1) my uncle is fifty and has almost nothing in his CPF . He is taking whatever jobs he can whenever there are jobs (like security guard , labourer , carrying things ). And sometimes there are no jobs . His savings are low and his CPF almost nothing. And he’s already fifty.

It is not that he is lazy (like what a certain minister’s sheltered & obviously unexposed-to-the-world daughter said about such people some months ago.) It is simply that foreign workers take up most of the jobs that he IS able to do . He wants a job but doesn’t always have.

My uncle had left school at a young age due to my grandparents being poor (that was 30 to 40 years ago ) and so had only PSLE qualifications. After that, he worked to earn money.

Then he got into an accident and his eyesight became limited ( tunnel vision ), so obviously the jobs he can take are limited.

2) I have another relative, an aunt. My aunt is different from this uncle. She is a few years younger than him. She earned a university degree and had a civil engineering job. About five years ago, she was retrenched. She is still unemployed. And every year, every month, every day, her savings and CPF (for housing instalments) are eroded.

==> 3) With such people in Singapore, I am wondering if the amount of $ given to the top people in Singapore can be used in some other way to help such persons? not asking for charity or welfare state, but the luxury does seem to contrast very starkly with the harsh survival worries of people like my uncle/aunt.

I believe that an attractive salary is needed to attract the good ones who are not only passionate but also capable to run the country wisely. Passion is not enough. Capability is also needed. And if they are capable, there are likely to be many private companies wooing them with salaries much higher than the government can offer.

With the loss of family privacy and hard work that being a real minister entails, I think they do deserve sufficiently high salaries. Let’s not begrudge their pay if they really serve the country well and the benefits they bring to the country are more than what the country gives them. I am talking about the deserving ministers.

Btw, if anyone claims to be of utmost patriotic, people loving and benevolent; then after earning multi-millions from politicals offices, it is high time for the long serving old(very old in fact) to volunteer their services to the country and to guide aspiring politicians.

Asking to be paid just show how MERCENARY these preachers of virtues are, shame, shame, SHAME!

‘To attract and retain younger talents’, I see old fags staying in the cabinet whereas citizens over forties face problem getting employments.