CPF issues dominate Reform Party rally
From left: Reform Party candidates Mr Jesse Loo, Roy Ngerng and Mr Kenneth Jeyaretnam at the RP’s rally at Yio Chu Kang Stadium last night. Six of the party’s 10 speakers touched on how the CPF scheme is inadequate for retirement. Photo: Robin Choo
SINGAPORE — The Central Provident Fund (CPF) system was the dominant theme at the Reform Party’s (RP) first rally yesterday, with six out of the party’s 10 speakers expounding on how the national savings scheme is inadequate for retirement.
Known for his critique of CPF issues, the RP’s candidate for Ang Mo Kio Group Representative Constituency Roy Ngerng devoted some 20 minutes on the podium to calling for reforms to the scheme, as many elderly Singaporeans still “cannot save enough to retire”, said the 34-year-old blogger.
Singaporeans should be allowed to withdraw their CPF savings at age 55 and with higher returns, said Ngerng, who repeated previous speakers’ calls for greater transparency on how CPF monies are being used. Ngerng was successfully sued by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong for defamation for a blog post in connection with how funds in scheme are managed.
The RP has also pledged to give elderly Singaporeans an additional S$500 per month to ensure retirement adequacy, should the party be elected into Parliament. The party is contesting 11 out of a total of 89 seats.
Ngerng also reiterated the RP’s vision to make public housing more affordable, so that Singaporeans will not have to fork out too much from their CPF savings to pay for housing loans.
“If you believe in equality … then you have to create policies that are equal,” he said. “I believe that we can see a Singapore where everyone is united regardless of who you support, that we will help one another to move along in society.”
Ngerng also recounted his experience as a former healthcare worker when he met low-income patients who were unable to apply for Medifund due to the cumbersome and time-consuming application process. Many of them stopped treatment because they “needed to earn enough money”, he said. The Opposition must be voted into Parliament to “fight for (Singaporeans) and make policies that protect them”, he said.
Refuting Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong’s earlier comment that the People’s Action Party (PAP) is its “own check”, Ngerng said: “Who does the PAP check? The PAP does not check itself. It only knows how to check Opposition … If we wait for PAP to do their own check, then sooner or later, the PAP will checkmate on Singaporeans.”
Mr Ngerng’s team-mates M Ravi, 46, and Osman Sulaiman, 40, also spoke about what they felt was the ruling party’s fear-mongering tactic.
The PAP government rules by fear, said Mr Ravi. “They tell us our neighbours are there to get us, they tell us that globalisation will affect us and the Opposition will ruin Singapore and you must give (the PAP) all the power,” he said, calling for people to “fight for their democratic rights”.
Ms Osman said the Government “propagates fear” among the people by drawing parallels between Singapore and Greece. “Let us make no mistake. We are not Greece. Greece overspends by the billions. Singapore underspends on our social safety net as compared to other developed nations.”
The Reform Party will hold its second rally at Clementi Stadium today. KELLY NG
