WP Louis Chua is queried on his opposing positions on housing affordability
Recently, it emerged that WP MP Louis Chua’s professional position on public housing differs from his party position. The WP MP has consistently maintained his party’s position that public housing is unaffordable. Yet, in his capacity as a research analyst, he wrote that housing affordability remained healthy. In an exchange in Parliament on Wednesday (Apr […]
Does a single poverty line help you to identify who are the poor who really need help?
The Workers’ Party Jamus Lim renewed his party call for an official poverty line. He called for the establishment of a committee of government representatives, civil society leaders and academic experts to decide what the poverty line should be, and for all government assistance and policies to then be pegged to this threshold. Back in […]
Bilingualism enables us to share, appreciate and bring together different perspectives: Heng Swee Keat
Bilingualism is one of Singapore’s most fundamental policies, DPM Heng Swee Keat said. Speaking at the Opening of the Bilingualism Carnival on 8 April 2023, Mr Heng said language is a key medium for values to be passed on from one generation to the next. Our mother tongue connects us to our values, culture, and […]
A widened definition of success, a meritocracy where everyone is best possible version of themselves: Lawrence Wong
Success means different things to different people, in different places. Yet somehow, as a society, we tend to converge the definition of success around material possessions such as the size of the paycheck, or the property we own, says DPM Lawrence Wong in Parliament (17 April 2023). DPM Wong suggests that we should shift our […]
Singapore is actually a socialist system in many ways in taking care of its people: K Shanmugam
While the economy of Singapore is capitalist, Singapore is actually socialistic in its policies, Minister for Law and Minister for Home Affairs K Shanmugam said in an interview with the South China Morning Post. “Because from the time you’re born, you get money for being born, and long before you go to school. And then […]
The sound of different languages is like the old Singapore, we mustn’t lose confidence and descend into xenophobia, says Ho Ching
In a post responding to the incident in which Amy Tashiana shamed a FairPrice staff for being unable to speak English, Mdm Ho Ching said ‘the strength of a Singaporean is our open mindedness to accept all creeds, colours and cultures as equals’. We accept we are not a perfect people, and we recognise that […]
Are expired COVID-19 vaccines a waste of taxpayers’ money?
Around S$140 million worth of COVID-19 vaccines have expired. Health Minister Ong Ye Kung described this as ‘insurance premium’, the price that Singapore is prepared to pay to stave of catastrophic consequences. The PAP Government realised early on during the pandemic, that vaccines were our safe exit from the pandemic. They decided to act early […]
A look at Singapore’s COVID-19 response, a complex and wicked problem on a grand scale
“COVID-19 was a very complex and wicked problem on a grand scale,” said DPM Lawrence Wong. Our battle with the virus was a journey with many twists and turns, and with repeated surprises and disruptions along the way. The situation was dynamic and fluid, with new information and developments unfolding daily. We had to operate […]
Expired vaccines are an insurance premium we paid to stave off catastrophic consequences: Ong Ye Kung
The Government knew early on during the COVID-19 pandemic that vaccines would provide us with a safe exit from the pandemic. Hence the mass vaccination strategy. However, without sufficient doses of vaccines, our mass vaccination strategy would have been a non-starter, as Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said in Parliament. COVID-19 was a new virus. […]
Is PSP Leong Mun Wai’s ‘buy now, pay later for land’ affordable housing scheme really cheap?
The PSP proposed an affordable housing scheme in which the buyer of a new BTO pays a ‘user price’ with land cost that is deferred. As long as the owner chooses to live in the flat, he does not have to pay for land cost. The upshot under PSP Leong Mun Wai’s housing proposal is […]