TR EMERITUS

Written by Our Correspondent In yet another sign that young Singaporeans are getting increasingly impatient and frustrated with some policies of the ruling party, a PAP MP Alvin Yeo was lobbied relentlessly with tough and sensitive questions during a policy forum held at NUS on 26 January 2010. (read the field report here) Mr Yeo was one of the panel speakers. The other two were Sylvia Lim from Workers' Party and Dr Leong Chan Hoong from the Institute of Policy Studies. The title of the Forum is - "Immigration policies - how many is enough?" Due to the ruling party's liberal immigration policies, foreigners now make up 36 per cent of the Singapore's population, up from 14 per cent in 1990. Of the remaining 64 per cent who are citizens, an increasing proportion are new citizens born overseas. Until recently, PAP leaders had been defending the policy vigorously on the grounds that foreigners are "essential" for Singapore, a point highlighted repeated by Mr Yeo in his presentation in which he justified the PAP's pro-foreigner" policies as for the "collective good of society." When asked by a NUS student during the Question-and-Answer session on why foreigners who take up Singapore citizenship are exempted from the mandatory two years National Service which all Singapore-born males have to go through, he shot back: “They are here to work and contribute economically, and if we make foreigners serve 2.5 years of National Service, who would want to come here? They will leave!” On foreigners competing with Singaporeans for limited jobs, Mr Yeo repeated his party's stance that it will not shield Singaporeans from competition as it is "good" for them: “I don’t think we should protect Singaporeans from global competition because this is what happens in the outside world. Global competition is good for Singaporeans because it makes them work harder and think harder to succeed.” Unfortunately, quite a number of foreigners working in Singapore are here not because they are more skilled than locals, but because they cost much less than them. While foreign workers were only employed in sectors shunned by Singaporeans in the past, they are found now increasingly across all industries thereby competing directly with Singaporeans for jobs. To exacerbate the situation, they are given PRs liberally by the ruling party, thereby increasing their "attractiveness" to employers. According to the Home Affairs Ministry, two out of every three PR applicants are successful, some of whom are cleaners, construction workers, masseurs and even prostitutes. Based on unconfirmed tip-off from readers, some foreigners are given Singapore PRs via immigration agencies even though they may not have stepped foot on Singapore itself. The high growth rate of Singapore's economy in recent years is fueled largely by the influx of cheap foreign labor which helps to cut business costs and increase GDP as a result. A significant proportion of the PAP ministers' multi-million annual salary is based on GDP growth - the higher the growth, the more money they take home. A recent Wall Street Journal editorial reported that the influx of foreigners into Singapore has depressed the wages of ordinary Singaporeans, increased the cost of living, especially that of public housing, decreased labor productivity and led to an overall decline in standards of living. (read article here) Mr Yeo made the headlines last month by paying an eye-popping $6.5 million dollars for a 2,680 sq ft four-bedroom unit at luxurious condominium Marina Bay Suites with his wife. (read article here) Singapore's ministers are the highest paid in the world. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong earns about $3 million dollars yearly, or more than 5 times the annual salary of U.S. President Barack Obama.  Read More →

By Alex Tan During a Q-and-A session of a recent Political Forum held on 26 January 2010 at NUS, students lobbied tough questions at a PAP MP Mr Alvin Yeo. The forum called the "Political Face-off" features Workers' Party Chairman Sylvia Lim, PAP MP Lawyer Alvin Yeo and Dr Leong Chan Hoong (Institute of Policy Studies). The topic was "Immigration" and Researcher Dr Leong kicked off the event with slides and presentation of his views on "Immigration". He highlighted that it is the lower income Singaporeans who are the most bitter of foreigners' presence because they have no financial security while the rich and affluent class of Singaporeans do not share such animosity towards foreigners. He said that the Immigration Policy is a balancing act that require due considerations to both foreigners and Singaporeans, however, he did not comment on the performance of PAP's "balancing act". PAP MP Alvin Yeo of the Hong Kah GRC Team started his talk unprepared - no powerpoint presentation, no statistics and no scripts. His "pure" talk gave NUS students a regurgitation of secondary school's social studies about a migrant society with no resources and how foreigners have added value to Singapore over the past century. He justified PAP's pro-foreigners policies and even called the sacrifices of Singaporeans, like National Service and "competitive" wages, are for the "collective good of society" during the Question-and-Answer session. Workers' Party Chairman Sylvia Lim started her talk with a Statistic Table - showing the net number and percentage change of Foreigners Population, Singaporean Population and Permanent Resident Population in 1990, 1999 and 2009. She highlighted that the shocking growth of both the Permanent Residents(increased 3 fold) and Foreigners in total Population, while Singaporeans numbers in total Population has dropped 17+% over the past 20 years. She raised the following during the presentation: 1) Singapore's growth have skewed towards PRs and non-residents, and how Singaporeans have been left out of progress. 2) Importation of Foreigners to support our Aging Population is an "aggravation" and not a Solution. Her witted words "These people grow old too one day. They dont just...go away" were responded by roaring laughter from the students who were clearly made bored by PAP MP Alvin Yeo's dry talk. 3) Lack of Clarity and Transparency in Immigration Policy has resulted from the PAP "panic" reaction in opening the floodgate to solve low birth rate and a slowing economy. 4) "We are not anti-immigration" is her stance but she emphasized on the quality and rate of Immigrants. 5) Criterias for Citizenship and Permanent Residency must be transparency. 6) Increase in Foreigners has resulted in Lower Productivity since 1995. 6) "Waste" of current population - elderly workers and the low income are effectively displaced by cheaper labor. 7) Foreigners depress Singaporean Wages. She also pointed out that the S-Pass Holders of $1800 are not necessarily foreign talents but cheaper labor for Employers. Sylvia Lim's presentation was cut due to restriction of time. The Question-and-Answer session turned into a "Question-the-PAP" session where all questions raised by NUS students are directed at PAP MP Alvin Yeo. Below are the excerpts of some hard questions that PAP MP Alvin Yeo faced: "Why are the Malays not given equal opportunities as the other races in the Army? MM Lee also said "will your Malay neighbour give you the last few grains of rice or will she share it with her family or fellow Muslim or vice versa?" I as a Malay feel deeply insulted by the Government for our race." "How is the PAP going to address the "injustice" feelings of Singaporeans towards Foreigners?" "Foreign Workers here are housed in dormitories and rented housing with inhumane conditions: like sharing a room with 10 others. What is the Government's take on this?" "The PAP has recently started the Basic English Test for Foreign workers. As I know, the Immigration Policy started many years before that. Why did the Government only thought of this now?" PAP MP Alvin Yeo used much rhetoric in his answers to the questions, here are some quotes: "I am a lawyer and not an economist." "I don't think we should protect Singaporeans from global competition because this is what happens in the outside world. Global competition is good for Singaporeans because it makes them work harder and think harder to succeed." "They are here to work and contribute economically, and if we make foreigners serve 2.5 years of National Service, who would want to come here? they will leave" "If the property prices drop, another group of Singaporeans will complain." "I have only been a MP since 2006, I wasn't involved with the Policy Makings before that" About the Author: Mr Alex Tan is a Project Engineer by training. He blogs here  Read More →

