care.
We should avoid the requirement for people to provide proof and be labeled as “poor” in order to receive subsidized health care. It is best that this type of classification be avoided.
Type of Housing
The Government now distributes budget surpluses to the citizens in some years, based on income tax level or type of housing.
I prefer the distribution to be made equally to all citizens or be based on objective criteria such as age or number of members in the family.
There is some inequity in distributing the benefits based on type of housing. Some retirees have little or no income, but live in private properties bought at a low price many years ago. Some live in the private property as tenants, not owners. These people are not as well-off as the owners.
We also have the cases where the residents of HDB flats own expensive cars and are quite wealthy. They enjoy the higher payouts based on their type of housing.
It may be argued by the proponents of the current method of distribution that the percentage of odd cases (i.e. those who receive more or less than they should be entitled to) is small. Nonetheless, it is better to avoid this anomaly entirely.
Types of taxes
I prefer a system of taxation where more revenue is collected from income tax. Those who earn more, pay more tax.
In recent years, there has been a move to shift taxation from income tax to consumption tax, which is known as goods and services tax (GST) in Singapore. GST has increased the cost of living for everyone and has hit the lower income people hardest.
I hope that the GST will not be increased further from the current level. If possible, it should be reduced to 5 percent or lower. If more tax revenue is required, it can be collected from income tax, property tax and other sources.
Minimum Wage
I recent years, the low wage earners in Singapore are hit hard from two sources – lower wages due to competition from the influx of foreign workers and a higher cost of living.
It is time for us to consider the need for all workers to be given a minimum wage that will allow them to earn enough for a hard day’s work to maintain a basic standard of living for the family. A lower minimum wage can apply for foreign workers, but as the foreign worker’s levy is deducted, their net wage will be lower.
A minimum wage will raise the operating cost for some businesses. The business can still be made competitive through lower rents, levies and a lower profit margin (but still attractive to the investor). If wages are raised to the minimum, it is likely that there is less demand for business premises. This will lead to lower rentals that will offset the higher wages.
Foreign Investments
The low corporate tax strategy is aimed at attracting foreign investments into Singapore. We should examine some of its negative impact.
I observe that some foreign investors set up businesses in Singapore but depend heavily on low cost foreign workers. These businesses create few jobs for Singaporeans. They create a high social cost – depressed wages of local workers, congestion in housing and public transport and changes to the social fabric.
We have also attracted many wealthy foreigners to bring large sums of money into Singapore. They increase the prices of private property to levels that are not affordable to most citizens.
Low interest rate
Even the money brought into Singapore by foreign investors has a negative impact on Singaporeans. They cause interest rate to be at a low level, among the lowest in the world. The low interest rate means less interest income on the savings of Singaporeans, especially the retired persons. The low interest rate makes it difficult for them to have a sufficient income to meet the cost of living.
Conclusion
Our past economic strategy has contributed to the economic success of Singapore. They have also contributed to social problems. Some of these problems have not been understood or analysed.
I believe that a system of higher corporate and income taxes, and lower consumption tax (i.e. GST) may be more beneficial to citizens and permanent residents living in Singapore.
We also need to review the current policy on “means testing” and also the manner of distributing budget surpluses based on type of housing. I prefer a system of equal access to the social benefits. I hope that these issues can now be considered.
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Originally posted by jojobeach:
He must hate Singaporeans so much.
FAther and son seem to use Singaporeans as money making tools. -
Once the dad goes away, how will the son be able to weather the storm? Will he rule with a equally or greater iron fist?
They need to start considering that young people, people like my friends, people who aren't even legal to vote yet. They are not even considering MIW as a worthy group to vote for.
The new generations of Singaporeans, will see to the end.
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Originally posted by Agenda:
Once the dad goes away, how will the son be able to weather the storm? Will he rule with a equally or greater iron fist?
They need to start considering that young people, people like my friends, people who aren't even legal to vote yet. They are not even considering MIW as a worthy group to vote for.
The new generations of Singaporeans, will see to the end.
That is encouraging to know.
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It's encouraging to know that the temples have sufficient donations to feed the poor.
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Originally posted by kramnave:
It's encouraging to know that the temples have sufficient donations to feed the poor.
But with the increasing cost of rice and other staples, it's going to put a strain on their resources.
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everything is a privilege. =)
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Originally posted by kramnave:
It's encouraging to know that the temples have sufficient donations to feed the poor.
End up it's the people (donation) helping the poorer people. -
Originally posted by 333225520:
End up it's the people (donation) helping the poorer people.
... Hokkien described it as:"Sia-suay lang eh cheng-hu..."
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Originally posted by HyperFocal:
... Hokkien described it as:"Sia-suay lang eh cheng-hu..."
All money talk, all money action, during bad times it is "you die your business". Dear Lee Hsien Loong said more than twice that he is not making Singapore a welfare state. People have more respect for temples and other religious organisations than the PAP gahmen. -
i don't know what a govt is for when nothing is done to alleviate the problems the citizens are facing due to the rising food cost. its not like people cowbehcowbu yet can still afford things. now, there are statistics to show.
so much for being so proud of our reserves. we have 1 less issue to worry which is natural disasters, yet so much reserves are lingering for what. yea, there are sars and epidemics. but there are people that can't even survive now.
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where are the pap supporters..?
no familiar nicknames here?
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Originally posted by purpledragon84:
where are the pap supporters..?
no familiar nicknames here?
Wait for DeerHunter lor, the one who told me not to infringe his freedom of expression when I merely told him not to be rude.