Tag: Singaporeans

Lee Hsien Loong Instructs The Revise Of Electoral Registers

Singapore’s voter rolls are being revised to ensure they are current.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has directed that the revision of the registers of electors be made and completed by April 30, according to Monday’s Government Gazette.

This is the second time the voter rolls will be revised since the 2011 General Election.

The Parliamentary Elections Act requires that the voter rolls be updated not more than three years after a general election. It also provides for the Prime Minister to call for revisions from time to time.

But the last revision, which was done last year, had already fulfilled that requirement as the election was held on May 7 in 2011.

When completed, it showed that there were 2,411,188 eligible voters as of March 31 last year.

To qualify as an elector, a person has to be a Singapore citizen. He must also be 21 years old or older as of Feb 1 this year and also cannot be disqualified as an elector under any written law.

In addition, the person must have a Singapore residential address registered with the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority as of Feb 1 this year.

This is so that his name can be entered or retained in the register for a constituency.

The Elections Department will give details later about public inspection of the revised electoral rolls.

Source: www.straitstimes.com

February 2, 2015
Former Presidential Election Candidate Tan Kin Lian Posts Racist Remarks On Foreigners

Former presidential candidate Tan Kin Lian has come under fire from netizen for posting a status seen by some as racist.

Mr Tan had taken a photo on board a bus where all the commuters in the photo appeared to be foreign workers from India.

He accompanied the photo with the caption “I boarded SMRT 857 and found that I was in Mumbai. Hahaha.”Preview

He had likely intended it as a light hearted observation of the number of foreigners in Singapore and passed comment on a common frustration Singaporeans feel but doing so on a public platform like Facebook wasn’t taken well by netizens.

Many commented that his comments were racist and unfit for someone who was once running for presidency.

Some netizens commented that they were glad that he wasn’t voted in or he could have steered Singapore wrongly or made such social media gaffes which could result in international outrage.

However, some others also defended Mr Tan saying that the comment itself was not particularly racist as he was just observing that the commuters were probably from India and did not make any derogatory or otherwise negative comments about them.

It is also clear that many people agreed with Mr Tan or at least found his comment accurate and funny as there were at least 101 people to like his status.

Mr Tan has since removed the Facebook post after the heavy criticism received but he failed to remove the linked post on Twitter which still shows his post and some users comments in response.

Source: www.therealsingapore.com

February 2, 2015
5 Things About Wakaf Properties In Singapore

New strata villas at Jalan Haji Alias are the latest Islamic-endowed properties to be launched by Warees Investments, the real estate development arm of the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (Muis).

The 30,450 sq ft land parcel off Sixth Avenue was bequeathed in 1905, and also houses the 110-year-old mosque, Masjid Al-Huda.

Known as wakaf properties, developments such as this are built on land bequeathed or willed by a Muslim towards religious or charitable uses.

They now include serviced apartments, cluster housing, commercial buildings, and a heritage centre.

Here are five things you may not have known about wakaf in Singapore.

1. Long history in Singapore

This practice of religious endowment originated in the Middle East, where it is known as waqf. It was introduced to Singapore by Arab traders almost 200 years ago.

The first wakaf documented in Singapore was created in 1820. The Omar Mosque off Havelock Road was endowed by Yemen-born businessman Syed Omar Ali Aljunied. The mosque is also the oldest one in Singapore.

Many wakaf were given by Arab and Indian Muslim merchants, and a number of important wakaf were established in the 19th century. The number of new wakaf have dwindled in recent years.

2. Wakaf properties

There are more than 100 wakaf properties, according to Muis. Most are managed by Muis, while a number are managed by trustees. The properties were valued at $584 million as of December 2013.

They include:

Residential properties at Duku Road, Telok Indah

Serviced apartments at Somerset Bencoolen

Commercial properties at Dunlop Street, Kandahar Street, Pagoda Street, South Bridge Road, Telok Ayer Street, Temple Street, Changi Road, North Bridge Road, Upper Dickson Road and Joo Chiat Road.

Wakaf mosques such as Masjid Haji Md Salleh, Masjid Khalid, Masjid Khadijah, Masjid Kassim and Masjid Bencoolen.

The Chancery Residence, cluster housing at Chancery Lane

Madrasah Al-Maarif Al-Islamiah at Lorong 39 Geylang

A six-storey commercial building at 11 Beach Road which Muis bought in 2001

3. Where does the money go?

Last year, Muis gave $2.17 million to 60 beneficiaries. The largest beneficiaries are mosques, says Muis. Sixty-two per cent of wakaf funds are distributed to them, and 9 per cent to madrasahs.

Other beneficiaries are the poor and needy, as well as charitable organisations. Some funds are disbursed to foreign countries according to the donors’ wills.

4. Revitalisation of wakaf land

Warees Investments – the real-estate development arm of Muis – was set up in 2001 to find ways to enhance the value of wakaf land.

In recent years, it has embarked on a wakaf revitalisation scheme to rejuvenate properties in its care.

Its first project under the scheme is the Red House Bakery in Katong, which philanthropist Sheriffa Zain Alsharoff Mohamed Alsagoff put in trust in 1957.

The integrated heritage development project, called The Red House, will consist of 42 residential units and six shophouses. It will be completed in 2016.

The Alias Villas are the second project to be unveiled. There will be another project in the city centre, Warees told The Straits Times in an interview in 2013.

5. Overseas expansion

Warees signed a memorandum of understanding with property management firm CPG Facilities Management in 2005 to explore joint-venture opportunities abroad. It is offering its property management and development services to Muslim countries in the region and the Middle East.

