FOUND THIS AFTER READING ANOTHER POST THAT S'PORE BO LIU LIAW...WHERE IS THE REAL ARTICLE LINK???
[h=1]Is Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew the world’s richest man?[/h]
The most indebted countries (Fortune magazine)
Tony Tan has been elected as Singapore’s next president. He won by the narrowest of margins, with 744,397 votes—only 7,000 some votes ahead of runner-up Tan Cheng Bock, who garnered 737,128 votes.
This was out of a total of 2,153,040 votes, which means that Tony Tan won only 35% of the votes cast. This is significant as it means that 65% of Singapore’s voters were against Singapore’s entrenched People’s Action Party (PAP)—the party of Lee Kuan Yew.
Interestingly, 37,826 ballots were rejected by the Singapore authorities. What Singapore needs are U.N. inspectors who could have made sure that the ballots were rejected properly.
Tony Tan, who lost billions as head of Singapore’s General Investment Corporation (GIC), and who has been plagued by scandals, will now be the country’s president. GIC is one of the guardians of Singapore’s national reserves, its sovereign wealth.
Maybe only a handful of people know the size of Singapore’s reserves. The amount was and is a closely guarded secret, known only to certain family members of Singapore’s de-facto ruler, Lee Kuan Yew.
Soon after his election to the presidency in 1993, Ong Teng Chong felt it was his duty to know the value of Singapore’s financial reserves.
The Singapore government resisted Ong, saying it would take 56 man-years to produce a dollar-and-cents value of Singapore’s immovable assets (real property) alone. Ong never found out the value of Singapore’s reserves. He completed his term as president in 1999 and died in 2002.
Now we learn from the August 15, 2011 issue of Fortune Magazine that Singapore has no sovereign wealth.
Instead it has a sovereign debt of US$254 billion, which is 95% of Singapore’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). This puts Singapore at 8th position as one of the world’s most indebted nations. Singapore is near the bottom of the pile; only seven developed countries are more in debt, in terms of GDP.
By this standard, France, Portugal, and nearly every developed country in the world is doing better than Singapore in terms of debt.
Apparently, Singapore has borrowed heavily from its own Central Provident Fund (CPF) which holds the retirement funds of Singaporeans. This explains why Singapore is not only raising the retirement age, but making it more difficult for Singaporeans to get their retirement funds even when they reach that age.
Like many Americans, it appears that few Singaporeans will ever be able to afford to retire.
The United States borrowed to pay for its continuing wars. That we know. Where, however, did all Singapore’s borrowed money go?
The Singapore government has always had a surplus of tax revenues over expenditures. It has virtually no social entitlements. You become poor in Singapore and all you may have is a cardboard box on the void deck, as the Singapore government will not be there to help you.
Only a few people control Singapore’s national reserves, in secrecy, and only they are in a position to use those reserves as they wish.
Maybe Carlos Slim of Mexico is no longer the world’s richest man.
Is Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew the world’s richest man?
August 28th, 2011 | Tags: Lee Kuan Yew, Ong Teng Chong, Singapore national debt, Tony Tan | Category: Singapore
[h=3]116 comments to Is Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew the world’s richest man?[/h] « Older Comments 1 2
[h=1]Is Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew the world’s richest man?[/h]
The most indebted countries (Fortune magazine)Tony Tan has been elected as Singapore’s next president. He won by the narrowest of margins, with 744,397 votes—only 7,000 some votes ahead of runner-up Tan Cheng Bock, who garnered 737,128 votes.
This was out of a total of 2,153,040 votes, which means that Tony Tan won only 35% of the votes cast. This is significant as it means that 65% of Singapore’s voters were against Singapore’s entrenched People’s Action Party (PAP)—the party of Lee Kuan Yew.
Interestingly, 37,826 ballots were rejected by the Singapore authorities. What Singapore needs are U.N. inspectors who could have made sure that the ballots were rejected properly.
Tony Tan, who lost billions as head of Singapore’s General Investment Corporation (GIC), and who has been plagued by scandals, will now be the country’s president. GIC is one of the guardians of Singapore’s national reserves, its sovereign wealth.
