“Every PAP town council has between S$30 million and S$150 million in their sinking funds. Although some of the town councils have purchased Lehman Brothers-linked products, the investments are minimal. Maybe a couple of percentage out of the total investment portfolio (were used in those investments), so the exposure will not affect the overall investment portfolio or the sinking funds per se.”
My interpretation: Assuming the most conservative 1 percent of the sinking fund is used in those investments, this will represent a loss ranging from S$300,000 to S$1.5 million dollars for ONE Town Council only. We do not know how many town councils have bought the products. “Some” can mean three, four or even ten town councils, but what we can be sure about is that the TOTAL LOSS incurred by the PAP Town Councils are definitely close to or even more than S$ 1 million dollars !!
XXX
Public funds should never be used in high-risk investments at all to generate returns. When there is a surplus, it should either be used to provide more amenities for the residents and or refund back to the residents in the form of decrease in the annual conservancy fees. The reserves of sinking funds held by the Town Councils (ranging from S$300 million to S$1.5 million) begs the question if there is really a need to accumulate such a huge surplus in the first place. Since there is more than enough funds to maintain the estates, why not reduce the conservancy fees of the residents ?
At a time when Singapore is in technical recession and Singaporeans are tightening their belts in a worsening economic climate, losing such a large amount of public funds is tantamount to gross negligence and dereliction of duties. It is disappointing that both the authorities and media do not realize the magnitude of the mistake and of the urgency to address the underlying flaws and loopholes in the administration, choosing instead to dismiss it as another “honest and unavoidable mistake“.
Read the full article and watch the CNA video here:
http://wayangparty.com/2008/10/29/h...n-total-from-the-failed-minibond-investments/
My interpretation: Assuming the most conservative 1 percent of the sinking fund is used in those investments, this will represent a loss ranging from S$300,000 to S$1.5 million dollars for ONE Town Council only. We do not know how many town councils have bought the products. “Some” can mean three, four or even ten town councils, but what we can be sure about is that the TOTAL LOSS incurred by the PAP Town Councils are definitely close to or even more than S$ 1 million dollars !!
XXX
Public funds should never be used in high-risk investments at all to generate returns. When there is a surplus, it should either be used to provide more amenities for the residents and or refund back to the residents in the form of decrease in the annual conservancy fees. The reserves of sinking funds held by the Town Councils (ranging from S$300 million to S$1.5 million) begs the question if there is really a need to accumulate such a huge surplus in the first place. Since there is more than enough funds to maintain the estates, why not reduce the conservancy fees of the residents ?
At a time when Singapore is in technical recession and Singaporeans are tightening their belts in a worsening economic climate, losing such a large amount of public funds is tantamount to gross negligence and dereliction of duties. It is disappointing that both the authorities and media do not realize the magnitude of the mistake and of the urgency to address the underlying flaws and loopholes in the administration, choosing instead to dismiss it as another “honest and unavoidable mistake“.
Read the full article and watch the CNA video here:
http://wayangparty.com/2008/10/29/h...n-total-from-the-failed-minibond-investments/
