Mr Wee Siew Kim, MP for Ang Mo Kio GRC, father of Ms Wee Shu Min, of “Get out of my elite, uncaring face” fame a few years back, during a debate on the President’s Motion of Thanks, had the following to say:
“In my interactions in the community, I sense that this has not sunken in for many Singaporeans. Many cling on to a lifestyle that is from a past that is fuelled by a bigger pay packet. They continue to incur debts, living in bigger apartments that one could no longer afford, continuing to incur large utilities and phone bills and unable to see ways to reduce expenditure. Many hold out for the good times to return soon. Lifestyles must change. Singaporeans caught in financial bind must make the hard adjustments. On the other hand, the Government has to make it easier for them – to facilitate their adjustments.”
Note that just a few days back, Straits Times ran an article on how most Singaporeans are spending less..
‘The average monthly household expenditure has increased by 14 per cent, in part driven by higher food prices and an increased incidence of home cooking in a bid to cut down on out of home dining expenses.
‘Fresh food spend, in particular, registered an average growth of 15 per cent across households in Singapore, with the biggest jump being reflected among the high income households.’
Other findings from the the latest Nielsen Global Online Consumer survey show that seven in 10 Singaporeans have altered their spending patterns in order to save more.
A majority of those surveyed – 74 per cent – indicated that they now buy only the essentials, while 37 per cent are buying the same product but in smaller quantities.
Singaporeans are also being ‘more cautious when it comes to impulse buys.’
Source: Straits Times 250509
While in the rest of the speech, Mr Wee made some proposals which are pretty relevant, like the importance of self-reliance and hoping that the “FSC and CDC executives are charged with the right mandate and authority to push for customized solutions” and I give him much credit for that. He had certainly came a long way from the “Get out of my elite uncaring face” saga.
But still, his accusations on the spending habits of Singaporeans is insensitive and not in touch with reality. Well, maybe his “interaction with community” is only during those meet-the-people session, where almost everyone who approach him for help have loans problems thus leading to his wrong conclusion of the current situation of majority of the Singaporeans.
Many Singaporeans are already downgrading their needs, with those lower income family suffering more. A well paid Singaporean elite may downgrade from a 4-ply purple ultra soft & durable toilet paper to a 3-ply white one, but the lower income family would downgrade from a 2-ply house brand sure-to-get-abrasion toilet paper to a 1-ply nobrand sure-to-tear-while-wiping-your-butt toilet paper. These Singaporeans cannot downgrade their needs anymore. They would all end up with smelly ass.
The rest of his speech is yet another step in the right direction for him. Mr Wee just need to open his eyes a little bit wider.
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What’s the name of that PAP MP that needed RenCi to help pay off his half a million dollar housing loan to GIC? Wah, take such a big loan; never live frugally siah… Maybe Wee had this MP in mind when he wrote his speech?