Singapore Budget 2009

On 22 January, Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam delivered the budget speech for the financial year 2009.

(You can read the whole article at http://www.singaporebudget.gov.sg/)

It may be a lifeboey or relief for some but I disargree with a few parts of it.

Firstly, I do not think that the act of giving cash handouts to the public (espicially for people who are not retrenched nor elderly) creates dependence of the people on the government and erodes a sense of independence and self-reliance.

It might be argued that it can help them to cope with the rocketing prices of daily necessities. If that had been the case, the government should have given out the handouts last July or August not now as prices of items have mostly been stable and some have evened dropped.

Secondly, I feel that hard cash handouts can lead to wasteful spendings. For example some people might use this money to go on tours instead on more important things. I feel that handouts in terms of cash vouchers for basic necessities such as food and school fees would be more useful.

Lastly, I am not sure if this is the right time to dig into our reserves as most singaporeans are still not as badly hit by the financial crisis as our counterparts in other countries. I think many singaporeans can still cope with the present situation. Companies are the ones who need help presently.

Apart from that, the Singapore Government has to be commended for being very efficient for years already and Singapore has gone through good fortune so far.

The government wants to be prepared for the future, be prepared for further recessions in the future. As Singapore has no natural resources, the whole country can only depend on the intelligence of Singaporeans to earn money. Thus, shaping the minds of the young can lead to future leaders and cope with recession as the leaders will find ways to tackle the problem and eventually solve it.

I feel Singapore has one of the best governments in the world.