Maybe only a handful of people know the size of Singapore’s reserves. The amount was and is a closely guarded secret, known only to certain family members of Singapore’s de-facto ruler, Lee Kuan Yew.
Soon after his election to the presidency in 1993, Ong Teng Chong felt it was his duty to know the value of Singapore’s financial reserves.
The Singapore government resisted Ong, saying it would take 56 man-years to produce a dollar-and-cents value of Singapore’s immovable assets (real property) alone. Ong never found out the value of Singapore’s reserves. He completed his term as president in 1999 and died in 2002.
Now we learn from the August 15, 2011 issue of Fortune Magazine that Singapore has no sovereign wealth.
Instead it has a sovereign debt of US$254 billion, which is 95% of Singapore’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). This puts Singapore at 8th position as one of the world’s most indebted nations. Singapore is near the bottom of the pile; only seven developed countries are more in debt, in terms of GDP.
By this standard, France, Portugal, and nearly every developed country in the world is doing better than Singapore in terms of debt.
Apparently, Singapore has borrowed heavily from its own Central Provident Fund (CPF) which holds the retirement funds of Singaporeans. This explains why Singapore is not only raising the retirement age, but making it more difficult for Singaporeans to get their retirement funds even when they reach that age.
Like many Americans, it appears that few Singaporeans will ever be able to afford to retire.
The United States borrowed to pay for its continuing wars. That we know. Where, however, did all Singapore’s borrowed money go?
The Singapore government has always had a surplus of tax revenues over expenditures. It has virtually no social entitlements. You become poor in Singapore and all you may have is a cardboard box on the void deck, as the Singapore government will not be there to help you.
Only a few people control Singapore’s national reserves, in secrecy, and only they are in a position to use those reserves as they wish.
Maybe Carlos Slim of Mexico is no longer the world’s richest man.
Is Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew the world’s richest man?
August 28th, 2011 | Tags: Lee Kuan Yew, Ong Teng Chong, Singapore national debt, Tony Tan | Category: Singapore
[h=3]116 comments to Is Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew the world’s richest man?[/h] « Older Comments 1 2
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Sons Of Liberty
August 31, 2011 at 8:40 am · Reply
CPF, GIC is part of the greatest Ponzi scheme in the world. -
Gorillacurry
August 31, 2011 at 8:43 am · Reply
Call me picky but you realize that the other half of a truth is a lie? So we’re willing to pick the half we want (cos it doesn’t rock our personal boat.. yet) and ignore the lie. Interesting. You may want to consider what may happen to our kids just believing in the truth half of a whole picture.
I don’t know honestly if what is being discussed is true but I’m amazed that we don’t even consider the implications if it were possible. IMHO, a typical Singapore response. Such is life. -
singaporean
August 31, 2011 at 8:52 am · Reply
http://forums.vr-zone.com/chit-chatting/1659369-shocks-singapore-has-debt-us-254-billion.html -
Poooolitical SalesMaN
August 31, 2011 at 9:27 am · Reply
Dear friend call more of your friend come to johnharding.com to view this article.Or not they will be kept in the dark.LKY will call U people Daft again N again B 4 he kick the bucket -
dodo
August 31, 2011 at 9:29 am · Reply
So much suspicion about Temasek, and TT is the chairperson – does anyone think he will be independent?
And highlights of Temasek below:
Significant losses known publically – Suzhou, Micropolis, Shin Corp, Chartered Semi, UBS/Citi/Merrill Lynch/Barclay/BOA, ABC Learning Center, Stuyvescant Town, China Aviation Oil etc etc.
Temasek changed reporting currency to USD in Apr 2011.
In 2011 ex-President Nathan has said Singapore reserves were used 27 times – what were these 27 times?
Job Credit Scheme was luanched in 2009 with the approval of the president to tap into reserves. It paid out about S$5B to employers to cope with the financial crisis – no prizes for guessing who the largest private sector employer in Singapore is (hint Temasek – Singtel, Singapore Technologies group, SIA, NOL, Keppel group, Sembawang group, SBS Transit, Capital Land/Mall etc). Does this look like raiding the public reserves?
Singapore has AAA credit rating – please also remember these very same credit rating agencies gave CDOs triple A ratings which blew up in 2007. Credit ratings certificates have the same worth as toilet paper.
