<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR>Cheap fares for elderly not the best way
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->I REFER to Mr Narayana Narayana's letter , 'Active ageing: Re-look fare policy' (July 29).
Council for Third Age (C3A) believes that a holistic approach to tackling ageing issues, one that enables seniors to participate fully in society while enjoying financial security, is in the best interest of both seniors and society as a whole.
During the recent public consultation exercise organised by C3A and Reach, the public raised a number of concerns about ageing in Singapore, for example, having more meaningful activities for seniors, the employment of older workers, caregiving and promoting intergenerational bonding. The theme underlying many of the comments was one of recognising that seniors - like people of other ages - can and do want to contribute and participate in society, and should not be marginalised on account of age.
C3A supports the continued employment of older workers, not just for monetary benefits, but also because working helps people to plug into a social network and contribute to society.
In this regard, the Workfare Income Supplement Scheme gives low-income older workers an added incentive to remain in the workforce. For example, a 60-year-old earning $1,000 a month stands to receive $2,400 in Workfare benefits, of which $686 will be in cash and $1,714 in CPF top-ups.
For low-income older workers, putting more financial resources directly in their hands is probably better than further concessions on public transport. It is our hope that the people, public and private sectors will continue to come up with initiatives that encourage and enable active ageing.
Gerard Ee
Chairman
Council for Third Age
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->I REFER to Mr Narayana Narayana's letter , 'Active ageing: Re-look fare policy' (July 29).
Council for Third Age (C3A) believes that a holistic approach to tackling ageing issues, one that enables seniors to participate fully in society while enjoying financial security, is in the best interest of both seniors and society as a whole.
During the recent public consultation exercise organised by C3A and Reach, the public raised a number of concerns about ageing in Singapore, for example, having more meaningful activities for seniors, the employment of older workers, caregiving and promoting intergenerational bonding. The theme underlying many of the comments was one of recognising that seniors - like people of other ages - can and do want to contribute and participate in society, and should not be marginalised on account of age.
C3A supports the continued employment of older workers, not just for monetary benefits, but also because working helps people to plug into a social network and contribute to society.
In this regard, the Workfare Income Supplement Scheme gives low-income older workers an added incentive to remain in the workforce. For example, a 60-year-old earning $1,000 a month stands to receive $2,400 in Workfare benefits, of which $686 will be in cash and $1,714 in CPF top-ups.
For low-income older workers, putting more financial resources directly in their hands is probably better than further concessions on public transport. It is our hope that the people, public and private sectors will continue to come up with initiatives that encourage and enable active ageing.
Gerard Ee
Chairman
Council for Third Age