GST Hike Propaganda (Letter to ST Forum Page)

By Chia Ti Lik

The Saga of the GST Hike continues. The press is unrelentingly offering support to the PAP Government’s initiative. Over here, i wage a war against one sided information and skewed perspectives. This is my letter in response to Article at Page 6 Sunday Times yesterday 19th November 2006.

 

GST Hike Propaganda (Letter to ST Forum Page on 20th November 2006)

The article at page 6 of Sunday Times 19^th November 2006 by Ken Kwek is referred to.

 

Lending support to the Government’s GST hike gig, the article reveals that Mika Sampovaara, a Scandinavian quitter is able to – earn the same and have more time for a better life in Singapore by fleeing from the heavy taxation levied by a welfare state. These are some points to put the article in proper perspective.

 

1. The Scandinavian quitter was a high-flying economist, stock analyst and broker in his own country. He was placed at the top income tax bracket of 60% taxation rate – in short the Viking was part of their elite!

 

2. The average Singaporean will never earn close to the Scandinavian elite. This then begets the question of whether this example of a Scandinavian quitter has any relevance to the situation faced by the people of Singapore.

 

The article simply validates our suspicions that Singapore is fast becoming a haven for elite foreign quitters. This certainly was not what Singaporean voters wanted when they voted for the ruling party in the recent elections.

 

The elite Scandinavian quitter feels he has more than repaid his country (which he benefited from under the welfare system) just because he has paid 5 years of income tax at 60%.

 

How should the average Singaporean feel in having to stay and continue to pay 7% for all consumption for their entire lifetime here where in a non-welfare state?

 

Proportionately, the average Singaporean will pay far more than the elite Scandinavian quitter. As this means Singaporeans are more meek and compliant than our imported talent. The Government ought to rethink its obsession with flooding Singapore with foreign quitters.

 

In any event, if citizens’ fleeing their country for greener pastures is any form of measure Singapore’s administration would fail dismally, by this yardstick, in comparison to Finland’s.

 

For once, someone must get the message across into the thick skulls of the leadership that when Singaporeans ask the Government for a social safety net, we do not mean the Scandinavian model of welfare assistance. Singaporeans are too meek to make demands, Singaporeans would be too happy if the government were less greedy i.e. take less & spend less.

 

The PAP government should cease using the Scandinavian welfare bogeyman to frighten Singaporeans into accepting their twisted logic for further increases to their costs of living.

 

The fault in Singapore’s system is that the prevalent and uncritical support of the Ruling party empowers it to push through detrimental, unpopular and illogical policies, which hurt all Singaporeans including their supporters, a result of the arrogance leading to high-handedness and a lack of compassion for the people.

Singapore’s problems cannot be solved by this theatric GST hike and its supporting accompaniment because:-

1. Increasing consumption tax hurts the poorest people hardest and only serves to widen the income gap. This must be avoided.

2. all help schemes, however well intentioned, require resources to administer its disbursements and therefore are inherently inefficient and inevitably waste public resources. This is worse when the criteria make it difficult for the needy to qualify.

3. if the Government is really sincere about helping the masses, it can do more to lower the cost of living and certainly not continue to act to make it worse.

4. the Government should raise resources by cutting wastage and lavishness in its own administration. This will come across as being more resourceful. Simply raising tax indicates having lesser abilities.

The elite in Scandinavia are made to bear the heaviest burden – rightfully so. Singapore’s masses are on their way to bearing the bulk of the nation’s burden if they do not indicate their displeasure to the PAP in no uncertain terms at the next general election.

The challenge of administering a country is one of the highest calling and it does not augur well if the attitude of the PAP Government is to race others to the bottom.

Until the next general election, this 1^st World Government still has opportunities to prove its worth (and cost) by producing policies which better the lives of the Singapore people.

Singapore will be better off without the GST Hike.

Chia Ti Lik