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10-07-2014, 02:30 AM
An honorable member of the Coffee Shop Has Just Posted the Following:
CPF MEMBERS SHORTCHANGED BY PAP’S GUARANTEE OF WORLD'S LOWEST RATE OF RETURNS
.node-article .field-name-ad-box-in-article {float: left;margin: 15px 15px 10px 0;}.node-article .field-tags{clear: both;} Post date:
9 Jul 2014 - 9:05pm
http://therealsingapore.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/17898065_0.jpg?itok=YfJPbCff (http://therealsingapore.com/sites/default/files/field/image/17898065_0.jpg)
“In CPF monies are safe: DPM Tharman (http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/cpf-monies-are-safe-dpm/1245160.html)“, the government has again repeated the half truth ie “Risk on GIC investments are wholly borne by the Government”.
There is inherently no logic because the “government” and CPF members are one and the same. Any returns shortfall resulting from GIC’s poor performance will be paid out from the budget surplus. CPF members contribute to the budget revenue.
Tharman says the “CPF Board invests CPF members’ monies in Special Singapore Government Securities (SSGS)”. (using an arbitrary formula to calculate interest rates). But investments they are not because the interest rates are guaranteed. It’s more like a fixed deposit where CPF monies are loans to the government in return for a fixed rate of return.
As FDs, the CPF Board has to return all the monies to their rightful owners. The moment a bank arbitrarily changes the terms before maturity and returns their customers in installments, it’s only a matter of time before it collapses. The PAP government in this case has used legislation to compel CPF members to arbitrary terms for withdrawal of the total sum. We have now become the laughing stock of the world by being the first citizens to be paid in installments till death do u$ part.
Tharman then explains the process of complicating the proceeds from SSGS by comingling with other government funds. There is no need to complicate a simple process unless there is some intent to conceal data.
The government could have easily designated a CPF account at the GIC but chooses not to. No government in the world comingles pension funds with budget surpluses and classifies them as government reserves. CPF monies do not belong to the government. It appears the government has intentions to mask the true performance of CPF monies in GIC.
GIC an underperformer
Tharman admitted that GIC had failed to deliver returns of less than 4% to CPF members in 8 years during the last 20 years (40 per cent of the time).
As for our neighbour’s EPF, it was able to achieve average returns of 5.52% for the last 20 (http://advisertool.com/?p=1048) years without any assistance from the government.
For the last 5 years, Malaysia’s EPF rate averaged about 6% compared to CPF’s miserable 3% plus. To add insult to injury, Malaysia’s inflation (http://www.focus-economics.com/country-indicator/malaysia/inflation) rate was lower than Singapore’s (http://www.focus-economics.com/country-indicator/singapore/inflation).
Tharman again repeated this half truth that “The Government has been absorbing that volatility, andprotecting CPF members”. But our CPF returns are the lowest in the world! (see chart below) Does Tharman mean to say that our rates could actually have gone lower without protection?
Source: The Heart Truths (http://thehearttruths.com/2013/11/07/top-8-shocking-facts-about-the-singapore-cpf/) (read other interesting CPF articles by Roy)
http://likedatosocanmeh.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/cpf20roy2.jpg?w=652 (http://likedatosocanmeh.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/cpf20roy2.jpg)
Other pension funds like the EPF did not require any government protection! Seriously, why would CPF members require PAP’s protection in order to produce the lowest pension fund returns in the world?
The longer the government continues to mask the CPF issue with mind boggling nonsense, the more trust will be lost. Ultimately, Singapore loses and leaders cannot simply tell citizens to move on without any support.
GIC must publish all relevant information because it is managing OUR CPF monies. It cannot continue to manage $260 BILLION of OUR CPF monies while running GIC Pte Ltd like a mom and pop shop.
Take a look at how Norfund has availed all relevant information to its stakeholders and the conclusion is GIC’s opacity is a cause for concern. Do the Norwegians cry foul at their government? Or Malaysians?
http://www.norfund.no/all-investment...tegory367.html (http://www.norfund.no/all-investments-table/category367.html)
http://www.norfund.no/annual-accounts/category601.html
etc.
The government should know by now that action speaks louder than words. Back to the decades-old question – where are our CPF monies invested?
