A time to repent

Many people go to church on Sunday. Some go to seek comfort some to confess and some to repent. The recent uproar on the development of the CPF schemes particularly on the retention of the people’s life time savings is being felt the wrong way by many affected CPF members. Many in the social media are speaking out on something they know isn’t right. And a young man, Roy Ngerng, is now in hot soup for stating his case too strong and rubbing Hsien Loong the wrong way.

The Govt has been making a lot of changes to the CPF schemes on the ground that they are the elected representatives of the people, the lawmakers and thus bestowed to the to make whatever changes they deemed necessary, all legally under the law. No MPs or Ministers have spoken firmly against the changes, presumably agreeing that there is nothing wrong with the changes. No one questions the legality of it all, assuming that everything done is legal as long as the Govt says so, absolutely legal.

From the aspects of ethics and morality, from the angle of equity and fairness, from the point of social justice, is there no wrong about keeping the people’s life time savings away from them and deciding what to do with them without their consent and changing the date of withdrawal, with some in the Medisave Minimum Sums that may not be withdrawal at all unless the member is seriously ill or hospitalised. Otherwise the money would go to his beneficiary without him enjoying it after saving it for a lifetime.

The silence or lack of objection by the Ministers and MPs is as good as all agrees to the changes, all supports the changes and all does not see anything wrong with all the changes. Many have voted to the changes, but many changes were not even discussed or addressed in Parliament. Whether the Ministers and MPs voted in support of the changes in the CPF Schemes or simply abstained, without saying no to the changes when they can, they are all in it, all in support of the changes, tacitly, reluctantly, grudgingly or willingly.

I am just wondering if any Minister or MP has any misgivings about the changes to the CPF Schemes. Do their conscience prick them when the people are kept away from withdrawing their savings on reaching the age of 55 and henceforth a higher age to be introduced over the years? Nothing wrong about it, nothing wrong with the meddling of the people’s lifetime savings against their wishes, without their consent? In all fairness and with one hand touching the heart, does anyone of them think they have the right to mess around with other people’s money, the money that people saved over a lifetime, to act as if they are the guardian angels vested with the power to do as they want, inventing more and more schemes while the people getting angrier and angrier?

Can these people sleep well? Or can these people say they have nothing to do with the changes, that they too did not agree with the changes? Can they be excused or be guilt free when they are the elected people’s representatives and could do something about it but did nothing? All 87 MPs and Ministers are saying yes to all the schemes or not saying no while they people’s money slips further and further from their fingers. It is perfectly ok to mess around with other people's life savings.

Kopi Level - Yellow

What is happening to our CPF savings

Roy Ngerng got into trouble with Hsien Loong over the issue of CPF savings. Though the pertinent point in his trespass was about an allegation of corruption, the origin came from the heated arguments on why the Govt is adamant to hold back the people’s saving for an ever and ever longer period. There is a perception, rightly or wrongly, that the Govt is unable to return the people’s saving when they hit 55, now not even that, but at 62, 65 or even later.

This return of the people’s saving to their owners has never been an issue up to some time in year 2000. The older generations have no problem getting their money back and thus it was a non issue. It started to become an issue after that with the problem and irritation increasing in momentum. For those in their 60s, not all were able to withdraw all their savings when they reached 55. But the sum retained by the CPF under all the new minimum sums and medisave schemes were bearable. They grudgingly took whatever they could and saw a small chunk of their money becoming untouchable. Some have no issues with the retention as they will get higher interest rate of 4%. Some were against the retention on grounds of principle that no govt should be allowed to use legislation to keep the people’s saving against their will. Compulsion is unacceptable and unethical even if the intention was good and the interest rate was higher.

Today, with the combined minimum sums hitting $200,000, this is no small change, the anger mounted. It is just too much to bear. And for the younger generations, they could expect the sum to go even higher with some projecting the sums to hit $500,000 in years to come, or more. Eventually, the net effect is that there is no pot of gold at the end of the rainbow after a life time of intense savings.

