Let's hear it from some veterans, past and present, and the public in general. Some names of authors are not given basically to protect them from any persecution by the dictator government.
This is the words of our great leader of the founding generation, ex-Deputy PM Mr. Toh Chin Chye on why raising the withdrawal age is a breach of trust by the dictator government.
"Dr Toh Chin Chye: We need to clearly define the boundaries within which the CPF will be used for retirement. We must spell that out. You just cannot say, “Let us raise the withdrawal age to 60 or 65.” It must be 60. It must be 65. Now, at which age?
This Paper does not contain any calculation at all to say what will happen if it is withdrawn at 60, or what will happen if it is withdrawn at 65. If I were a person who has no relatives, if I were a widower with no children, all the assumptions made by this Committee – that you will be looked after by your children – then I do not qualify under any of these grounds.
Mr Speaker, I think fundamental principles are being breached. The fundamental principle is this. The CPF is really a fixed deposit or a loan to Government, which can be redeemed at a fixed date when the contributor is 55 years old.
If I were to put this sum of money in a commercial bank and, on the due date I go to the bank to withdraw the money, the manager says, “I am sorry, Dr Toh, you will have to come next year”, there will be a run on the bank! It is as simple as this, that the CPF has lost its credibility, the management of it.
This is fundamental…This is the nub of the problem – the credibility of the management, gradual encroachment into the purpose of the CPF which was instituted really to provide for retirement."
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Anonymous:
Imagine you put your money in a bank as 1yr fixed deposit.
After one year you go to the bank to collect the $$. Banker say cannot auto extend for 10yrs. You ask why banker say we worry about you people have bad habits take tge money will go anyhow spend so i am doing it for your own good. In any case i think you need insurance and annuities I think it is good for you so i already enroll you. If you want you can use the money to service housing loan with us...otherwise cannot touch until 10yrs later for your own good.
That is essentially what has happened to CPF....
Just like banker, those in control wont tell the real reasons why they do this instead they use a pretext and claim they are doing for your own good.
There are many reasons why the govt delays. and control access to your own fund:..
1. They can lower their own expeditures by enrolling you on various insurance and scheme using your CPF for programmes that should be supported by govt revenues.
2. Second is the the CPF funds is loaned to sovereign wealth funds GIC/Temasek for investment purposes and they keep the excess returns. This create a big conflict of interest because the more they delay your access the more they can exploit your funds. In fact of you go read the early speeches of Goh Keng Swee, such an arrangement was used to build up reserves when Singapore was poorer.
I proposed 2 serious reforms:
1. To require all excess returns from use of CPF for sovereign wealth investment to be returned to account holders....all countries and major pension do this. The current practice create a conflict of interest in policy making should be stopped.
2. Stop compulsory insurance schemes that potentially drain cpf accounts over time.
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Anonymous:
Its a slipppery slope.
But its not just delay, CPF now forciby used for insurance like careshield and converted into annuities etc...so the govt now is forcing this money into schemes they created so they do not need to spend from their budget
Once you allow govt to use the argument that you cannot be trusted to have access to your own money....you cede controlto on what they can do....
You basically go onto that slippery slope...they can create various schemes to use CPF to reduce their budget expenditure on healthcare and elderly care etc by tapping CPF into various schemes.
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Today the govt raise withdrawal age and included all sort of scheme and insurance etc so that they are not indebted to people.
They drained everything.
They already got 70% votes and monopolize Parliament for so many years
Why should they care about trust ?
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Anonymous:
Imo, they cannot simply just push the cpf withdrawal age up and up and up .....
They should take into the consideration of people's life span and the enjoyment we needed.
If they push it up to eg 65, we have less than 10 years to enjoy our fruits.....supposing we kick the bucket average 75 yr old , not to factor in before kick the bucket, we probably spend another 1 to few years struggling in the hospital waiting to die....
Their computation is based on how to accumulate as much at the govt side from the people.
Whether you have quality of life or lying in hospital when your cpf money finally come is not their concern.
They only concern is how to keep the money from us.
I have a friend, her mother passed away at the age of 79 yr old.
She started dementia around 75 yr old. Struggling for 4 years in and out of hospital, coma, liver not functioning, etc...
Just imagine, if push to 65, only have 5 years to enjoy and probably more than 40 years of hardship.
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Anonymous:
You seriously think they are in politics because they love the masses and public? You are a politician because you love to control, love to come up with policies and rules for the masses. The handshake and walkabout are just ways to PR. Try having them walk the ground everyday and without any media coverage. You think it will happen?
They rather be playing golf somewhere.
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“I want to get my money back,” said Mr Weng. “The government should not lock up our money. I have 40% of my CPF locked up (in the Minumum Sum). I mean, I’m a retiree now, and I tried asking the CPF front office for it, but they didn’t do anything.”
Ibrahim, 60, shared similar sentiments. “I am old enough to know how to spend my own money, so why does the government want to control my CPF? I want to use it to help support my daughter who is studying in Australia. I also need to spend some on my Hajj, as this is a very important religious obligation for me.”
“I tried speaking to my Member of Parliament, but he did not help. I’m not happy with it,” he added.
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