Are you ready for 7 million people on tiny Singapore?
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Things like what this letter today in the Forum page of the Straits Times refer to make me angry.
[quote]I AM a 31-year-old Vietnamese national in Singapore on a six-month visit pass since giving birth here.
My husband, son and aged mother-in-law are all born-and-bred Singaporeans.
I am a university graduate and was a teacher in Ho Chi Minh City before getting married here in September 2010.
My application for a Long-Term Visit Pass-Plus was rejected.
Instead, I was issued another six-month visit pass that, according to the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority, is not renewable.
While I may not be currently contributing economically, I do so socially by raising my Singaporean son and looking after my widowed 80-year-old mother-in-law.
My son will one day serve national service.
My husband also served national service and has finished his stint as an operationally ready national serviceman. He is currently employed as a full-time tutor with the Chinese Development Assistance Council, helping children from low-income families who would otherwise not have access to tuition.
This sense of uncertainty has put our plans to have a second child on hold.
My husband paid almost $20,000 for the delivery charges of our son at KK Women's and Children's Hospital.
I am not even applying to be a permanent resident, let alone a citizen. All I am seeking is a Long-Term Visit Pass-Plus, which would entitle me to some subsidy from the hospital.
What I find staggering is the number of foreigners living in our condominium, who are permitted to bring in their spouse, children, parents and even parents-in-law, while I am not not allowed to stay in Singapore despite my entire family being Singaporeans.
Pham Thi Ngoc Anh (Madam)[/quote]We have heard and read about too many such cases. The inference is that there must be some unpublished discriminatory policy against foreign spouses who are nationals of certain countries. Cases like this make the gov's promises about placing emphasis on a citizen core sound hollow.
On the same Forum page, we have another letter from an angmo spouse of a Singapore citizen who is a PR, suggesting allowing dual citizenship for Singaporean kids with a foreign parent. The reason? Forcing kids to choose citizenship when they reach 21 \"risks losing citizens who have spent their entire lives here, and are likely headed towards higher eduction and a society-contributing career.\" I am not commenting on the merits of the proposal in that letter, but the problem he refers to is very real.
When are our scholars at our immigration authorities going to realize the pragmatic truth that if a kid is pushed to give up either Singapore citizenship or their US, UK, Australian, French, Swiss etc citizenship, there is a high chance they will choose to give up the Singapore citizenship? On the other hand, it is less likely that a kid will choose to give up their Singapore citizenship for Vietnamese, Indonesian, Philippino, Burmese, Sri Lankan etc citizenship. Is wishful thinking part of Singapore public policy nowadays? -
Singapore’s annual budget, to be announced on 25 February.
Hope that he didn’t oversight in this budget! Else, I’m going to call him Mr. Oversight from now on. -
I refer to your previous statement where you stated:
\"where everybody is taxed anyway since they all pay VAT on every product and it does not matter if you are homeless or young\".
Now, you below statement stated:
\"VAT in the UK is not payable for most foods, children's clothing, newspapers and magazines.\"
Looking at your 2 contradicting statements, where your first statement says everybody PAY VAT ON EVERY PRODUCT, while your second statement contradicts your first by saying that VAT in the UK is NOT PAYABLE FOR MOST FOODS, children's clothing, newspapers and magazines, so do you admit that your first statement is factually wrong and hence is false statement?
As we know, VAT in UK is not payable for basic food necessities, children's products, and medicine. As such, everybody who just procure basic food necessities and medicines for everyday life do not pay VAT.
Despite of your false statements, you continue your name-calling and insult-making statements in your posts like below:
\"As for calling a writer a troll, if the shoes fit, wear it. A person who cheats is a cheat, a person who lies is a liar, it is not name-calling to accurately describe the actions of a person.\"
So, are you insistent on your continual name-calling as though you are entitled to do so and even calling for Chief Kiasu to support you in your actions? :slapshead:
And by the way, who are you referring to as a \"troll\", a \"cheat\", a \"liar\" here? Are you referring to me since you are replying to my comments on GST & VAT? A clarification statement regarding this statement of yours is necessary here to avoid tarnishing your reputation in this forum.Just relax:
VAT in the UK is not payable for most foods, children's clothing, newspapers and magazines. Whether you pay VAT or not does not depend on whether you are poor, old, a child, homeless etc. The UK VAT is now 20%, it was increased in 2011 and it was reported that the increase in VAT would hit the poorest the hardest.
