When money 'chiat buay leow'

Genting Chairman Lim Kok Thay's leadership puts our PAP Ministers to shame

June 22nd, 2019

I was most impressed that Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay, Chairman and CEO of Genting Malaysia, has announced during an AGM on 19 June 2019 that he will be voluntarily taking a 20% pay cut in the face of an increased in gaming taxes from 25% to 35% and a decline in business performance.
That was not wayang. There was no need for him to wayang. That was true Leadership. A 20% pay cut will translate to about RM$10 million.

Now, look at the PAP government. Not too long ago, Goh Chok Tong even had the audacity and cheek to publicly lamented that PAP Ministers are not paid enough despite them getting from our taxpayers, in a very small population, the highest political salaries anywhere in the world!

To add insult to injury, he was also quoted as saying that those who earn under S$500,000 annually in the private sector are mediocre. Senior Counsel Edwin Tong was quoted that his many tens of thousands of dollars in monthly political salaries were also tough on him because he has to support his in-laws too etc. I wonder if he is aware that there are too many married men out there earning much, much lesser than him and are also supporting their in-laws too?....


The above is part of an article posted in TRE by Simon Lim. It reflects on the hypocrisies and realities of people with too much money and some crying money not enough while some knew that it is near insanity to keep wanting more. Sure, the more the merrier, so many said so. Who want not want to have more money?

The pursuit of money for the sake of money, or to have more money than your neighbour would lead to no end. There would come a time when people get an awakening and realise enough is enough. Maybe those with so much money need not feel shameful that their neighbours are earning many times more, need not have to compare with others that are earning millions everyday.

Many people really have money chiat buay leow, depending on their lifestyle, that they could do something more interesting in their lives, more meaning and satisfying than chasing for more money.

Lim Kok Thay is one of them, so is Donald Trump. And there are many in China, including those in top political office and the new rich that regard national pride more than anything else.

When money not enough, it is fair and normal to want more, but up to a point when more money could become quite meaningless in the sense of diminishing return, so much more for what?

When one has only 20 or so years to live, many only a handful of years to live, how much more is needed when one already have millions and dunno what to do with the money?

And there is Mr Oon of Tian Tian Lai chicken rice stall at Maxwell. He also has money chiat buay leow in his own way. Different people have different definition of money chiat buay leow. Some earning millions and still money not enough. Read this as reported in theindependent.sg,


Singapore—Kindness and support come in many ways indeed. For one food stall owner, helping the country’s elderly comes in the form of 100 free plates of Hainanese chicken rice every Wednesday for seniors of the Pioneer Generation, Singaporeans born on or before December 31, 1949.

“The government does it their way, I do my own”, said Mr Oon who owns Uncle Sky (Tian Tian Lai) Singapore Hainanese Chicken Rice at Maxwell Food Centre, stalls #01 and 02.

Not only that, Mr Oon does his part for the Merdeka Generation as well. Every single day, both the Merdeka and the Pioneer Generation are given a whopping 50 per cent discount on the chicken rice dish at his stall. This means, instead of paying S$3, the members of the Pioneer and Merdeka Generations only pay S$1.50 for a delicious meal.

Seniors get a numbered card with which they can claim their meal at Tian Tian Lai—a card that allows them to have not just one but two meals a day.

Mr Oon says he will make the daily discount available until “the stall is no longer around”.