There may be some fallacies on this thread, but hope that it may be clarified. Do correct me if I am wrong, as I am only an insignificant nobody simpleton.
1. When one buys a property regardless if landed, condo or public housing in Singapore, it is often on lease - 99yrs, 999yrs or land grants such as religious places which are forever. Thus, every citizen, regardless of whatever property will find their property worthless at the end of the lease tenure, & ownership reverts BACK to the elected govt of the day, which REPRESENTS the People of Singapore, which is us - the owners of Singapore land, to be redistributed to the next generation of citizens.
2. A TENANT who intends to hold on to his rental apartment for 99yrs will have to CONTINUE to pay for the apartment for 99 YEARS, where-else the BUYER of a HDB BTO flat only needs to pay off the loan for 30 YEARS, & after that, he owns the flat & pays nothing to HDB except town council fees & utilities, similar with condo owners whom pays far more.
3. As an owner of a HDB flat, he must comply with govt regulations, similar to condo owners, such as hacking of walls, noise control etc. Even the owner of a landed property while he can tear down & rebuild the entire unit, he still must comply with govt BCA regulations - structural integrity, underground drainage, sewage, electrical works remains intact, etc.
Thus, can a public housing owner be considered a tenant?
It is comprehensible on the anger & even outrage at PUBLIC housing costs. However, do remember, in 1965, our forefathers bought such flat at mere $15,000, but the average salary back then was only $300/mth. Today, our avg salary is $3000/mth.
One factor for the rise in prices which ALL can understand is INFLATION. It hits everyone. Decades ago, there were no lorries in Singapore. Most transportation were by horse carriages. Today we have even driver-less buses & trucks. For sure such will cost more than horse carriages. It is about PROGRESS & the price we have to pay for such conveniences.
Most will moan that salaries had not kept up with inflation. The root cause is due to the cheap cost of labour in 3 world nations - $400/mth for a job that will cost $3000/mth in Singapore. Most manufacturers would rather go there than to come Singapore. Thus if our labour costs rises, there will be no jobs for us, & we will have to crack our heads to make Singapore a better place of venue for MNCs than to fight on labor costs alone.
Secondly, we have to ERADICATE poverty worldwide, so that salaries will eventually rise in 3rd world nations, that would be comparable to 1st world nations & thus labour costs would be the same everywhere. It is a near impossible task at the current moment, but hope & efforts spring eternal thru WTO, UN Human Rights, responsible social media & governance, etc.