Reviewing ElderShield
A committee will be formed by the Ministry of Health to look into improving the ElderShield insurance scheme for persons with severe disabilities. This was announced by Prime Minister (PM) Lee Hsien Loong in his 2016 National Day Rally speech.
While the scheme has benefitted more than 7,000 people since it was first introduced in 2002, it does not cover everyone and the monthly payouts are limited to six years, which may not be enough, said PM Lee.
There are currently two versions of ElderShield – one that pays out $300 monthly for five years, and another that pays out $400 monthly for six years.
LM's Response
“Now that PM has announced plans to enhance this, it reflects the provenlongevity of our population. On average, all of us are living longer,” said NTUC Deputy Secretary-General (DSG) Heng Chee How.
DSG Heng hopes the committee will look into the duration of the payout, quantum of the payout, the uses to which the payout can be applied, and the cost of the premium.
“If we do this well, not only will it benefit the persons stricken with disability, it will also benefit the families who would otherwise have to find the cash to provide for this.
“This is an important piece that can help complete the suite of social safety nets that we have,” he said, adding that the Labour Movement can support the committee as a channel of feedback.
Keeping Singapore Safe
Commenting on PM Lee Hsien Loong’s National Day Rally speech on terrorism, Union of Security Employees (USE) Executive Secretary Steve Tan said that the union will do its part in preventing and advocating against attacks, as well as helping where it can should they occur.
“As a community partner of SG Secure, we will help by galvanising our officers to keep a lookout for suspicious individuals, or even abnormal occurrences at sites where they are deployed. We have been holding talks with our members and issuing circulars to our branches to keep our vigilance up.
“We will do more in these areas, including equipping our members with more competencies like first aid and basic self-defence for example in this relentless fight against terrorism,” said Mr Tan.
In his speech, PM Lee said the SG Secure movement, which will be launched in September, is a call to action to all Singaporeans to be sensitised, trained and mobilised to protect Singapore from terrorist attacks.
Review of the Elected Presidency
The system of an elected presidency had been designed for the president to be advised by a Council of Presidential Advisors (CPA).
This is so that when a president makes decisions, he will have the benefit of the experience and judgement of the CPA. Incremental and straightforward changes to the CPA are being proposed.
Qualifying Criteria
As the main purpose of the elected presidency is to give the president the mandate to decide on the two major matters – reserves and appointments – he must have the right experience to decide if the Government’s budgets and spending proposal are sound and justified, to judge the character and integrity of the names put up and to know what advice to seek or accept.
“That is why we need the best qualified person and the right qualifying criteria,” said PM Lee.
Ensuring Minority Representation
As every Singaporean has to be able to identify with the president, “everybody must know that somebody of his or her race can become president, and in fact, from time to time, does become president,” said PM Lee.
The full details of the changes to the elected presidency will be published in a White Paper at a later date.
"Race or tribe is such a dividing force in any society. However, in Singapore we have defied the norm of division to a large extent not by chance but by choice of our predecessors in leadership. The elected presidency review that has been completed is indeed timely and I do very much look forward to the details of the recommendation that provides minorities with a fair share of opportunities.
"Personally, I welcome any person who meets the presidential eligibility criteria and possesses the attributes to be the unifying force of the people, without pride and prejudice and regardless of race, language or religion. Easier said than done!” - Nominated Labour Member of Parliament, K. Thanaletchimi