The core team of PAP are paid millions – if you are paid S$2M a year and your family is enjoying the wealth, will you dare to rock the boat or will you be aligned to PAP and become another Yes-man?
The husband is CEO, the wife is CFO (Temasek) – this is a red flag for most auditors. And the CEO to be quit briefly after joining Temasek!!! big red flag?!
CPF funds lock in – raising withdrawl age, minimum sum, now mandatory annuality scheme purchase, dropping Special Account interest from 4% down to 2.5% in 2011 (but claims Temasek generated returns of 18% compunded annually!).
National assets sold – 3 power plants etc. Would a cash-rich country need to sell of strategic national assets like power plant to foreigners?Did the seller promise the buyer that they can increase charges whenever they like so that the seller gets a very high price? have you check why household utility bills in Singapore are among the higest in the world?
If you hide the name Temasek and mention all the facts to any accountant or auditor – they will tell you there is almost 100% probability there is fraud in the company.
Please does a goole search on all the above point to verify the facts and then form your own opinion.-
admin
August 31, 2011 at 10:21 am · Reply
Thanks – Very informative!
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gs2ux
August 31, 2011 at 10:20 am · Reply
3 yrs ago,I got out of conscription just to find myself finding air to breathe amidst the many obstacles.job,housing,standard of living,etc.and they’re borrowing my cpf to invest in something I have no idea about,or rather,are not fully transparent about.and gic claims that they can’t be fully transparent as written in the straits times quite some yrs ago.now that’s really weird.I don’t get it.facts are there to read,and they are free for all to argue its interpretation.but,why would admin say such things unless it bears truth?(and he has worked for sg govt before and was part of the FT).beats me,but I sure think something’s not right.our people have the right to know MORE about OUR HARD EARNED MONEY. -
Tatboleh
August 31, 2011 at 11:37 am · Reply
Time for transparency from our govt?
These people who are running OUR LIVES are also STEALING OUR MONEY!
Not happy with their million dollar salaries, their bonuses,etc…now, investing my money like gambling in Las Vegas!
I hate them all. This is my hard-working money that I am talking about! -
Tan SK
August 31, 2011 at 11:43 am · Reply
Where’s my MONEY?
Is it sitting in the Lee Family Trust fund?
I want to know where my money has gone to?
i am so angry with this PAP nonsense, of always taking more money!!!
I work very hard for my old age, and now, I cannot even take out my money all at one time?
How can you do this to us? -
Bornbred Singaporean
August 31, 2011 at 4:02 pm · Reply
We complain and complain and complain! And what do we do after all the complaining? We walk to the polling booth and we vote for Tony Tan! Just like the last GE, we Singaporeans complain, then vote the incumbents back in and then continue with the complaining after they are back in power and continue to screw us.
Although the Presidency is supposed to be largely toothless, this would have been the 1st step in dissolving the near total power the PAP are wielding over us. I sometimes wonder what goes through many of my fellow citizens before they cast their votes. Here we had a case of very strong allegations of impropriety on the part of TT when Defence Minister and many unanswered questions about his son’s unique pathway during his national service and this should already be a warning sign especially when Singaporeans are loking at the Presidency as a means to check the powers and abuses of the government.
We are the ones who made Singapore the success story it is today. LKY was part (albeit leader) of a team but nothing would have been possible without our support. When they asked us to tighten oyr belts during difficult times, we complied. Of course, they ask us to tighten our belts but then go on to give themselves salary increases. We Singaporeans really need to wake up and smell the coffee! This is no different from George Orwell’s Animal Farm! They are reaping the benefits of our success and screwing us in the process! -
Omnia1
August 31, 2011 at 5:39 pm · Reply
Maybe a larger picture of Singapore’s reserves would be useful. Singapore’s reserves are held by three entities – MAS, Temasek and GIC.
(1) MAS – As at June 2011, MAS held total official reserves of US$242 billion, comprising almost entirely of Securities, Currency Deposits and Gold. [The IMF link which I previously gave works when I tried it. If not, go to http://www.imf.org/external/np/sta/ir/colist.htm and choose 'Singapore']
(2) Temasek Holdings – As at March 2011 (FY end), Temasek’s portfolio of investments had a market value of S$193 billion (or about US$161 billion) based on its financial statements as audited by KPMG. [See http://www.temasek.com.sg
(3) GIC – This is the only entity where the value of its investment holdings are not publicly disclosed. Many estimate it to be “well above US$100 billion”.
