djchris

SINGAPORE: Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong says he will hold his own salary at the present level for five years and will donate any increases in his salary during that period.

He made the announcement in Parliament on Wednesday, as the House continues its debate on salary revisions for government ministers and civil servants.

Mr Lee said making a large adjustment in public sector salaries now is politically a most difficult decision.

But it is something that must be done.

While it is very difficult to get people to understand and emotionally accept it, he said the issue is absolutely critical.

"If we do not tackle it now, the problem will not go away; it will just get worse - we will be in serious trouble," he said.

After discussing it at length in Cabinet, and with Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong and Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew in particular strongly encouraging him to do it, PM Lee decided to move now because of the overriding importance of keeping public sector salaries competitive.

The Prime Minister said that to make clear why he is doing this, and to give him the moral standing to defend this policy to Singaporeans, he will hold his own salary at its present level for five years.

The Government will pay him his full pay, because that is how the system must work.

But for five years, he will donate the increase in his salary from this and subsequent revisions.

Mr Lee said he does not expect other Ministers to follow.

While it is a Cabinet decision, he told Parliament, he is carrying the ultimate responsibility, not them.

So what the individual Ministers and MPs do is up to them.

Mr Lee said that he knows they already support various worthy causes.

It should not be a public ostentatious display of how generous they are, but a private matter for them to decide at their own discretion, he said.

Mr Lee told the House that the issue is not just about salaries of Ministers and civil servants.

It is about Singapore's future - how it can produce the best government to secure a bright future for the people.

He explained that a strong political leadership and effective government will not happen automatically or by chance.

It only happens through a deliberate, systematic process to build the team and to bring in talent.

But it did not start out like that.

Minister Mentor Lee and the first generation of leaders went out systematically building a successor team.

This approach worked with a second generation of leaders, and now a third.

Citing examples like NEWater, which turns a strategic vulnerability into a competitive advantage, education, and a clean and non-corrupt government, Mr Lee said that Singapore's system of government has delivered results.

To sustain the system, the country must build the strongest possible team in Cabinet and government to govern and serve Singaporeans now and into the future.

He told Parliament that building the next team is his most important task.

Citing the example of Law Minister Professor Jayakumar, who is now 67, Mr Lee said he must have a successor ready by 2011.

The Prime Minister himself is 55.

So he must find and bring in a whole team of new MPs and political office-holders.

Mr Lee said that he wants to be able to assemble together the best possible group of young persons, who are now in their late 30s or early 40s, so they can offer Singaporeans the best choice.

10 years from now, one of them should be ready to take over as PM.

One key requirement, Mr Lee said, is to pay people properly.

He stressed that while the government does not expect Ministers to earn as much as the top earners in the private sector, it must not be too far out of line from what a person of similar ability can earn outside.

He also explained that the formula for benchmarking public sector salaries to the private sector is basically sound.

Mr Lee did not agree to a suggestion to delegate the responsibility of deciding Ministers' pay to an independent pay commission.

He said this will not settle the matter as finally, the responsibility lies with the political leadership.

It is accountable to Parliament and to all Singaporeans, who will have to judge and decide whether it has done the right thing.

To comments by opposition member Low Thia Khiang, he asked the Workers' Party chief to produce his line-up of Ministers and say how much he intends to pay them.

While Mr Lee conceded that his present team is not perfect, he said every Minister is worth his pay, and by paying properly, the team can be improved and strengthened.

Other countries also face similar problems over the pay of political leaders.

Some try to benchmark public sector salaries to the private sector, but have not succeeded.

Mr Lee acknowledged that despite all the arguments, the policy is not easy for people to accept.

The income gap is widening and although the economy is doing well, some people still face difficulties.

Mr Lee also agreed that it is not a good time for a salary revision when the GST has just been raised and not everything is rosy in the economy.

He said he had considered waiting one year, but the problem is urgent.

Since the last adjustment in 2000, private sector incomes have surged ahead.

Waiting one year would mean having to make a bigger move.

Meanwhile, the government will lose people.

Hence it must move now.

Also, it must keep on adjusting as the private sector moves.

Mr Lee made clear this policy is for the future, against the backdrop of the new globalised Asia.

He said the test is not whether these Ministers will leave, but whether there will be good Ministers in Singapore in 10, 20 years' time.

The Prime Minister said he is convinced the government has made the right decision. - CNA/ir

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Triglav

just a ploy to look good in the face of growing criticism.

if now the other ministers follow him to donate,he might as well be saying that the ministers are now more easily corrupted or will leave their job more easier cos $$$ is taken away.