The rich also buy food, magazines, children's clothing and newspapers so they too benefit from not paying VAT on these items.
So factually your statements about Singapore's GST impact were already wrong when you made a sweeping statement comparing it to the VAT and going on and on about how bad the GST was etc. yet praising the broken down social security system of Europe, UK and US.
As for calling a writer a troll, if the shoes fit, wear it. A person who cheats is a cheat, a person who lies is a liar, it is not name-calling to accurately describe the actions of a person. :imanangel:
I recall when you were previously asked on another thread about whether you were the same as a writer banned by Chief and you did not respond directly to that simple question but were instead quick to say such KSP forumers were calling you names and attacking you. :stompfeet: You wanted them punished i think :mad: And you are doing the same thing here! :rotflmao:
Oh I remember the fun times on those threads and here you are back again. As I said earlier :welcome: We are all friends here :grphug: :rotflmao: :rotflmao:
Now to be fair I should probably look for those threads and tell the KSPs there you are back :rahrah: I do not want them to miss the fun :boogie:
And this time Chief Kiasu please let the troll continue writing, a lot of forumers say they use KSP to destress. They need the comic relief. And of course we never never engage in name calling :rubhands:JannettLee:
I can only say that you are just trying to avoid/blush aside real issues and sprouting things that are not true. I don't have time to address all, so I just point out 1 will do regarding your statement:
\"where everybody is taxed anyway since they all pay VAT on every product and it does not matter if you are homeless or young\"
So, you are denying that in those countries eg with VAT, Medicines, basic food necessities, young children's products are exempted from VAT?
Otherwise, we already know that the old, the young in UK are basically are more than less VAT tax-free if they just consume basic food necessities and their medicine and children's clothings etc are also VAT tax-free and you are still insisting that they are taxed no matter if they are homeless or young?JannettLee:
It is very important for me to clarify all the misleading statements you made, as below (in same blue colour):
[quote=\"Just relax\"]At the time when GST was 1st mooted there was lobbying that certain essential food items should not have GST because of the poor. Govt. made the promise that GST was essential as a revenue creator so that no. of people paying income tax could be reduced and that Govt. would give GST vouchers to help needy.
Did the govt say they give GST vouchers to the needy only after implementing GST? Are you sure before that they didn't give any vouchers (although not in the name of \"GST vouchers\")? Changed name to \"GST vouchers\" to justify GST? More importantly is how much more benefits they give to the poor after implementing GST? Didn't they try to shoot down the suggestion of additional $30 per month for the needy a few years ago?
And How do you define \"needy\"? I am afraid there are many more who have fallen outside the govt's definition of \"needy\" after being slapped with GST.
I would like to remind you that when GST has been implemented, 1 of the main reason is because they wanted to reduce (and had since reduced) the income tax top bracket from 25% to 18%, and hence reduce the income tax of the high-paying rich and they need to increase revenue from somewhere to make up for the tax revenue collection. In response to critism for reducing the tax of the rich while increasing the tax of the general people and imposing tax on the young, the retirees, the unemployed and the poor, they say they are implementing GST to help the poor. Now that GST has not been increased anymore, so does it mean that the govt has since decided \"not to help the poor\"?
To the extent no. of people paying income tax has not increased but has in fact reduced the Govt. has kept to its promise. So there is the raison d'être for Singapore's GST.
Number of people paying tax has not increased? Oh please don't beat around the bush and try to mislead people. You mean those people who are unemployed, the retirees, the house-wifes and the young ones who are too young to work are not \"people\"? After implementing GST, all of these people need to pay taxes for even drinking water! Remember, GST has been implemented on everything, including water, electricity etc!
Those who complain should look at those countries where GST is >10% and income tax is >30% and where everybody is taxed even when you die! (estate duty tax!), so u pay 3 types of taxes at least. In Singapore everybody pays GST but less than 30%, 20% (???) pay income tax.
Are you ignorant or what? Please compare apple to apple. Let me remind you if you are ignorant that in all those countries where GST is >10% and income tax is >30%, they are entitled to:
1) Medicines, basic food necessities, young children's products are exempted from GST/VAT.