The other troubling thought is that the Govt has mismanaged the funds and is now caught in a situation that it is unable to return the money to the people. Some even imagined that the CPF vault is empty. These are just perceptions of the people who have money in the CPF. The truth may be the reverse, that the CPF is full of money, safe and sound and could return all the money when due and there is really nothing to worry about. All the sleepless nights are unnecessary and a waste of time.

How then could the Govt convince the people that the money is safe and well? All the schemes to retain the people’s money, the shifting of the goal posts, are telling the people all is not well. You cannot blame the people from thinking so. Can the Govt come out and assure the people, with clear and unquestionable facts and figures to prove beyond doubt that the money is there? The Govt has to do something about this to quell the suspicion and loss of confidence by the people on this matter. Not explaining and clearing the doubts of the people will not do and will only increase the simmering unease of the people. Roy Ngerng and Han Hui Hui and all the speakers will have a lot of things to say and a lot of questions to ask at Hong Lim Park on 7 June.

If, ‘sway sway’, the suspicion is true, that because of the huge long term investments, the assets cannot be easily liquidated to repay the CPF members, or if what the people feared, that a lot of money had been wiped away by bad investments, and there is an urgent need to kick the can further down the road and hoping that the investment will turn good in the long run, it would be better to face the truth and tell the people about it. Living in denial when there is a big hole to patch is a bad idea. It is worse if, trying to live with a lie, the Govt continues to put on a false front that all is well, and can still afford to throw money around like a rich philanthropist. The Govt is very rich and can give and give and give, to the NSmen’s CPF, more subsidies, more funds to international organisations, more overseas investments like there is unlimited supply of funds in the Govt’s treasury.

If, I say, if, the situation is dire, it is better to start on a belt tightening policy and cut waste, cut wasteful spending on the unnecessary, throwing parties costing millions all over the world, non stop celebrations on every excuse to show that we have the money to spend, we are very rich but cannot repay the CPF members when due.

Until the Govt stop devising more schemes to keep the people’s CPF savings for as long as the Govt needs to, the people is going to see these schemes in a different light. The Govt needs a confidence building measure exercise to assure the masses that all is really fine. And one thing it can do is to stop all these schemes and start to return the money to the people. If it cannot do so, it is better to stop spending furiously on parties and to give generously when the people are asking for their money back.

What is the truth? Who knows? The people can only postulate, imagine or guess from the actions of the Govt and its policies on the CPF money. The ball is now in the Govt’s court. There is a lot of explanations and proof to convince the people not to worry. And it is not just about how good and well is the communication or the way it is said. It is about the hard truth and facts and figures, and nothing less. No PR exercise is good enough to avoid from telling the truth.

Kopi Level - Green

An easy solution to appease the unhappiness of NSmen

Front page news today on a slew of incentives to make NSmen feel appreciated short of a ‘love letter’ when love is in the air. Actually the solution is so simple and no need to have so many complicated schemes that mean really nothing. Money into CPF to be used to pay for what, no need to guess. One hand gives and another takes.
 
Everyone, especially NSmen and their families, knows how big the sacrifices are from an NSman to the country. It is a life time commitment and a life time irritation and disruption to their lives and the lives of their loved ones, provided nothing bad happens to them when performing their NS duties. No need to think about those being incapacitated or died in NS. No amount of money can compensate them and their families for the loss.
 
Can these sacrifices be equated to the sacrifices of ministers? Our ministers all claimed to have made big sacrifices like earning lesser than they should be earning, and all the bad publicities, no privacy, no time for family and children and so many other things. Like so ‘charm’ like that. The sacrifices of NSmen may not be more but definitely not lesser than the few years of great sacrifices of the ministers and their loss in multi million dollar incomes.
 
If this is noted and recognized, then the solution is very simple. There is no need to pay the NSmen millions as compensations like the ministers. Just pay them market rate like a hundred thousand will do, graduating with their level of contributions. Of course this is day dreaming and foolish talk. Cannot use money as an incentive lah! Joke only can? Money incentive is only useful to attract super talents to become politicians. But, but a simple solution like this can solve everything right? And it is so easy to administer and with one stroke of the pen, nearly all the problems will be solved, all the grievances will be passé.
 