Requi3m

Respect...

djchris

Call me negative, call me cynic, but I have to post this...
Rich men does what rich men do...

The following calculation does not include tax reliefs and rebates (including cpf):

With effect from 1 January 2005, Double tax deduction will be allowed for:

1. donations to name IPCs, IPC facilities, events or programmes,
2. donations to name facilities of approved beneficiaries (including artefacts and public sculptures) under any of the other approved donation programmes,
3. donations under any of the approved donation programme where the IPC or approved beneficiary acknowledgesthe donation by including the donor's name or logo in the IPC'scollaterals (e.g. banners, publications, advertisements).

(taken from: http://www.iras.gov.sg/ESVPortal/oth...deductible.asp)

Previous Salary: S$2.5 million (Taxable income: S$2.5 million)

Current salary: S$3.1 million (Taxable income: S$3.1 million)

Increase by: S$600,000

Donation to charity: S$600,000

Double tax deduction allocated: S$1.2 million

New Taxable Income: S$3.1 million - S$1.2 million = S$1.9 million

Previous Tax Payable: 42700 (for first 320k) + 436000 (remainder 2.18 mil) = 478700

New Tax Payable: 42700 (for first 320k) + 316000 (remainder 1.58 mil) = 273300


Effectively, like all rich men, they create a good name for themselves called Philanthropist while they get to pay lesser tax...Kill two birds with one stone.

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Triglav

yes it is a really smart move..

using tax payers' money to get some respect.

Unless he even donate part of his salary now tht does not come from the pay rise,no way i will even respect him.

chikon

welcome to the real world . the rich gets richer and the poor get poorer

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snoozy

will he reali donate.. nobody know.. onli himself know! Civil servants service getting more and more sux.. and yet their pay increase and increase.. that reali sux sux sux.. Even if he reali go and donate.. nth surprise me.. he is rich enuff .. he shld do that.

i totally agreed with this " rich ppls getting richer and poor ppls getting poorer "

funnysnow

good move, hope he mean it.

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Bankotsu

Here are some views from our opposition parties:

Speech in Parliament by Chiam See Tong on Ministers’ Salary hikes
http://www.spp.org.sg

National Solidarity Party's Press Release on the issue:
http://www.nsp-singapore.org/press_r...d0ad14539cba17

Ministers' Pay By Sylvia Lim, NCMP
http://www.wp.org.sg/wp/articles/200...isters_pay.php

Ministerial & Civil Service Pay By Low Thia Khiang
http://www.wp.org.sg/wp/articles/200...ervice_pay.php

Video:
http://video2.channelnewsasia.com/cn...a%20video2.flv

Chee Soon Juan to debunk Lee Kuan Yew's remarks at Friday's forum
http://singaporedemocrat.org/articleALDECALDforum1.html

Seifer

Do you think we should sign any petition?

Bankotsu

There is already one. See:

http://singaporeelection.blogspot.com

http://www.petitiononline.com/paypap1/petition.html

Fool

seriously theres no diff, the ministers can already retire with sufficient funds to support them comfortably for the rest of their life. the extra money is pure greed.

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finaldust

respect also bah dont think everyone will like him do same thing bah

to fall in love is always easy
to start a relationship is always simple
to build it, is always tough
to maintain it, is 'better said than done'
to break off, is 'easier said than done'
to remain friends after u broke off, is never possible
to forget the memories is 'always doing but never succeeding'
to heal the pain within is hard and tough and never near simple
but one has to try to heal your own heart...

djchris

If I have a jump of a few hundred Ks in salary and a big group of unsatisfied public, I would also have done the same. Make myself look good in front of them, and yet reduce near half of my taxes.

If you want to respect him, there's many many more rich people out there for you to respect. All the rich people do the same thing.

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StMichael

So what can we do about it, rather than saying that the rich will get richer (or, as the Lord Jesus said, "The poor will always be among us.") or griping about the ministerial salaries?

Why not make the move into the same circles, where you can make more of an influence? William Wilberforce did not argue his case against slavery as a commoner, but as a minister. Martin Luther King, Jr makes his case as an activist. Both did something rather than talk and gripe.

Michael Chan
Shanghai, China
Teaching and living in Shanghai:
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chikon

try doing that in SG, u end up sued like the few that have gone up against the govt in the past (against LKY)

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StMichael

If fear of being sued means you cannot go the Martin Luther King Jr method, then go the William Wilberforce method. Join in with them and make the difference from there. That's what he did - join in with the those who can influence, and make changes from there.

Who knows if you may end up being convinced that the higher pay is necessary once you're on the same side of the fence?

Michael Chan
Shanghai, China
Teaching and living in Shanghai:
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