2) For >30% of tax they pay, they are entitled to unemployment benefits and social benefits which they can claim and collect after they retire after certain age. So, the actual tax nett of all these benefits and entitlements are not that high after all.
Oh btw don't forget many countries have capital gains tax where they tax the profits on the sale of house or shares (Singapore does not have that)
So, you are saying that the govt should implement capital gains tax? I have no issue with that if that means taxing the rich more? :boogie:
Why do u think so many FTs want to come here? I sometimes wonder why Singaporeans complain so much :siao:
May be you can tell us why so many FTs want to come here? You mean their main aim of coming to singapore is to contribute to singapore and enrich the singapore citizens and not for themselves?Just relax:
[/quote]The statements that you have highlighted in blue are not misleading. I am very puzzled as how you can equate giving away more than 1/2 of what you earn to taxes (where everybody is taxed anyway since they all pay VAT on every product and it does not matter if you are homeless or young) and where the social service network does not really work (please read BBC news about how the wonderful NHS has failed so spectacularly in the UK and then read CNN about how Obama is trying to fix a completely broken Social Security system in the US). I am surprised if you can even save anything if you give up more than 1/2 your salary. You only have 1/2 your salary to pay the mortgage, utilities, put food on the table and purchase the necessities of living.
Oh and by the way have you actually used the medical services of these countries that you are so fond of? Have you not realized in so many of these social welfare countries that you are so fond of the system is broken! Why is Europe in such a crisis? The Govts cannot continue to pay the pensions or provide the social welfare that they had promised. The Govts. cannot balance the budgets as the expenses of social welfare is going up as Europe ages and they have already taken 50% of income as taxes. So the crisis continues in Europe.
Have you seen the public and subsidized housing given to the poor there? Have you visited the council estates in Nottingham, UK? The HDB rental flats in Singapore are equivalent in standard to many of the private fully paid apartments you find in the UK
Now let's talk about education. The poor in the US, Europe or UK do not get
proper education as their schools are poorly funded, teachers poorly paid and these students never finish school. They do not get the opportunity to go to polytechnic or to ITE unlike Singapore children. Forget about going to university if you are poor. There is no money for bursaries unlike Singapore.
I think I have said enough. It is important you open your eyes to the difficulties other people face when their Govts take 50% of their monthly income and still cannot afford to give you basic social welfare. As they say \"welcome to Greece\". Need I say more -
pirate:
[/quote]Things like what this letter today in the Forum page of the Straits Times refer to make me angry.
[quote]I AM a 31-year-old Vietnamese national in Singapore on a six-month visit pass since giving birth here.
My husband, son and aged mother-in-law are all born-and-bred Singaporeans.
I am a university graduate and was a teacher in Ho Chi Minh City before getting married here in September 2010.
My application for a Long-Term Visit Pass-Plus was rejected.
Did she ever committed any immigration offences? If she did, will she mention in the letter? Obviously not.. I guess..
Apparently, she did not mentioned that she did not commit any immigration offences or anything to that effect.. -
pirate:
On the same Forum page, we have another letter from an angmo spouse of a Singapore citizen who is a PR, suggesting allowing dual citizenship for Singaporean kids with a foreign parent. The reason? Forcing kids to choose citizenship when they reach 21 \"risks losing citizens who have spent their entire lives here, and are likely headed towards higher eduction and a society-contributing career.\" I am not commenting on the merits of the proposal in that letter, but the problem he refers to is very real.
May I ask then, do we suffer from a surfeit of immigrants or not?
The family have 20 long years to make up their mind. If they chose not to, there is still a long queue out there. By asking for dual citizenship, he is asking for all the benefits that accrue without the associated responsibilities. If not for a moribund economy in Europe and the US, would they have considered Singapore?
I am not faulting them for being practical or mercenary. But it is precisely this streak of self-interest that will most likely manifest itself once Singapore gets into trouble. -
limlim:
pirate:
Things like what this letter today in the Forum page of the Straits Times refer to make me angry.
[quote]I AM a 31-year-old Vietnamese national in Singapore on a six-month visit pass since giving birth here.
My husband, son and aged mother-in-law are all born-and-bred Singaporeans.
