PAY RISE FOR MINISTERS AND CIVIL SERVANTS
Reward leaders for great economic policy
MP LOW Thia Khiang had a point when he said that leaders in Finland, Denmark and Switzerland earned much less than those here.
In Finland, where I hail from, ministers earn roughly S$240,000 per annum in base salary. The Prime Minister receives slightly more at just under $300,000. There are no performance incentives either.
Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew retorted that the governments of Finland, Denmark and Switzerland never produced the kind of transformation that Singapore has seen.
That is arguable as they, too, rose from the ashes of World War II. Of late the growth rates have slowed down, but the economies are more broad based, as MM Lee pointed out.
It is true to say that the current growth rate of Singapore is much higher than in any European country, but how much of that is due to the Government? Plenty, according to MM Lee.
Furthermore, MM Lee said that the governments of Finland, Denmark and Switzerland are mediocre. That is certainly true as the governments of these countries are political coalitions by nature.
They are not meritocracies where performance is rewarded. They are democracies in the true sense of the word and that is not a blessing.
According to the great 18th-century economist John Stuart Mill, democracy is not the ideal form of government. That is because it will not have the brightest leaders to serve its people most effectively. I do believe he had a point and results are what count.
Singapore is small and needs more safeguards to ensure that its economic performance remains optimal. That includes a strong and decisive government. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong stated categorically last year that Singapore is not going down the welfare road.
I believe that Singapore must remain strong in its political resolve to run and implement effective policies. By that I mean the kind of policies that warrant its citizens paying one of the lowest rates of income tax in the world and maintaining the same standard of living as in Finland, Denmark or Switzerland.
That, if anything, is a raving endorsement of the success of economic policy in this country and the leaders should be rewarded accordingly.
I believe John Stuart Mill would have liked the Singaporean model a great deal.
Mika Sampovaara
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Now let's have a little recall of the honourable Mika Sampovaara.
Sources from here .
The writer, Mr Mika Sampovaara, is an Individual NonClearing Member of Singapore Exchange Derivatives Trading(SGX DT), where he actively trades Nikkei 225 futures for his own account
SINGAPORE : A man was fined $1,000 in court for hurting a woman after her pet dog crossed his path.
Mika Johannes Sampovaara pleaded guilty to a charge of causing hurt to Mindy Tan Lay Eng outside her home in Siglap on February 4 last year.
The complainant had earlier asked for $50,000 as compensation. Sampovaara had offered to pay her $38,000 instead, but she refused.
Channel NewsAsia understands Tan may take a civil suit against Sampovaara for the injuries she suffered. - CNA/de
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Perhaps, a befitting Magic The Gathering card for men of such talent?
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THIS was one lottery where Mr Mika Sampovaara didn’t want his name to be pulled out of the hat.
The 35-year-old trader from Finland, who moved to Singapore last year, received a letter from the Department of Statistics (DOS) in March, asking him to take part in the General Household Survey here.
Mr Sampovaara was not interested.
“I don’t have anything to hide, but I should have a basic right to privacy. They want to know my passport number, date of birth, education level, my wife’s name, and so on. It’s very unusual for me. Whatever the institution, reputable or not, that’s a lot to ask for,” he said.
He told the DOS that he did not want to participate. He was in for another jolt.
“I was told that was not an option and had to give them the information they wanted.”
If he didn’t do so on time, he would be fined.
According to the department website, anyone who refuses to answer or knowingly provides wrong information faces a fine of up to $1000.
The department feels that the survey, conducted every 10 years, is extremely important. After compiling data on how much families earn, spend and travel, it helps the Government plan public programmes and policies.
But Mr Sampovaara comes from Finland, where there is no obligation for people to take part in such surveys.
This was confirmed by the Embassy of Finland. In fact, about 37 per cent of the people there refuse to - or do not - respond to similar household surveys.
Here, too, Mr Sampovaara wants his right to privacy to be respected even as the Singapore Government seeks to attract more overseas talent.
“Don’t get me wrong, I love Singapore very much. It is a very safe country and I’ve had a wonderful time here so far,” said Mr Sampovaara. “I do not like to be forced to do anything just for the sake of doing so,” he added.
Apparently, the DOS remains unmoved in the face of his stand. Mr Sampovaara said he had received at least 10 phone calls from the department, which randomly selected 90,000 homes - about 10 per cent of households here - for the survey.
When he refused to cooperate, a DOS officer came knocking on his door. It was after 10pm. “I told him to go away but it was hard to sleep afterwards,” said Mr Sampovaara.
When contacted by Today, the DOS said that it typically takes about half an hour for a family of four to complete the GHS.
Said Ms Ang Seow Long, its assistant director of publications and statistical information: “It’s important that respondents provide the required information so that the results are complete and nationally representative.
“The majority of respondents are co-operative and have helped to maintain a high response rate.”
She reiterated that the households that had been selected could not be replaced - to ensure that the survey remained representative. She said there were safeguards in place to protect the confidentiality of the information given to the DOS.
Mr Sampovaara, to whom the issue of privacy is vital, still hasn’t budged. He is beginning to realise there are no easy answers.
How Other Countries Do It
In the United States and Canada, the Statistics Act requires the authorities to inform respondents whether their participation is mandatory or voluntary, depending on the nature of the survey.
Closer to home, countries such as Japan have laws stating that those selected for housing surveys are obliged to respond or face penalties.
No such obligation or penalties exist in Finland.
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Nov 16, 2006
He left welfare state to come to Singapore
I WOULD like to commend Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong for sticking to the Singaporean economic model.
I read with interest his views regarding Scandinavian welfare states. I am from one of them: Finland.
While it is true that there is more ‘welfare’ in Scandinavia, it comes at a price. Public spending in my country stands at 25 per cent of GDP, twice that of Singapore.
The government in Finland spends vast amounts of money on free health care and education, nearly twice the 8 per cent of GDP spent in Singapore. Having been to Changi hospital I can say that health care here is no worse than in my country and the charges are very reasonable. My point is it doesn’t have to be free.
It’s a question of choice and pricing. The public sector typically does not run the most efficient services, because the services are non-competitive.
Singapore runs a tighter ship, because it’s only partially subsidised. Compulsory savings schemes for health care and pensions are a far better way. So is taxing consumption over income.
Many people in my country give up half or more of their gross incomes to finance the almighty welfare state. This serves to promote equality of sorts and creates a vast middle class. It also stifles entrepreneurism and leads to voluntary unemployment. The cost of living is higher too, with GST at 22 per cent.
I disagreed with the crushing taxes in my country. It is for this reason that I came to Singapore, and was happy to give up the benefits I had paid for over the years.
Long live the Singaporean model.
Mika Sampovaara
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Mr. Mika Sampovaara is not that clean in Finland either. His employers discharged him based on financial misconducts (Arctos and Sofi Bank).
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Now, I really wonder what are the guidelines for allowing foreign terro... I mean, talents into beloved Singapore? Hmm, any ideas, anyone?
