Singaporeans ask why S$500 CDC vouchers are delayed while tobacco tax rises immediately

SINGAPORE: Some Singaporeans applauded the government’s move to increase taxes on all tobacco products to 20%, effective the same day it was announced, to discourage smoking. However, the same move also prompted opposition supporters to question why there could be a “no transition, no buffer” approach to the cigarette excise duty hike, while Singaporeans have to wait until next year to claim the S$500 CDC vouchers meant to support households with the rising cost of living.

A Singaporean man wrote on the Facebook group SG Opposition on Feb 14, saying: “Singaporeans are struggling now, not in 2027. Why is hardship imposed instantly, but relief always postponed?”

He added that the cost of living keeps climbing — groceries, utilities, transport, healthcare — yet Budget 2026 only offers talk, statistics, and delayed handouts, while the immediate pain of Singaporean households is ignored.

“When the Government wants to take, it acts immediately. When Singaporeans need help, they are told to wait. This is not fiscal prudence. These are priorities — and they are painfully obvious,” he further wrote.

Meanwhile, talk of median wages rising is constantly repeated, he added.

Last week, it was announced that Singapore resident households’ median monthly income rose 7.7% year-on-year to S$12,446 in 2025. Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said wage growth has outpaced inflation, and that it has been strongest for lower-income workers, growing faster than for those in the middle or at the top.

“But median figures don’t pay bills. Median figures don’t explain why households still live paycheck to paycheck. Median figures don’t reflect the lived reality of families crushed by daily expenses,” the post author wrote.

“And let’s stop pretending housing is ‘affordable.’ Affordable to [whom]? First-time buyers drowning in debt? Middle-income families locked out of the resale market? Young couples delaying marriage and children because prices are absurd? Saying housing is affordable while prices keep rising is denial,” he added.

In January, National Development Minister Chee Hong Tat said, “We will continue to ensure that public housing remains accessible and affordable for all” as he announced that HDB can add more BTOs if demand for public housing remains strong.

The post author noted, if leadership insists on calling housing “affordable,” then leadership should be required to live on: the median income they quote, the housing prices they defend and the daily costs they downplay.”

One commenter said, “Median salary might have risen, but so does cost of living,” while another pointed out that it’s not about the CDC or the GST payout, but about helping Singaporeans live in comfort without having to “beg for help”.

A Singaporean woman urged the government to start by helping old people who are collecting cans just to eat. “Fund their full retirement,” she said, adding that once, she saw an auntie pushing two carts by the roadside, full of cardboards.

Echoing the anxiety from commenters, the post author added, “Singaporeans don’t need lectures. They don’t need selective statistics. They don’t need delayed vouchers dangled as goodwill. They need real relief, now. Singaporeans are not asking for luxury. They are asking to breathe. But from this Budget, the message is clear: Pain is immediate. Relief is delayed. And reality is optional — as long as the numbers look good on paper. If this is what “listening” looks like, then many Singaporeans are right to ask: Who exactly is this Budget for?” /TISG

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