Isn’t it all about money? If everyone is thinking about money, about millions, NSmen must also be thinking about money right? Tiok boh? You talk money, want more money, NSmen stupid or what?

PS. So shiok to be talking cock.

Kopi Level - Green

When you think they are very nice

The Vietnamese revealed their true colour and started to kill Chinese workers and factories in their country. And Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore were not spared. They did not know the difference? Chinese are Chinese. They may be 3rd World but they are not daft and ignorant. They are just what they are, 3rd World nice people putting on a mask. Just give them a chance to turn into beasts.
 
The Chinese have been pumping real money into Vietnam to help grow their economy and providing jobs for the Vietnamese. When they decided to show their ugly self, they will transform themselves from the very nice people to hooligans, thugs, rioters and murderers and ingrates. Would China be so stupid to pour in more money into Vietnam? Don’t expect them to change.
 
This is applicable to the Pinoys. Look at how trigger happy they were against the Taiwanese and Hongkies. Look at how wild they are when they have guns in their hands. Very nice people? You are only seeing one side of the coin.
 
We have the same experience in Geylang and Little India. The 3rd World people are very nice only when they need to. Give them the slightest excuse and they will turn wild, like beasts. We gave them good jobs, good opportunities to make good money. But deep down, the 3rd World sick mentality is suppressed and you will not know when they will show their true self.
 
Integrate with them, go and reach out to them? You know how they behave in Sentosa Beach parties and all the big mass parties on the streets of Orchard Road? They are nice only up to a point. And they can be very wild and very ugly if you are not careful. And we are no match for them in brutality, primitiveness and viciousness.
 
Beware, be careful. We have come so far in civilizing ourselves, do not take personal safety and security for granted. We are different, at different stages of social and human development. Sinkies have been living a good life, have not been robbed, beaten except for the taxi drivers, have not been raped in big scale. Do not take personal or national safety and security for granted. Don’t ask for it, don’t invite trouble. Better be safe than be sorry.
 
What happens to the kiasi mentality? We let our guards down to theses strangers from the 3rd World, people we do not know, hardly know, and we open ourselves, our homes to them assuming that they are just as nice like one of us. My God, how daft Sinkies can be? Kindness does not always beget kindness to people you don’t have a clue who they are or what is in their mind.

Kopi Level - Green

American terrorism up another scale

The Americans unilaterally charged Chinese officials in China for cyberspying in American courts. And the Chinese officials have not even set foot in American soil but residing in China. China is understandably furious with such audacious act of terrorism against its state officials. It is lodging protest to the US Govt to drop the ridiculous charges. The Americans are unlikely to do so. What China can do is to declare all those parties involved in this scam, the prosecutors and the judges as terrorists and issue a warrant of arrest for them should they set foot in Chinese territories, Hong Kong and Macau included. That is the only way to deal with such international terrorists.
 
The Chinese have also retaliated by exposing the Americans as the biggest culprit in cyber espionage and attacking Chinese sites. The Americans have been so use to run roughshod over China and other countries for several decades in spying activities. They used to fly their spy planes over Chinese territories to take photographs of military and sensitive sites blatantly and with impunity knowing China could not bring down their spy planes. They only stopped this bullying when China started shooting them down.
 
This did not stop this international terrorist from stopping what they were doing to spy on China. They flew their spy planes up and down the coast of eastern China on espionage missions. They only scaled down such outrageous display of military might when a Chinese aircraft rammed into one such spy plane and forced it to land in Hainan for the Chinese to strip it clean of its espionage equipment.
 
The Americans are the biggest bullying and culprit as far as espionage and cyberspying are concerned. Edward Snowden had disclosed their nefarious activities and all the countries concerned should rightly charge those Americans for spying and intrusion into their privacy. The German Chancellor, the Malaysian and Indonesian leaders, and many world leaders are victims to such vile acts called spying by the Americans.
 
The victims of Americans spying should charge the Americans officials involved in their own courts and issue warrants of arrest when they set foot in their countries, and give the Americans a taste of their own medicine to stop such bullying. The directors of NSA, CIA, DIA and other American intelligence agencies should be charged in the same way the Chinese officials are charged. Both can play the same game.

Kopi Level - Green