'Mixed responses over proposed ministerial pay cuts'
Proposed ministerial salary cuts have garnered a wave of positive public feedback, although some Singaporeans remained dissatisfied with them and said that more should be done.
Kirsten Han, former deputy editor of socio-political site The Online Citizen told Yahoo! Singapore that it is too early to make a definite conclusion over the proposed ministerial salary changes, but she still thinks it is a good start.
"I think on the face of it it's good news for Singaporeans, who might feel that this has been a long time coming. The response I've seen on Twitter is mostly positive, but I would like to wait and see what this will lead to," she said.
Agreeing with Kirsten, self-employed Singaporean Ron Tan, 40, thinks that it is a good start too, and hopes that the government will follow the proposed changes as soon as possible.
Similarly, Siti Jeffrey, 21, an undergraduate at the National University of Singapore (NUS), is satisfied with the suggested pay cuts. "The current ministerial pay (levels) are way too high, and Singapore is a state, not a private enterprise," she said.
An educator, who declined to be named, thinks that the proposed ministerial pay cuts act as a double-edged sword, bringing about upsides and downsides.
"On the bright side, it soothes public dissatisfactions, as the issue of ministers' salary has always been a very sensitive issue as Singaporeans tend to associate their high pay with their job competence," she said in a phone interview with Yahoo! Singapore.
However, she noted that the 31 per cent pay cut – 37 per cent if stripping of pension benefits are taken into account – may dampen entry-level ministers' enthusiasm and interest to join the public service, especially if the government is hiring top-notch candidates to serve the country.
"Traditionally, highly-potential candidates are driven by high income in return for their ability, expertise and other factors contributing to their performance. But the changes in ministerial salaries might affect the motivation of current and future ministers," she claimed.
Lee Taojing, 25, NIE year 4 undergraduate, on the other hand, disagrees with the proposed ministerial pay cuts.
“It’s quite a sad pay cut. They [the PM and Ministers] still earn millions which definitely looks huge to an average Singaporean like me,” she said.
Yahoo! Singapore reader Jai Lim, too, thinks that the revised ministerial pay cuts is still unacceptable. "Why is it that our entry level ministers' pay is still higher than that of other developed nations? If our ministers' pay is so much higher than other countries, the civil servants’ pay should also be higher too," he posted.
What do you think of the revised ministerial salary the review committee has proposed?
