Saturday, February 19, 2011

Define Bonanza

The headlines scream "$6.6 billion bonanza" for households in the various forms of cash handouts, tax rebates and top-ups to help them battle the tsunami of rising costs waiting round the corner.

What they don't put on the front pages is that Minister Teo Chee Hean is getting 5.4% extra for his Defence budget, a $620 million jump to $12.05 billion. That should explain his earlier cautionary advice that people should not set their expectations too high for the election budget goodies. The allocation for Health is cut by $24 million to $2.6 billion in the revised 2011 budget. Please, please, don't get sick - your TV licence rebate of $110 is barely enough for the A & E admission charges at the nearest public hospital. Transport budget is down by $585 million, a 12.6% reduction to $4 billion. How do you think Minister Raymond Lim will make up for the shortfall - other than the traditional bus/train fare hikes, ERP charges, etc? We don't want to know either. For the rest of the sobering numbers, download this pdf file (before it's deleted).

Madam Ong, 80, should be pleased. Her public assistance payout has been increased from $360 to $400 (kudos to MP Lily Neo for her tireless efforts). But philanthropist Wee Lin and founder of charity Sunlove Abode fears for her lot, "the payouts might not be sufficient if other living costs, such as electricity prices, continue to rise." The electrical tariff was hiked 3.3% for the first quarter, as oil price hurdled towards $100 a barrel. As for "more financial support of young families", executive assistant Valerie and mother of three kids has this to say about the $300 from the new Child Development Credit Scheme, "The amount is not even enough for what we spend in one month."

Why the big disconnect? Maybe it has to do with the $1 billion that Mah Bow Tan splurged for an air-conditioned botanic gardens, exceeding the original budget of $893 million without a whimper of protest from paliamentary members. So it's less than Balakrishnan's $200+ million YOG cost overrun, which happens to be close to what the Government claims is the cost of U-Save rebates for 800,000 HDB households. Or that $11.6 million is set aside yearly just to maintain the office of the President of the Republic of Singapore - refer to aforementioned pdf file.

A wise aunt has this timeless advice: if you are going to give someone a present, make sure it's something of value. Nobody appreciates receiving a Happy Meal toy packaged in a new wrapper.

23 comments:

  1. the health budget has been cut?????!!!!!
    @$#%

    yet more reason why khaw needs to explain, in detail, how his heart bypass bill was $8. (still think he was overcharged. isn't he supposed to get free medical as a minister?)

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  2. We are ruled by dictators forever!
    People who pay themselves fat sums while the poor suffer in silence!

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  3. Looks like they have everything planned right from the start to coincide the budget 'bribes' with this coming GE.

    I just wonder whether part of last year's GDP growth was cooked up in anticipation when more than half the economy is linked back to our GLCs. It's so easy to play with numbers, you know if you know the secrets to creative accounting. Nobody will really find out if nobody is saying a word especially if you have the last laugh.

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  4. Dear Tattler,

    Well done. You have surgically cut open the budget and revealed the intent of the budget...

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  5. Lye Khuen Way2/20/2011 9:47 AM

    Between Mr Leong , Lucky Tan and this writer, everything that need to be said about the Election Budget 2011 have been covered ! Funny thing is that by reading the ST, we must be living in a different dimension, to have such opinions.
    By the way, I am happy at last, with the TV & Radio License demise.

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  6. I wonder if Straits Times will publish the results of their online poll, which showed that 72% of the respondents disapproved of the Budget.

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  7. To Tattler,

    Keep up your good work! I'm a FAN.

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  8. nicely done Tattler !

    the increase in defence budget is for Teo Chee Hean to bribe the pirates in the neighbourhood...while the two ass-holes, Raymond Lim and Khaw B W can proclaim our MRT and hospitals have yet to reach "crush load factor"

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  9. The increase in foreign levy applies only to blue collar foreign workers but not those PMET Employment Pass (EP) holders.

    The increase in CPF contribution applies to all Singaporeans especially those Singaporean PMETs earning more than $4500.

    These changes make Singaporean PMETs more expensive to hire than foreign PMETs.

    These changes can cause the wages of Singaporean PMETs to remain stagnant or fall otherwise cause Singaporean PMETs to be retrenched. Those Singaporean PMETs already unemployed will find harder to get back their careers or they will end up under-employed because the above changes favour hiring of foreign PMETs.