Source: www.straitstimes.com

February 2, 2015
Positive Outlook For Singapore Economy In Immediate Future

With a strong pipeline of investments, the overall outlook for Singapore looks positive in the immediate future, said Minister for Trade and Industry Lim Hng Kiang.

However, he also cautioned that Singapore faces some challenges in the immediate one to two years – these include an ageing population and the task of matching Singaporeans’ aspirations.

Mr Lim was speaking during a visit to the Braddell Heights ward on Sunday (Feb 1) – his first visit in 20 years. During a dialogue with residents of the ward, he was asked for his take on Singapore’s future economy and population.

Citing a 2011 World Bank study of 101 middle-income countries, Mr Lim noted that Singapore was one of just 13 countries that managed to move from middle- to high-income, over a period of 50 years.

But he stressed that Singapore still has to be cautious: “What it means for us as we celebrate 50 years is – number one, it is not very easy to become a high income country; and number two, it is also not very easy to stay there.

“There is a lot of competition and if you mismanage like some countries – for example Greece – you can drop very quickly and the drop need not be gradual, it can be a very severe drop over a period of five years. As we look after Singapore and we look to our future, let us be careful and reinforce those things which make us successful. Let us also be careful not to fall down the slippery slope and end up with such problems.”

With investments coming into Singapore and local companies investing overseas, Mr Lim said he is confident that the country will be able to maintain steady growth of between two and four per cent. This is because of Singapore’s strong pipeline of investments, the Economic Development Board still being able to attract investments to Singapore, and Singapore companies investing overseas – which allow them to generate good jobs with their headquarters in Singapore to look after their overseas subsidiaries.

However, he cautioned that there may be some ups and downs. One challenge is the slowdown in Europe, China and Japan’s economic engines.

“We have to find new opportunities for our companies. But overall, we are still optimistic that we can generate the jobs and the big challenge now is how to match Singaporeans with these jobs,” said Mr Lim.

“HUMAN RESOURCE IS THE BEST AND ONLY RESOURCE WE HAVE”

Thus the need for Singapore’s focus on education and training. “Human resource is the best and only resource that we have. Other resources, like land and energy, will face greater constraints. If you look at what we’ve achieved in the last 50 years and look ahead to the next 50 years, there’s optimism we can do more,” said Mr Lim.

He cited how in 1966, only half of Singaporeans continued education past the primary six level. This is reflected in a high percentage of the current workforce having primary and secondary level qualifications.

But Mr Lim noted that this demographic has changed – more than 50 per cent of those who are under 30 and entering the workforce are now graduates. Another 30 per cent are polytechnic graduates, with less than 15 to 20 per cent having primary or secondary school qualifications.

He said that while an increasingly educated workforce is welcomed, this poses challenges as well and the economy has to adapt: “If your restaurants depend currently on the older workers with less education to be serving them – 10 to 15 years from now, these people will not be in the workforce. Your new workforce are polytechnic diploma holders and graduates. Therefore, you have to restructure your service industry to cater for this new profile of workers.

“In MTI and MOM, we are very concerned and we study all these statistics very carefully… The objective given to us is to make sure we are able to restructure the economy, make sure we can generate good jobs that satisfy and meet the aspirations of our new workers.”

About 280 people attended the dialogue, which lasted for over an hour. Questions ranged from Singapore’s education system, to changing consumer habits and the Central Provident Fund. One participant also asked what the role of SMEs looks like in Singapore’s future. Mr Lim said that moving forward, it will be key to have a strong pipeline of startups and SMEs, and to facilitate local SME tie-ups with big companies and foreign SMEs.

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

February 2, 2015
Tharman: Budget 2015 To Address Needs Of All Singaporeans

Singapore’s upcoming budget will likely address issues on retirement adequacy and ensuring good careers for the young and middle-aged, according to Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam, as he provided a rare glimpse of Budget 2015.

Speaking on the sidelines of NUS’ anniversary celebrations in Taman Jurong on Sunday (Feb 1), Mr Tharman said the budget will provide greater assurance particularly for the lower-income seniors.

He said the Government is in the final stages of shaping the Silver Support scheme. The new initiative, which was announced at last year’s National Day Rally, will see the Government pay an annual bonus to low-income elderly Singaporeans from age 65 to help them cope with their living expenses.

“Providing assurances in retirement for our seniors is a very important priority – not just for today’s generation of seniors but those in future as well. It is a strengthening of our social security system,” said Mr Tharman.

Besides retirement adequacy, Mr Tharman said what is equally important is ensuring that young and middle-aged Singaporeans have fulfilling careers: “We have always got to look to the future – anticipate the challenges, prepare our people and equip them with the capabilities and the expertise that they need to do well, individually as well as collectively as Singapore.

“When we talk about good careers, it is not just about those who are today in school or in our tertiary institutions and about to start their careers. It is also about our mid-career Singaporeans.”

The finance minister emphasised that the budget initiatives will not stand on its own. He said it is a continuation of what the government has been doing in the past, especially the last five years.

Mr Tharman said steps have been taken that are significantly transforming Singapore’s social and economic landscape, such as strengthening affordability in healthcare and housing for the lower and middle-income groups.

He said that this year’s budget, which comes along with Singapore’s 50th anniversary, will address both the needs of today and tomorrow. Mr Tharman will deliver Singapore’s Budget for 2015 in Parliament on Feb 23.

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

February 2, 2015