Singaporean says transitioning to ‘welfare society’ would boost population, address high living costs

SINGAPORE: A Singaporean on Reddit recently brought up a topic that may ruffle some feathers, as they made a case for the country to move toward becoming a “welfare society” if not an actual “welfare state.”

Taking to the askSingapore subreddit earlier this week, the netizen ‘nabeelcreed’ wrote that given the country’s “surplus resources,” by which they were likely referring to its reserves, “there is no reason” to move toward providing more support for its citizens.

“After all, the primary purpose of the state is to serve its people,” they wrote, adding that giving people more financial help would address high living costs and the low birth rate, both of which are problems facing Singapore today.

The post author wrote that the idea of a welfare state is not something Singapore’s earliest generations would have approved of, as it would require raising taxes, which citizens would have been unwilling to put up with.

They pointed out that just before his Presidential bid, Tharman Shanmugaratnam said that while the country must never become a welfare state, it could be a “welfare society,” one where everyone looks out for each other. However, the post author does not believe people can to provide more support to their fellow citizens than the state can.

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u/nabeelcreed also tackled the issue of laziness and people taking advantage of such a system, writing that in some Scandinavian countries with a welfare system, “it is possible to have both a robust work ethic and comprehensive social support, leading to higher levels of happiness and productivity.”

They added that they are willing to pay higher taxes if this benefits other Singaporeans, using the example of allowances in Australia, which include JobSeeker Payment, Youth Allowance, and Age Pension.

In Singapore, they added, a robust framework can be developed for welfare that would prevent abuses and help the truly needy.

“Singapore should do more for its citizens, and the citizens should not hesitate to expect greater support from the state.

“There is no point in the government expecting its citizens to have more babies when day-to-day life is already challenging, wages remain static, and the cost of living continues to rise,” u/nabeelcreed added. /TISG

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