Some people were disappointed that the hard work in organising the Petition had been wasted, if the Prime Minister does not care and just passes the Petition to the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
We should look at this matter from a different angle. 777 people have studied the issue and signed the Petition. These people now know the issue more clearly. Other people who did not sign the Petiton (because they were not directly involved) also understand the issue better.
We should be patient and continue to find ways to put our views across. We should not expect miracle results. The bigger goal should be to change how things are run in Singapore. Every situation, such as this, add to the process of change.
Tan Kin Lian
Petition.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Review of National Service
This letter was sent to the Straits Times Forum on 11 August, and placed under consideration for over 2 weeks (pehaps waiting for clearance from somewhere up there). I assume that it has been rejected, although there was no formal reply.
Editor
I refer to the letter by Xiao Fuchen entitled “NS for adult new citizens not practical” (ST 11 Aug).
I agree with Xiao Fuchen from another angle. If this is made mandatory, very few foreigners will want to take up citizenship, precisely for the reason that it will disrupt their careers and earning power. This is a burden that is now being shouldered by male Singaporeans, who are not given any choice on this matter.
After 44 years of independence and prosperity, I hope that it is time to review the role of national service. Perhaps we should now have a professional army to defend our nation. Already, we are spending a large budget on the purchase of military hardware. The current budget could be re-allocated to allow payment of competitive salaries to career soldiers. Modern defence does not require a large number of infantry soldiers anyway.
If there is still the need to continue with a citizen army, I argue that the citizens serving full time National Service should be paid an adequate allowance, similar to what they would earn in the private sector. They should not be required to shoulder an unfair burden to defend the nation, when citizenships are offered to foreigners without a similar responsibility.
If this increases the defence budget, I suggest that the Government considers adopting the Swiss model which requires residents exempt from the compulsory military service to pay a 3% additional annual income tax, popularly known as the “defence tax”, until the age of 30.
Tan Kin Lian
Editor
Straits Times
I refer to the letter by Xiao Fuchen entitled “NS for adult new citizens not practical” (ST 11 Aug).
I agree with Xiao Fuchen from another angle. If this is made mandatory, very few foreigners will want to take up citizenship, precisely for the reason that it will disrupt their careers and earning power. This is a burden that is now being shouldered by male Singaporeans, who are not given any choice on this matter.
After 44 years of independence and prosperity, I hope that it is time to review the role of national service. Perhaps we should now have a professional army to defend our nation. Already, we are spending a large budget on the purchase of military hardware. The current budget could be re-allocated to allow payment of competitive salaries to career soldiers. Modern defence does not require a large number of infantry soldiers anyway.
If there is still the need to continue with a citizen army, I argue that the citizens serving full time National Service should be paid an adequate allowance, similar to what they would earn in the private sector. They should not be required to shoulder an unfair burden to defend the nation, when citizenships are offered to foreigners without a similar responsibility.
If this increases the defence budget, I suggest that the Government considers adopting the Swiss model which requires residents exempt from the compulsory military service to pay a 3% additional annual income tax, popularly known as the “defence tax”, until the age of 30.
Tan Kin Lian
Challenges for the Free Market
The English Premium League (EPL) likes the telcos to compete for the rights to their shows, as the competition will increase the fees payable to them. SingTel and Starhub had been competing against each other for the rights, leading to higher charges payable by the viewing public.
There is some suggest that SingTel and Starhub will work together to submit a joint bid. EPL will object and may reject it. More importantly, is this a monopoly in reverse, where the combined buying power will bring down the price?
A similar situation has happened in the pricing of iron ore and other mineral products. China is a big buyer of these products. Two companies in Australia are big producers. There has been some dispute on the pricing of these products.
These are examples of the failure of the free market to determine the correct prices. When certain producers or buyers have a dominant share of the market, they can exercise pricing power to the detriment of the other party.
It is quite dangerous to rely on the free market for pricing, when it can be subject to many practical challenges. There must be some other ways to ensure a fair price, rather than depending on the free market blindly. The new approach requires the people in charge to exercise their judgement, using a more transparent process where all the affected parties are able to present their views.
There are many aspects of life in Singapore, where the reliance on the free market to determine prices has not worked well. They are in the public transport, power, water, health care and financial services. I hope that a new approach can be taken on these matters.
Tan Kin Lian
There is some suggest that SingTel and Starhub will work together to submit a joint bid. EPL will object and may reject it. More importantly, is this a monopoly in reverse, where the combined buying power will bring down the price?
A similar situation has happened in the pricing of iron ore and other mineral products. China is a big buyer of these products. Two companies in Australia are big producers. There has been some dispute on the pricing of these products.
These are examples of the failure of the free market to determine the correct prices. When certain producers or buyers have a dominant share of the market, they can exercise pricing power to the detriment of the other party.
It is quite dangerous to rely on the free market for pricing, when it can be subject to many practical challenges. There must be some other ways to ensure a fair price, rather than depending on the free market blindly. The new approach requires the people in charge to exercise their judgement, using a more transparent process where all the affected parties are able to present their views.
