How much reserve is enough?

robertteh SG

US$150 billions of reserve and that is not enough. More taxes, double charging on state lands and triple charging on vehicle ownership and more fare increases. Our tax-and-recover system of government will just keep charging the people and build its own reserve.

But will the US$150 billions of reserve be put to good use to lessen people's medical care or lower costs of living or doing business? Or will it be put to build more of the 7 wonders or grandiose marine platform which cannot create jobs or increase our economic competitiveness? Or will it be used to pay more salaries and bonuses based on claims of success in collecting revenues from people like happening in NKF.

If US$150 billions of reserve are divided into two portions and one portion is set up as endowments to generate interests which is channeled to lessen costs of living or avoid further utility or medical hikes, why should the people perpetually suffer more fee increases and why should there be all the double charging on lands and triple charging on vehicles? Without defining the purpose of reserve, it is absurd to keep building up reserves. That is the reason why NKF is incurring so much anger. Only the numbskulled and thick-skinned and the self-centred cannot see such anger.

Salman SG

Actually not enough even if you have USD200billion.

In the event of a war in the region, this USD200b will shrink to less than USD50b.
How can you rebuild singapore with USD50b?

kilua SG

I dont think there will be a day when a country will say they have enough reserves.

But if the reserves are wasted building useless bridges to nowhere for election victories , I dont see a point in building such a huge reserve. The civil service seems to have benefited the most from the building of reserves- higher pay, posh office, billions to burn for investment mistakes, and not held accountable,but promoted to head all our reserves.

Salman SG

Aren’t civil servants Singaporeans?

robertteh SG

At the rate the reserve is being used to build more 7 wonders and pay for ministers' and MPs' retirement gratuities, they would not last very long.

At the end citizens would not benefit from building reserve as the larger the reserve the more of it will go to paying higher salaries and super-bonuses and retirement benefits of all politicians not the citizens' retirements.

dragg SG

i dont understand the purpose of the reserves too.

SnowFlag SG

one reason is to finance the GLCs
the other is to give the president something to do when he is free Laughing

but our president is a busy man Mr. Green

robertteh SG

It is not very proper for ministers to have proposed the motion to increase their own salaries and retirements annuities based on their own biased studies said to be bench-marked to some of the highest boss pays (many of whom are paying themselves high salaries to avoid paying too much taxes out of their own business monies or capital investments).

In fact if a private or public listed company director is to pay themselves this kind of extra salaries or remuneration it will be deemed a conflict of interest and may be illegal under the Company Act. Why such motion was allowed to be put up by the ministers and not by outside independent panels in the first place? Can our ministers go to parliament to do what they like in the first instance.

The next government with any interest of the people at heart will probably do the best right thing by introducing another motion to declare such salary motions illegal or voidable on the ground of conflict of interest in contract against the interest of the public.

Private companies' directors who pay themselves this kind of salary increases can be sued by shareholders to pay back the extra gains.

At least under minority share holders' right, such a motion is wrong immoral and may be illegal.

Any opposition worth the salt should consider putting up such a motion so that anything that is self-reward or involving conflicts of interests in contract like in the NKF can be properly settled in our system.

ndmmxiaomayi SG

Reserves are just like savings. Are you going to say that you saved $1000000 and say that it will last till you die? You can never be sure. What if there are wars? A lot of money will be spent. The reserves can dwindle to less than half. And how about after the war? We also need them to rebuild Singapore.

There are a lot of what ifs. Economy downturn, currency crisis, another SARS and all. Reserves will be used to rebuild us again.

robertteh SG

How much reserve do we need for spending on military preparation for war is only one way of looking at the ssue of how much we might need for reserve.

The correct way is to look at the economy and see if by sucking all the monies from the private sector economy we might be shooting ourselves in the foot - killing the goose that lays the golden eggs. If the government is too efficient in taxing and recovering costs on provisions of services, will it not end up stifling economic growth.

If economy is stifled and cannot grow then how can we continue to build on the reserve. We might stagnate and collect less taxes after some time and our surpluses or reserves would have to flatten or decline.

The proper way is to look at the whole issue of economy and how people can be helped by an economy that is doing well so that they will in turn pay more taxes and the government will grow even bigger surpluses and reserve.

dragg SG

reserves arent suppose to be just for wars and rebuilding. we are not in the middle east. isnt it paranoid to think just of war?

it should be used for major projects and also to use it on its people. of course our govt is damn good and never had a reason so far to use it.

Salman SG

When you least expect it, there will be war. History has shown us to be so and history will always repeat itself. So we better be ready.

sgdiehard SG

Since when is saving ever enough?

what is important is how to make money? should the reserve be used, how to replenish.

spending money is never difficult.

qooorange SG

wtf! if we dun have strong reserve, how much do you think SGD is worth?

robert teh is a crackpot. i dunno where he gets his figures, but he sure likes to massage the numbers to his liking.

USD115b
http://www.imf.org/external/np/sta/ir/sgp/eng/cursgp.htm

given that singapore imports almost everything, it is to our advantage as a consumer that we have a strong dollar... robert teh most likely doesn't stay in SG and he has no interest in SG future...

RaTtY81 SG

$150,000,000,000.00 tats how much we hav?

redstone SG

Asking 'how much reserve is enough' is like asking yourself "How much money in my bank account is enough". Laughing

KumSioJui SG

All the kings and leaders of the world past and present have relied on reserves so why shouldn't we have reserves.

Shaka Zulu during the height of his power not counting what private citizens owned, his royal state coffers alone had something like 800,000 cattle. He used it to feed his population and 40,000 elite army during famine or when his army was idle when he was not invading his neighbour. Laughing

reserves are good and for a purpose. It is to use when the nation falls to trouble or bad times. We are not like shaka or zululand our island dun even have natural water so to speak, can you imagine one day we have no more business to earn money and how we going to feed 4million people everyday? So lets not attack or question the purpose of our reserves.

SnowFlag SG

Our reserve is not reserve liao when the GLCs can use it without the President's Approval Mr. Green

Another lack of transparency case Cool

SnowFlag SG

Have our GLCs fallen into hard times? Rolling Eyes

claudetnt SG

how do we know that we US 150 billion in reserve? is it not only on paper? No certification of accounts had been shown to the public so far!