the magic of GST

I think either we are entering a phase of creative thinking or creative accounting on a national level. And I must say that the ordinary people need to be very creative and ingenius to break down all the old ideas and concepts and to embrace all the new thinkings. We need a new curriculum on National Education to educate the people on what is good for them. The GST increase is good for the poor and the lower middle income. Today Teo Chee Hean said that it is also good for the middle income and higher income groups because they can expect higher pay rise. This I definitely believe. Just a 5% or 10% pay rise will not only absorb all the 2% GST but will also be enough to go for a few more holidays. Now isn't this GST a magical formula? It is good for the low income, lower middle income, middle income and higher income. Actually it is good for everyone. Now why are the people so angry, so frighten and so delirious over such a good thing? And one thing for sure, we need not worry about competiting with other countries on labour cost. We are going to raise our labour cost, and wages are going up. Now the 4 million smiles are going to come true. Good times are here.

myth 93

'Raising GST is bad for the people' According to Hsien Loong, raising the GST by another 2% will help the lower income Singaporeans, make their lives better and close the income gap. So raising GST cannot be bad for the people. Singapore has found another great formula on how to improve the lives of its poorer citizens through higher taxes. I am so fascinated by it and can't wait for the secret formula to be revealed.

The devil to the rescue

The devil to the rescue Below are some extracts from the Daily Telegraph, UK. 'In his speech at the Guildhall last night, Tony Blair presented the outline of his plan for a new settlement in Iraq....Iran and Syria would be offered privileged status in resolving the future of Iraq, even though they have previously been regarded as serious obstacles to peace in the Middle East, and in the case of Iran, the most prolific sponsor of terrorism in the West.' Aren't Syria and Iran two of the three Axis of Evil? My god, I have heard of sleeping with the enemy. Now it is sleeping with the devil! Blair must have rubbed off something from Bush.

independent directors need to be independent

Independent Directors need to be independent The issue of Independent Directors and corporate governance is in the headline again. It will continue to be a problem if there is no political will to make sure that independent directors are really independent. The existence of independent directors is in conflict with their appointments to company boards. Why would companies want to appoint independent directors to watch over them? They would all go for compliant or friendly directors that will not rock the boat. What is badly needed is for an independent body to appoint independent directors to company boards, independent from the companies. I have proposed this and even volunteered my service to SIAS. My suggestion to David Gerald is to seek MAS or SGX authorisation for SIAS to be the independent body for this role. SIAS has all the reasons to ensure that independent directors are independent and will look after the interest of the companies and minority shareholders' interest. I am still available to take on this task if there is a real interest to pursue this concept. I have been waiting for almost two years on this matter. And things are getting uglier by the day.

singaporeans to celebrate increase in GST!

Lower Income Singaporeans can celebrate rise in GST! The main reason for this increase in GST is to help the lower income Singaporeans, to close the income gap, to make their lives better. For closing the income gap, this can be simply dismissed. It is hardly a drop in the ocean. Forget it. There are 330,000 Singaporeans earning less than $1500 a month, bearly making ends meet. I believe this is the group that will be helped most. There should be better off because of the GST. This is the first time that some Singaporeans, or the lower income Singaporeans can celebrate on a rise in GST. How can they benefit and be better off? Assuming they spend every cent they earned, all $1500, which is very likely, a 2% increase means they will need to pay $30 more per month on their consumption. All things being equal, the govt needs to reimburse them $30 just to break even. For them to benefit from the GST increase, the sum to be given to them must be more than $30, maybe $50. This is hardly going to make a difference to their lives as money is hardly enough. Most are living on a monthly deficit. A more decent sum should be $100 a month. This may help them a little to cover some of the debt or things they have been skimping on. At $100 pm for 330,000 Singaporeans, this will work out to be $1200 x 330,000 or $396 million annually for as long as the 2% GST is in force. For the GST can only go away if it is cut. If not, they will have to bear the burden of this increase for the rest of their lives, an increase to make their lives better. The problem is the lower middle income group, maybe another 500,000 Singaporeans in this category. Say they be given the same amount, that will come to $600 million. If the total collection is $1.5 billion, there will still be a surplus of $500 million to go around. Now, will the lower income and lower middle income benefit from this GST increase? This just sounds too good to be true. What is the catch?