"Going to Orchard Road A LUXURY for Bedok family "
Section:News
By:GENEVIEVE JIANG, SWAN TAN
Publication:The New Paper
Date:26/02/2008
Online News URL
How comfortable do you think your life is living in Singapore? Well, I think many people will answer describe their life as stressful, busy and etc. However, I have never encountered someone who actually described their life as poor.
This article that was published recently has revealed a rather severe case of poverty that actually quite a number of families in Singapore live in now. It reported that a family of four survives every month on an average income of $750. The family monthly expenses are calculated in term of cents that it is even a luxury for the family to get a set of new clothes and go shopping in Orchard Road. The Central Provident Fund (CPF) has worked out a sum (Workfare Bonus) to help such families. However, these families are so uniformed that only 8% has actually applied and benefited from it.
After reading this article, I am shocked to know that besides being in a developed and rich country like Singapore, there are still people struggling to feed their families and meet the end of months. For the past few years, Singapore’s economy has been growing constantly, and moreover Singapore is well known for high wages and good working conditions. It makes me wonder how such poor condition can occur. At the same time, I feel really glad that our government considerably plans out schemes to help lower income families to lead a better life. The article serves as a kind reminder for all the deserving families with financial difficulty to apply for the Workfare Bonus and benefit from the government polices.
I am totally agreed with the author’s point of view that the government not only should come out with plans to help out fellow Singaporeans, they should inform them about their effort in helping them as well. Quoting an example form the author, there is really no point to organize a marvelous surprised birthday party for a birthday boy without letting him know that there is one. Or the families know that there are helps for them, but they do not understand how they can get the help. They describe these beneficial schemes as “complicated”. That reflects the problem of communication between the government and the people, because seemingly the people and the government speak “different languages”.
However, I cannot help but wonder if this is the best way to help these lower income families. Aren’t the actions of the government giving these people fish, instead of teaching them to fish better? I feel that government can help these families better by providing better job opportunities and skill-acquiring courses. They should also encourage economy dependants in the families to work if they can.
As individuals, we maybe leading a comfortable life, and as a country, we can be rich and preoperative. However, I hope we as a community living together, do not forget that there are still people that need our help and attention so that they can also have a better life.
word count: 499
Friday, March 7, 2008
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