PAP Activists Fight for Aljunied GRC - Flyers on AHPETC

Channel News Asia reported on 13 March 2015 that PAP activists in Aljunied GRC have distributed flyers urging residents to ask their Members of Parliament to answer questions posed about AHPETC.

The flyers are a direct response to Pritam Singh's defiance in Parliament that the "Worker's Party will not answer to Parliament but only to the residents of Aljunied."

While there are mixed reactions to the PAP activists' actions, SG Bumiputera is glad that the PAP has finally gone on the offensive. It is time that the PAP stop being gentlemen and start to fight the Workers' Party at the same level. For those who live in Aljunied, the WP is no gentlemen and they employ numerous underhanded tricks to cultivate the perception that Aljunied residents are being persecuted by the Government. This, is their ploy to maintain control the electorate.

In our minds, the Worker's Party is out of control. Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East is still Singapore and the laws of the land apply. It is ironic that the Workers' Party sought to be elected into Parliament to be a check and balance for the PAP, but they then deny the authority of Parliament to ask and get answers. It is also hypocritical that the WP continue to ask questions in Parliament during Budget Debate 2015 and expect to get answers from the PAP.

(Scanned image of Flyer obtained from Aljunied Resident)

The PAP needs to wake-up and stop fighting like gentlemen. If the PAP continues to stick to their values, they will be overwhelmed by the underhanded games of the Worker's Party. What the WP seems to have forgotten, is that 40% of AHPETC residents voted for the PAP. #sharethetruth Bring it on!

Singapore's Clean Wage System for Government Officials

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.

Salaries of Singapore Ministers – A rational look

A rational look at Ministerial Salary 

The issue of high Ministerial Salaries is making its rounds again - likely stirred by the opposition as this is seen as a “pain point” for the electorate. An analysis of the arguments and “perceived public consternation” (as highlighted by NSP) reveals that the consternation is purely emotive and comes from the logic that “my leaders need to be poor to help the poor.”

Unfortunately, there is a price to pay for capable leadership. If there is not, then why do MNCs pay their CEO millions? The world of business and government is complex. Being attuned to what the masses want is not enough. One needs to also have the intellect and the ability to not only see the bigger picture, but to also navigate and steer the organization or country through the complexities of a chaotic environment. Having heart, while good, only makes you a popular leader. It does not necessarily make you a capable leader.

In keeping with the spirit of public service, many of our Ministers had given up much higher salaries. For example, Minister K Shanmugan used to earn $6 million per year as a top lawyer, Dr Ng Eng Hen around $4 million per year as a surgeon and President Tony Tan $5 million as the Chairman of Singapore Press Holdings.

If this is not enough to convince you on the value of our Minister, ex-cabinet Minister George Yeo earned S$1.6 million as Chairman of Kerry Logistics in 2013. Taken in context and with all the facts, a logical response to the issue of Ministerial Salaries is that our Ministers are fairly paid.

Singapore Budget 2015: Ministerial salaries have not risen in past three years

SINGAPORE - Political salaries have not gone up in the last three years even as the benchmark they are linked to has risen by around 3 per cent per year over the period, Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean told Parliament on Tuesday.

The House had, in 2012, endorsed recommendations from an independent committee to link ministerial salaries to the median income of the top 1,000 earners who are Singaporean citizens, with a 40 per cent discount to reflect the ethos of political service.

Since then, this benchmark has risen in two out of three years, and dropped slightly in one year. Overall, it rose 3 per cent per year, said Mr Teo.

"Because the changes in the benchmark have been moderate, we have not adjusted political salaries in these past three years," he said.

Based on the latest figures, the benchmark salary for a minister at entry "MR4" grade, inclusive of bonuses, should be $1.2 million per year, but the Government has kept it at $1.1 million - the 2012 level, he added.

The Prime Minister earns $2.2 million and the President earns $1.54 million.

In 2012, Parliament also endorsed doing away with pensions for politicians.

Mr Teo was speaking during the debate over the budget for the Prime Minister's Office. MP Edwin Tong (Moulmein-Kallang GRC) had asked whether it was timely to review the framework by which political salaries are determined.

Since 2011, "the formula has remained stable and has worked well," said Mr Teo.

"The Committee (to Review Ministerial Salaries) recommended that the salary framework be reviewed every five years, but given that things have been stable, we believe the framework remains valid, and we can continue to adjust salaries within this framework should there be a change in overall salary levels in subsequent years."

Mr Teo also emphasised that in the 2012 debate, the opposition Workers' Party (WP) agreed with the three key principles the Committee used to derive political salaries. They are:

- that salaries must be competitive so that people of the right calibre are not deterred from stepping forward to lead the country

- that the ethos of political service entails making sacrifices and hence there should be a discount in the pay formula

- that there should be a "clean wage" with no hidden perks

During the 2012 parliamentary debate, the WP had proposed an alternative formula of benchmarking MPs' salaries to the starting pay of the "Superscale" grade in the civil service, and to make ministers' salaries a multiple of MPs' allowance.

This would be about $55,000 a month for ministers, an amount Mr Teo noted on Tuesday was at the same level as the Committee's recommendations.

Workers' Party of Singapore Above the Law?

During the recent budget debate, the Workers’ Party was quick to exercise their parliamentary rights to question the government on their proposed and past spending. It is ironic that just last month, in the same house, the Workers’ Party of Singapore had blatantly refused to answer questions put forth by the People’s Action Party on how Workers’ Party run Ajunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council (AHPETC) had spent taxpayers money.

In justifying his question on needing to know how money was being spent on the new SAF Volunteer Corps (SAFVC), Low Thia Khiang argued on the concept of the need for equity in treatment. Perhaps Low Thia Khiang can reflect on his own question and ask himself why the issue of equity in treatment applies to the PAP (answering his question) and to the issue of how Volunteers are treated, but not the more fundamental issue like the need for WP to answer to Parliament?

Is this how a first world parliament operates?

The Workers’ Party is obviously out of control in their belief that they are above the law. The AHPETC issue clearly reveals the true character and values of Low Thia Khiang, Slyvia Lim and Pritam Singh. It is time Singaporeans showed the Workers’ Party that they are not above the law.