Lease Buyback Scheme
By Gerald Giam
4 December 2011 | 1,228 Reads | 5 Comments | 
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Recently, National Development minister Khaw Boon Wan announced that MND was reviewing the Lease Buyback Scheme to include 4-room and 5-room flats.
I’m glad to hear this. It was a proposal that the Workers’ Party had made in our 2011 Manifesto (Chapter 8: Public Housing):
“The HDB’s Lease Buyback Scheme has seen a very low take-up rate since its inception. The eligibility criteria for the Scheme should be reviewed to extend it to more households who may be in financial need. It should be extended to lessees of 4-room or larger flats so that more elderly will benefit from the scheme. In addition, HDB should provide better public education on this complex scheme so that there will be a higher take up rate among the elderly.”
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I am a non-constituency MP from the Workers' Party. I blog in my personal capacity. 
December 13th, 2011 at 8:38 PM
Hello Gerald, why isn’t anyone making noise about the taxi fare hikes? It is getting beyond ridiculous – Singapore is simply unaffordable and it is impossible to go on living here like this. I hope you raise the issue. How come S’poreans are not protesting? Can people really afford the increases? Doubtful… but as ever, Singaporeans tend to accept everything and keep their mouths shut.
December 13th, 2011 at 10:24 PM
Hi Eu En, I posted a comment about this on the WP Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/workersparty):
“ComfortDelGro’s taxi fare ‘revision’ comes at a time of heightened economic uncertainty amidst other increases in costs of living. We note that the Government has chosen not to regulate taxi fares. We urge the other taxi operators to consider retaining their current fare structures as a means of differentiating themselves. This would increase commuters’ choices and could increase competition for customers.”
This has attracted over 240 comments, suggesting that there are many people who are seized by this issue.
I will be studying this issue more and raise the appropriate questions in Parliament.
December 14th, 2011 at 10:52 AM
Thank you Gerald. Those of us in the middle-class are likely to slip back to upper lower income group. We are already living quite frugally, and have cut back on a lot of frills. It might just be cheaper to own a car! I am wondering how others with children and elderly to care for cope without a car and have to rely on taxis for hospital visits or other essential errands.
December 14th, 2011 at 11:11 AM
Suggestion: I think a comprehensive review of taxi services is necessary. For the longest time, Singaporeans have had to put up with 1) no cabs especially as midnight approaches 2) no cabs when it rains 3) rely on phone bookings and pay higher charges. We would accept it with grace if the taxi services are pleasant. Instead, I’ve lost count the number of times we have had to listen to gripes by drivers or listen to their unwelcome music or rude services when they are changing shifts and I could go on. These days drivers moonlight and I endured a property sales pitch from one of the drivers; drivers reluctant to help with bags at Changi or during grocery runs. In my view, these increases are highly unjustified. I’m beginning to wonder why the cost of living is so high in Singapore. How do Singaporeans afford mortgages, car, family, elderly and recreation? How much do they earn? Does the civil service really pay so much? There is so little scrutiny of their work and so little accountability that it seems unfair that they continue to even reap bonuses (even in hard times) while the rest of us pay the price.
Where is the salary review PM Lee promised?
December 14th, 2011 at 11:17 AM
One more thing: does any other country charge these absurd surcharges? How do they structure their fares? The media have once again failed abysmally to address issues of real concern to Singaporeans. We’ll have to depend on WP to expose everything.