Cartoons about Singapore

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.201650196538650.43973.201649463205390&type=1

How to choose your best President

An interesting story by the author of "Wisdom on How to Live Life"

Statement by Tan Kin Lian – Ensure CPF savings are secure and adequate for retirement needs

A primary role of the President is to safeguard the past reserves of the country. A large part of the reserves represent the savings of Singaporeans in the Central Provident Fund.

Many Singaporeans have expressed concern about the security of their CPF savings when, from time to time, they hear about the large losses incurred by Temasek Holdings, Government of Singapore Investment Company (GIC) or the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in their investments. Just a few days ago, MAS reported a loss of $10.9 billion during the past year.

There is a need to inform and educate Singaporeans about the long term nature of the investments and to give them the assurance that the investments are made prudently. This is especially relevant, given the occasional newspaper reports of money from the reserves being invested in foreign companies which report larges losses and go to the brink of bankruptcy. Some of these foreign companies are not well known and have a risk profile that appears to be very high.

A President, who has the financial knowledge and expertise, and backed by a panel of investment experts, can play a useful role in keeping an oversight over the investment policy. As a trusted, independent person, the President can give the assurance that Singaporeans are looking for about the security of their CPF savings.

The CPF savings represent the hard work of Singaporeans made over several decades. They depend on their CPF savings to take care of their financial needs during retirement, to pay for the cost of living and their medical expenses in old age.

Many Singaporeans have found that, in spite of the frugality and savings habit, they still do not have sufficient savings when they reach the retirement age. They have expressed the view that the CPF scheme is not working to their benefit.

I wish to echo their views and call on the Government to review the operations of the Central Provident Fund and implement changes to achieve the following goals:

• Ensure that the CPF is able to provide an investment yield that is higher than the rate of inflation
• Ensure that CPF members have adequate savings for their retirement needs (after paying off the cost of a modest HDB flat)
• Review the contribution rate of older workers to allow our workers to build up adequate savings for retirement.
• Improve transparency and communication, to assure the people that that their CPF savings are being invested prudently.
• Allow partial withdrawals of CPF savings to meet financial needs of people who have lost their jobs due to factors beyond their control.
• Review the use of CPF savings for tertiary education, to see if the scope can be widened

Many people have read news reports that the funds managed by the Government had been able to earn an attractive investment return over the long term, that are well in excess of the interest rate of 2.5% paid on the ordinary account in the CPF. They have expressed the concern that they are not getting a fair share of the investment return. If inflation is higher than the interest rate, the purchasing power of CPF savings is effectively being eroded if the return on CPF savings is kept at a low level.

I call on the Government to from a panel with representation from all segments of the people to carry out this review and that the review should be carried out in a transparent manner, so as to gain the trust of Singaporeans.

Tan Kin Lian

Long term yield on GIC portfolio

GIC reported a 10 year and 20 year yield on their portfolio of 7.4% and 7.2% respectively in USD. I wonder what the yield would have been, if converted to SGD. We know that the USD has depreciated significantly during this period.

I am encouraged by this statement: "GIC's real rate of return in excess of global inflation over the past 20 years -- its main benchmark -- was 3.9 percent as at end-March 2011, up from 3.8 percent at end-March 2010."

However, it might be better if the yield is converted to SGD and the real return is computed net of inflation in Singapore.

Divorce in Virginia

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Accredited Medical Transcription School-Medical Transcription Schools | Transcription Software

As a medical transcriptionist you will be required to document the procedures that are performed by the doctors and medical personnel. Usually the doctors provide recorded notes which you need to listen to and put into words in a type written document. Of course, what remains the most important part is the accuracy of the transcribed document regarding the treatment process and the terminology along with precision, speed and commitment towards this profession. This is where the medical transcription schools come into play.(See medical transcription from home and transcription software)

via transcriptionsoftware.org

Elected president can be the voice of the people

This letter was published in the Straits Times Forum page on 25 July 2011 (with minor editing).

 I refer to the article "Don't Politicize the Role of the President" by Wan Wai Yee, Asst Professor in Singapore Management University.  Prof Wan argued that the President should stay within the powers of the constitution and avoid “politicizing” its role.   However, Prof Wan did not explain what he meant by "politicizing".

If someone offers a view that is different from the stand taken by the Government, will it be considered as "politicizing"? To find solutions that are best for the people, it is better to discuss issues openly and consider various points of views, before coming to a decision.  

The Government and the President are elected by the people to perform their duties stated in the constitution – but the ultimate aim is to improve the lives of the people. The President is required to carry out certain specific duties that are intended to act as a check and balance on the Government, primarily to prevent abuse of powers and corrupt practices.

To exercise this power effectively, the President needs to be in touch with ordinary people that are affected directly by these issues. In doing so, the President may hear views that fall outside of his constitutional duties but are still important to the people. 

I agree with Prof Wan that it is the primary duty of Parliament to discuss these issues and pass the necessary laws to implement the solutions. We should, however, be aware of the structural weaknesses in our current governance where, for a variety of reasons, many of the hot issues affecting the livelihood of the people were not actively debated in Parliament. It was only days prior to the last general election that the Prime Minister realized the extent of the unhappiness of the people and had to apologize twice for the shortcomings of his government.

It is likely that the newly elected Parliament will continue to face the structural issues and obstacles.

The elected President can play a useful role in being an additional channel for the people to bring legitimate issues to the attention of the Government. To rebuild the trust of the people and re-install pride in our country, the Government has to show that it is willing to hear the voice of the people and consider their views.  The elected President can help in these tasks.

Tan Kin Lian