What to make sense of Leong Mun Wai’s cry over the termination of partnership between SportsSG and SHPL
Back in the 1970s when Paya Lebar could no longer cope with growing traffic, the Singapore Government invested S$800 million to expand Paya Lebar and build a second runway. Works had already begun but Mr Lee Kuan Yew felt that Paya Lebar had inherent disadvantages. It was located near the city centre. Expansion would be limited. Worse, noise […]
Leong Mun Wai’s position on government funding for SPH Media Trust is a disservice to Singapore
Imagine we do not have an independent local media of our own that is trusted by Singaporeans. Imagine everything that we read about Singapore is written by foreign media. Can we leave it to foreign media to write our story to shape public and international opinion of us? How will the likes of Stephen Sucker […]
Will following Workers’ Party’s formula for ministers’ salaries means no more ‘sweat and tears’ paying ministers?
If everyone of the 3.6 million Singaporeans has to pay from their pocket a total monthly salary to all 33 of our ministers and ministers-of-state, it would cost each of them $1.20 a month. $1.20 can’t even get you a plate of the cheapest economy rice, but $1.20 is the cost of a competent and dedicated […]
GST hike: successful government leads to complacency in Singaporeans and more complaining
Singaporeans are fortunate. We are well taken care of by a competent government that also cares, so much so that we are shielded from bearing the full brunt when a crisis hits. Take the recent Malaysian ban on the export of live chickens to Singapore. Before we could feel the full impact of chicken shortage, […]
Wealth tax? The question has never been one of whether to tax wealth but how to do it effectively: Indranee
We have heard many stories of the asset-rich but cash-poor retiree who lives in a private property bought years ago when he was young. Now he is old and struggles to get by while living in a private property because he has little cash. Familiar story? Along comes the wealth tax. Well, good luck to this […]
Extremism: easier to keep the man out than the message out in this social media age.
The government’s decision to deny entry to Indonesian Preacher Abdul Somad torched off a bit of a storm down south, with protests outside our embassy and consulate, personal threats to Minister Shanmugam and trolls flooding the Facebook pages of various government personalities. The websites of a few random small local private businesses were also defaced. […]
Singapore’s gross national debt is 6th highest in the world but no one is batting an eyelid.
As a percentage of GDP, Singapore’s gross national debt-to-GDP ratio is 131.19%. It is the 6th highest in the world (as of 2020) (source: IMF). However, no one is batting an eyelid or losing sleep over it. This is because Singapore actually owes nothing at all. The country does not borrow to spend. It borrows […]
HDB to buy back flats from owners constrained by ethnic (EIP) quotas
Can’t sell your flat because the Ethnic Integration Policy quota has been reached? No worries. A new option is now available. HDB will offer to buy back public housing flats from owners who face difficulties selling them due to the Ethnic Integration Policy (EIP) quotas. The new measure was announced by National Development Minister Desmond […]
GST from tourists. Why not? In 2019, tourism receipts was $27.7 billion
Now that our borders are open, tourists will start to come back and we will be able to collect revenue from tourists’ spending through the GST. In pre-COVID time, the bulk of net GST collected came from tourists and foreigners residing here, in addition to high income earners. At least 60% in fact. 19 million […]
4G Team to develop roadmap to keep the Singapore story going for many more generations to come
“I don’t know if the PAP will win the next General Election…. But I give you my word: whatever lies ahead, I will give every ounce of my strength to this movement, together with my comrades in the 4G team… to keep Singapore special and build a better Singapore in SG75.” Finance Minister Lawrence Wong […]