CNN Money published an article comparing the salaries of
world leaders. In the article, CNN reported that China’s Primier Xi Jinping
earned USD22,000 per year.
While this might seem
a compelling argument against the “high” pay for Singapore Ministers, we
just need to look at the net worth of Xi Jinping to understand the importance
of a “clean wage” system.
Despite earning a mere USD22,000 per year, Bloomberg
estimates that Xi Jinping’s extended family has an estimated net-worth ofUSD376 million, while the Sydney Morning Herald estimates that his siblings
have a net-worth of close to USD1 Billion.
Singaporeans must decide if they want a leader who openly
earns his salary, or one who earns it quietly. The former ensures that our
leaders, who are fairly paid, make decisions for the good of the people, while
the latter, tempts our leaders to make decisions which may or may not be good
for the people.
The clean wage system is thus the corner-stone of
Singapore’s success. As a nation without any natural resources, any misstep or
side-step that deviates from being in the best interest of Singaporeans is
extremely dangerous. Our leaders must not be put in the position where they are
tempted.
No comments:
Post a Comment