I am a university graduate and was a teacher in Ho Chi Minh City before getting married here in September 2010.
My application for a Long-Term Visit Pass-Plus was rejected.
Did she ever committed any immigration offences? If she did, will she mention in the letter? Obviously not.. I guess..
Apparently, she did not mentioned that she did not commit any immigration offences or anything to that effect..[/quote]I am going to go on the assumption that if she had committed any immigration offences of anything to that effect, she would not even be granted a visit pass. But since she is already here...
Apparently there are thousands of such cases. I shall wait to see if the immigration authorities are going to say that they are all immigration offenders or things to that effect. -
Irrelevant:
Well, it would seem that our gov is happy investing in children with dual citizenships at birth with the knowledge there is a good chance that they will give up their citizenship upon reaching 21 so long as the other citizenship is of a 'respectable' western nation. On the other hand, if the child's other parent is from certain 'Asian' countries, the child is apparently expendable and subtle pressure should be applied (such as the denial of PR or LTVP+ to the non-Singaporean parent) so that the whole family go away.pirate:
On the same Forum page, we have another letter from an angmo spouse of a Singapore citizen who is a PR, suggesting allowing dual citizenship for Singaporean kids with a foreign parent. The reason? Forcing kids to choose citizenship when they reach 21 \"risks losing citizens who have spent their entire lives here, and are likely headed towards higher eduction and a society-contributing career.\" I am not commenting on the merits of the proposal in that letter, but the problem he refers to is very real.
May I ask then, do we suffer from a surfeit of immigrants or not?
The family have 20 long years to make up their mind. If they chose not to, there is still a long queue out there. By asking for dual citizenship, he is asking for all the benefits that accrue without the associated responsibilities. If not for a moribund economy in Europe and the US, would they have considered Singapore?
I am not faulting them for being practical or mercenary. But it is precisely this streak of self-interest that will most likely manifest itself once Singapore gets into trouble.
But nah, that problem is not real for those western families. Most of these western countries have a much more generous approach towards their citizens of birth. These children can usually regain their citizenships even after having given them up. The so-called 'commitment' to Singapore by giving up their Western citizenships is often illusory. The problem, however, is very real for Singapore, because heads they win and tails we lose. As if our gov doesn't know... :siao: To borrow from the words of crony.in.ksp, \"ostrich\". -
AWSP:
Norway has North Sea oil, and is the richest amongst the Scandinavians because of it. Sweden and Finland have far more land than Singapore, and have fisheries and forestry industries. How many billions in aid has Israel received from the US in the form of direct funds and repatriation of monies from overseas Jews? And how is Israel thriving by the way, when even their own people are sickened by the current political situation with the polarisation of the hawks and doves?The scandinavian countries are no better endowed than singapore but they are thriving with bipartisan political system. So is Israel.
If you're interested, you may refer to the research work by MIT Prof - Acemoglu on political institutions and economic growth.
I am afraid your analogies hold no water, and this is coming from a non-economist. -
JannettLee:
[/quote]I am merely saying you only look at one side of the picture without considering why those policies are in place and what the consequences of doing away with them would be.Very strange indeed. I am just pointing out the problems as they are, and you asking me for solutions to these problems? :siao:
And what's your solution, keeping in mind balance of payments, need to control car population, and free market economy?
You said \"throw stones very easy\", but the fact is, there are many people who can't even identify / recognize the problems! What do you call these people? :rotflmao:
Also, by asking me for solutions, you thought I am the ones given the job of solving these problems and in turn being paid Millions $ of salary a year? :evil:3Boys:
[quote=\"JannettLee\"]In summary, why we are in this current situation - high cost of living today?
It is the consequences of Gahman's policies all these years.
1) GST
2) Commercial & industrial properties prices and hence rental escalation
3) Transportation cost
Throw stones very easy hor....
Any coffee shop uncle can throw bricks at GST and COEs, please don't indulge yourself by thinking you are the only person in Singapore to have 'discovered' these 'problems'. -
3Boys:
Very true......
I am merely saying you only look at one side of the picture without considering why those policies are in place and what the consequences of doing away with them would be.
Any coffee shop uncle can throw bricks at GST and COEs, please don't indulge yourself by thinking you are the only person in Singapore to have 'discovered' these 'problems'.
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