There are many aspects of life in Singapore, where the reliance on the free market to determine prices has not worked well. They are in the public transport, power, water, health care and financial services. I hope that a new approach can be taken on these matters.
Tan Kin Lian
End of life issues need to be addressed
What is the difference between:
a) suicide
b) euthanasia
c) prolong life
d) prolong death?
Read this article.
Petition to the Prime Minister
I have sent the Petition to the Prime Minister. It is dated 26 August and contained 777 signatures. The Prime Minister's Office has acknowledged the letter and sent it to the Monetary Authority of Singapore. I hope that they will pay attention to the Prime Minister's request.
Petition.
Petition.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
St Times: Tan Kin Lian launches new consumer body
A NEW consumer body that aims to help educate retail investors and keep close tabs on financial institutions was launched yesterday.
Formed by former NTUC Income chief executive Tan Kin Lian, the Financial Services Consumers Association (Fisca) is an independent not-for-profit organisation.
Mr Tan, who has come out of retirement to act as president of Fisca, said the new association will focus on researching financial and investment products that are distributed here, and educating the public about saving and investing.
'The key aims of Fisca are to educate consumers on financial matters and to help them select financial products that give good value for their savings and investments,' said Mr Tan.
Fisca's formation comes after thousands of local investors lost millions of dollars from complex structured products that were linked to collapsed United States investment bank Lehman Brothers. These included DBS High Notes 5, Minibonds, Jubilee Linkearner and Pinnacle Notes.
Mr Tan said Fisca's aim will be to drive investor attention away from such glamourous products and encourage them to understand diversification, low-cost investing and the merits of looking for long-term returns.
The association, however, will not guide investors in their selection of stock or in their timing decisions, but instead will provide access to educational resources via its website and through workshops or short courses.
Fisca also plans to produce a white-list of financial products that have low charges, are well diversified and suitable for long-term investment.
'Our strategy is to educate consumers on the practical questions that face them every day like: How much should they save? Where should they put their money? Which are the safe and fair products?' added Mr Tan.
To join Fisca, individuals will have to pay an annual membership fee of $36 that will allow them to access the association's online resources and take part in the programmes.
A recent Fisca survey found that investors wanted a truly independent consumer watchdog that was not funded by any financial institution so as to avoid conflicts of interests.
To maintain its impartiality, Fisca will not seek funding from financial organisations and hopes instead to raise money from like-minded government agencies and philanthropic organisations.
The Fisca president said that the association, now run by a group of 12 volunteers, would need about 100 paying members to remain viable.
He added that Fisca plans to engage graduate volunteers and train them to become Fisca facilitators to help run upcoming financial literacy programmes.
Noting that Singapore already has a number of consumer bodies for investors such as the Consumers Association of Singapore and Securities Investors Association of Singapore, Mr Tan said he hopes to work with all of them in the future.
'We recognise that the needs of consumers are diverse and that the combined effort of all these bodies may still be insufficient to meet these needs,' he added.
franchan@sph.com.sg
Formed by former NTUC Income chief executive Tan Kin Lian, the Financial Services Consumers Association (Fisca) is an independent not-for-profit organisation.
Mr Tan, who has come out of retirement to act as president of Fisca, said the new association will focus on researching financial and investment products that are distributed here, and educating the public about saving and investing.
'The key aims of Fisca are to educate consumers on financial matters and to help them select financial products that give good value for their savings and investments,' said Mr Tan.
Fisca's formation comes after thousands of local investors lost millions of dollars from complex structured products that were linked to collapsed United States investment bank Lehman Brothers. These included DBS High Notes 5, Minibonds, Jubilee Linkearner and Pinnacle Notes.
Mr Tan said Fisca's aim will be to drive investor attention away from such glamourous products and encourage them to understand diversification, low-cost investing and the merits of looking for long-term returns.
The association, however, will not guide investors in their selection of stock or in their timing decisions, but instead will provide access to educational resources via its website and through workshops or short courses.
Fisca also plans to produce a white-list of financial products that have low charges, are well diversified and suitable for long-term investment.
'Our strategy is to educate consumers on the practical questions that face them every day like: How much should they save? Where should they put their money? Which are the safe and fair products?' added Mr Tan.
To join Fisca, individuals will have to pay an annual membership fee of $36 that will allow them to access the association's online resources and take part in the programmes.
A recent Fisca survey found that investors wanted a truly independent consumer watchdog that was not funded by any financial institution so as to avoid conflicts of interests.
To maintain its impartiality, Fisca will not seek funding from financial organisations and hopes instead to raise money from like-minded government agencies and philanthropic organisations.
The Fisca president said that the association, now run by a group of 12 volunteers, would need about 100 paying members to remain viable.
He added that Fisca plans to engage graduate volunteers and train them to become Fisca facilitators to help run upcoming financial literacy programmes.
Noting that Singapore already has a number of consumer bodies for investors such as the Consumers Association of Singapore and Securities Investors Association of Singapore, Mr Tan said he hopes to work with all of them in the future.
'We recognise that the needs of consumers are diverse and that the combined effort of all these bodies may still be insufficient to meet these needs,' he added.
franchan@sph.com.sg
FISCA website: www.fisca.sg
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