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  10. Today's ST has a pic of Semb's potential pap candidates and sitting mp without Khaw BW.
    This suggests that Khaw may not be seeking re-election - prob due to illness.

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  11. Khaw probably knows he will become a dread due to all the healthcare fiasco which people are very unhappy about. And with healthcare cost being cut now, his hands are tied. So his sickness is his lucky grace card not to run. However, rather NOT surprised to see a ex-unionist running for PAP...they even have a stranglehold in the unions these days. Sigh no wonder nobody is speaking out for the workers anymore.

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  12. Lye Khuen Way2/20/2011 9:17 PM

    Hmm, it will be sad if Dr Khaw is sidelined. Despite what some have said about his Nursing home comments, my take is that he is among the very few ministers who can be percieved to be WORKING ! Yes, he did not clarify furthur his SGD8/- out-of-pocket expense for his surgery/stay as most of us would expect him to pay zero, being a serving minister. Must be some gag order...
    Anyway, this Budget only excite me with the No-more-TV & Radio License part. Strange, no ?

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  13. $620m jump for defense! Even if $203m had gone into the production & airtime of the "Home Truly" tvc to ramp up all the feel-good factors for election, in pretext of Total Defense Day, why else does he need so much for?

    1)Loading up on tear-gas canisters that we pay for in case there's a freak election and they have to pay mercenary soldiers to use that on us?

    2) For more Interpol & security services due to all the wonderful vices such as casinos have brought about?

    Hmmm..maybe there are so unspoken crimes that they have anticipated but not revealing?

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  14. Haha,
    anyone detect the next move those clowns use ?
    Let me tell you that none of the ministers will even be contesting in the election because they won't be popular, and will risk losing face and support. So what they do ? The those MIW will not be contest at all. They will field those useless PAP candidates for election but whether they win or lose, the ministers will retain their post with no loss of face as they didn't contest in the election. Don't be surprise the kangaroo will change to this rule of game because kangaroo will always be kangaroo .

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  15. (A) After flooding-in a deluge of PRs and newly-minted Singaporeans who will now tap into our healthcare subsidy in part or in full, respectively;

    (B) Despite inflationary cost pressures with increased foreign worker levy and other global pressures;

    (C) Notwithstanding the sharpest acceleration in our ageing demographics starting now;

    what did Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan do but allow MOH Budget 2011 to DECREASE???

    Khaw doesn't need to send Ah Kong and Ah Ma to JB. You will do it yourself.

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  16. If you need any more proof that PAP government doesn't care if you live or die, this is IT!

    How can the healthcare budget be cut when healthcare costs are going up so much? CUT, not even increased to match inflation!!!

    Vote PAP, and you die your f***ing business!

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  17. - 'Budget 2011- flawed, clumsy and prejudiced': "'Tax loopholes in SG that allow the cunning to CHEAT SUBSTANTIALLY on personal income taxes'... Very poor are forgotten... Excessively skewed productivity drives... Social (over emphasis on paid work, families forgotten, low birth rates aggravated)... 'Unhappy dad'" [A1forum, 22Feb2011]

    http://forums.asiaone.com/showthread.php?t=37043

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  18. please grow up lah... if you see the world around us, much more were taken from us... at least some form of rebates are metted out to pacify some people.. defence budget is necessary - dun be complacent ... would u rather to have a dictator like regime? high unemployment rate, riots etc? what comes around goes around.. it makes life a vicious cycle.. now you will begin to understand why we need good brains to run the country... pluses here and minuses there - zero sum game ... world is a stage.. we are all actors and players.. some good guys and some bad guys and some half good half bad... take it easy singaporeans...

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  19. "would u rather to have a dictator like regime?"
    oh, we forgot - ours is democratic socialism!

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  20. When GE 2011 comes around you can be sure most of the whingers will still plump for the MIW because they will not dare to abandon the PAP.However, they expect others to do the dirty work of upsetting the satus quo.

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  21. you are right! most whingers will still vote for MIW...but just 10% of these whingers voting for OPP can change the landscape for the MIW... another 10% of long time MIW supporters doing likewise b'cos they are pissed-off, can make changes to landscape for MIW even more drastic.

    ps: last chance to be pleasantly surprised.

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