So assuming we value GIC’s investments at a very conservative US$100b, Singapore’s total reserves would still be US$503b, way in excess of the national debt of US$254b.
If we are concerned about the liquidity of Temasek/GIC’s investments, fair enough. Let’s take a ridiculous haircut and reduce Temasek’s portfolio value by 90% and assume GIC’s portfolio value is zero since they don’t publish the number. Even in this ridiculous scenario, the total reserves (MAS+Temasek 10%) would still be more than the national debt.
This is the strength of Singapore’s reserve position.-
admin
August 31, 2011 at 6:00 pm · Reply
Don’t see where KPMG is involved. Hard to make guesses.-
gyn
September 1, 2011 at 8:06 am · Reply
what kind of a debate is this? a one-liner just to kill the conversation? an intellectual response to Omnia1 would garner you more respect.
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Poooolitial SalesMaN
August 31, 2011 at 5:46 pm · Reply
Bornbred Singaporean : Do U known how TT get elected.Information source said there is something wrong in Tanjong Pagar GRC votes.Kee Chiu can answer for that!!!Another two or three month U can see he gets promotion. -
Not Surprised
August 31, 2011 at 6:16 pm · Reply
The problem is the majority of Singaporeans do not read international journals. When they surf the net, it is more for entertainment. ANd many of them are not financially savvy. When they read all these financial news, they get nervous, and their reaction – leave it to the govt.
The local media will not let us hear of these publications. I have long ago given up any hope that any govt will take care of its people. They are there to take care of their own families and friends. I have to take care of myself. No point complaining.
When I am 65 and get the peanuts from my cpf, I will just feed it to the monkeys….-
Dave
September 1, 2011 at 2:43 am · Reply
Problem is you are complaining yourself. Get smart, if the opposition does that if they represent majority of the parliament in the future, what are you going to do? Rage in anger?
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Ling
August 31, 2011 at 7:40 pm · Reply
hmm.. I don’t think the rejected votes are an issue though as the counting process involves not only the returning officer but also counting agents from all the political parties and general public. Any unreasonable rejection of votes will definitely be voiced out through various channels but we don’t hear any of them till now, especially through the usually vocal opposition parties and their supporters.
As with the CPF, totally agree that it’s a scam scheme, to support legal government corruption. -
Poooolitical SalesMaN
August 31, 2011 at 7:41 pm · Reply
admin
on’t see where KPMG is involved. Hard to make guesses.No other allow Organisation accept Gerald will get involved. -
Thorsten
August 31, 2011 at 9:08 pm · Reply
The source and means of producing this graphic is quite unclear. It is not possible to project a debt if the asset base is unknown, and while the rest of the world has been slashing jobs, struggling to pay civil servants, and increasing debt ceilings; Singapore has been able to prevent most of these consequences. It amazes how the masses want to create an enemy ie PAP when the real problem lies in divided politics ie US. Imagine decisions can not be made through unity but instead result in delays ie lifting debt ceilings, bailing out Greece, only to result in downgrading, riots and turmoil.
And for those open to evaluating public consensus (as opposed to IMF which is is still a money making corporation, dont forget), Singapore does not do poorly at all as a 1st world developed country in its international debt http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_external_debt.-
admin
August 31, 2011 at 9:48 pm · Reply
In the case of Singapore, I would rather go with Fortune Magazine instead of what some guy put in Wikipedia. I think you as a PAP person knows this very well. So, you throw out a RED HERRING, a completely false number. No surprise – that is how the PAP operates.
The Wikipedia figures state “est” for “estimated” after most counties, including Singapore. With Wikipedia, anyone can alter the figures freely. If you look at the update tab, you will understand this.
Yes, the divided politics in the US is a problem – so is the undivided dictatorship in Singapore.
Anyone can see through your argument. Please don’t waste our time with such comments.
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anonym
August 31, 2011 at 11:14 pm · Reply
Where is your link for Fortune Magazine?