Written by Our Correspondent After months of denial, National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan has finally acknowledged that "the rising HDB resale flat prices have raised fresh concerns." The prices of resale flats has increased by 8.2 per cent in 2009 when Singapore was still mired by depression, contributed largely by a limited supply of new flats and rising demand fueled by the relentless influx of foreigners. Latest figures released by the HDB showed that cash upfront paid by buyers for resale flats, known as cash-over-valuation or COV, doubled to $24,000 in the fourth quarter from the previous quarter. Despite rising frustration, resentment and anger on the ground over the increase prices of public housing in Singapore, Mr Mah and other HDB officials continue to insist that they are "affordable" to ordinary Singaporeans. Mr Mah even chided first time home buyers for being "choosy" and said that “the onus is on Singaporeans to play their part by buying a home within their means.” Quoting the affordability benchmark of 30 per cent used frequently by HDB to show that HDB flats remain affordable to ordinary Singaporeans, Mr Mah said a family with a monthly income of $3,000 can buy a flat worth up to $250,000 and spend only 30 per cent of their income every month on the mortgage. “Similarly, a family with a monthly income of $4,000 can afford to buy a new flat worth up to $333,000 without spending more than 30 per cent a month on the mortgage. This means they can comfortably buy any of the flats offered in the latest BTO projects this month,” he added. However, Mr Mah fails to take into account the bank interest rates and inflation over the years which will lead eventually to the family spending more than 30 per cent of their monthly income on the mortgage. Furthermore, after depleting their entire CPF for these over-priced 99-year leasehold HDB flats, they will have little or no savings left for their retirement. Though he admitted eventually he was "caught off guard" by the continued increase in prices, he failed to acknowledge the severity of the problem. Singaporeans who are still harboring hope that Mr Mah will bring down the prices of HDB flats are going to be disappointed. Echoing the stance of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Mr Mah said the Government should not 'interfere in the resale market' and should let it 'set its own price'. Instead, HDB will review its rules and policies to 'see if there're any rules that are encouraging or allowing people to speculate on HDB flats'. The outcome of the review will be released in a few months' time and by then the prices will have increased even more at the present rate it is going. Mr Mah reiterated that the HDB is monitoring demand carefully and is planning to roll out 7,000 new flats in the first half of this year, and about 12,000 for 2010. "If there is even stronger demand than that, of course HDB will built even more," he said. As the flats will take about 3 to 4 years to be completely, they are unlikely to meet the immediate demand now. In fact, they should be built well before between the years 2006 - 2008 to prepare for the expected increase in demand due to the rising number of foreigners coming to work and live in Singapore. For some inexplicable reasons, only slightly more than 11,000 new flats were built during these three years or about 4,000 a year: [Source: HDB Financial Report 2008/2009] In 2008 alone, there were over 90,000 PRs and 20,000 new citizens. In two recent sale exercises of BTO and balance flats, they were more than 10 times over-subscribed, an indication of the severity of the housing shortage on the ground. Fortunately for Mr Mah, he will not be taken to task as no MPs including the two opposition MPs will dare to voice this out and question him in Parliament. Related articles: >> PM Lee: Govt does not have control over prices of resale flats" >> COVs of resale flats shooting through the roof >> HDB resale price index hit record high in 2009 >> Singaporean wants PRs to live in rented flats instead of buying resale flats >> Singaporeans wants PRs to be banned from selling HDB flats at a profit >> Shanmugam: Singaporeans likely culprits for driving up HDB flat prices >> Mah Bow Tan: HDB flats remain affordable >> Means testing for PRs to buy resale flats >> Immigration and public housing: should the govt or people plan ahead? >> Grace Fu: hard to predict demand for housing >> Indonesian PR bought 4-room flat at $653,000 >> Mah Bow Tan asks home buyers to be realistic >> PAP MP blames young couples who cannot get a flat for not planning ahead >> Home affordability: HDB versus the public >> Demand vs supply: so many applicants, so few flats >> Number of applicants exceed number of flats >> HDB to increase supply of flats >> Mah: don’t compare with prices in the past >> ERA: 40 per cent of HDB flat buyers are PRs  Read More →