Conclusion
NO pension funds in the world operate as opaquely as GIC. GIC appears to be an underperformer because it cannot generate CPF returns comparable with its peers without the government’s assistance.
The government has effectively guaranteed CPF members the lowest rate of returns in the world. Did CPF members agree to this?
Phillip Ang
*The writer blogs at http://likedatosocanmeh.wordpress.com/
Click here to view the whole thread at www.sammyboy.com (http://www.singsupplies.com/showthread.php?185484-Cpf-members-shortchanged-by-pap’s-guarantee-of-world-s-lowest-rate-of-returns&goto=newpost).
CPF MEMBERS SHORTCHANGED BY PAP’S GUARANTEE OF WORLD'S LOWEST RATE OF RETURNS
.node-article .field-name-ad-box-in-article {float: left;margin: 15px 15px 10px 0;}.node-article .field-tags{clear: both;} Post date:
9 Jul 2014 - 9:05pm
http://therealsingapore.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/17898065_0.jpg?itok=YfJPbCff (http://therealsingapore.com/sites/default/files/field/image/17898065_0.jpg)
“In CPF monies are safe: DPM Tharman (http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/cpf-monies-are-safe-dpm/1245160.html)“, the government has again repeated the half truth ie “Risk on GIC investments are wholly borne by the Government”.
There is inherently no logic because the “government” and CPF members are one and the same. Any returns shortfall resulting from GIC’s poor performance will be paid out from the budget surplus. CPF members contribute to the budget revenue.
Tharman says the “CPF Board invests CPF members’ monies in Special Singapore Government Securities (SSGS)”. (using an arbitrary formula to calculate interest rates). But investments they are not because the interest rates are guaranteed. It’s more like a fixed deposit where CPF monies are loans to the government in return for a fixed rate of return.
As FDs, the CPF Board has to return all the monies to their rightful owners. The moment a bank arbitrarily changes the terms before maturity and returns their customers in installments, it’s only a matter of time before it collapses. The PAP government in this case has used legislation to compel CPF members to arbitrary terms for withdrawal of the total sum. We have now become the laughing stock of the world by being the first citizens to be paid in installments till death do u$ part.
Tharman then explains the process of complicating the proceeds from SSGS by comingling with other government funds. There is no need to complicate a simple process unless there is some intent to conceal data.
The government could have easily designated a CPF account at the GIC but chooses not to. No government in the world comingles pension funds with budget surpluses and classifies them as government reserves. CPF monies do not belong to the government. It appears the government has intentions to mask the true performance of CPF monies in GIC.
GIC an underperformer
Tharman admitted that GIC had failed to deliver returns of less than 4% to CPF members in 8 years during the last 20 years (40 per cent of the time).
As for our neighbour’s EPF, it was able to achieve average returns of 5.52% for the last 20 (http://advisertool.com/?p=1048) years without any assistance from the government.
For the last 5 years, Malaysia’s EPF rate averaged about 6% compared to CPF’s miserable 3% plus. To add insult to injury, Malaysia’s inflation (http://www.focus-economics.com/country-indicator/malaysia/inflation) rate was lower than Singapore’s (http://www.focus-economics.com/country-indicator/singapore/inflation).
Tharman again repeated this half truth that “The Government has been absorbing that volatility, andprotecting CPF members”. But our CPF returns are the lowest in the world! (see chart below) Does Tharman mean to say that our rates could actually have gone lower without protection?
Source: The Heart Truths (http://thehearttruths.com/2013/11/07/top-8-shocking-facts-about-the-singapore-cpf/) (read other interesting CPF articles by Roy)
http://likedatosocanmeh.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/cpf20roy2.jpg?w=652 (http://likedatosocanmeh.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/cpf20roy2.jpg)
Other pension funds like the EPF did not require any government protection! Seriously, why would CPF members require PAP’s protection in order to produce the lowest pension fund returns in the world?
The longer the government continues to mask the CPF issue with mind boggling nonsense, the more trust will be lost. Ultimately, Singapore loses and leaders cannot simply tell citizens to move on without any support.
GIC must publish all relevant information because it is managing OUR CPF monies. It cannot continue to manage $260 BILLION of OUR CPF monies while running GIC Pte Ltd like a mom and pop shop.
Take a look at how Norfund has availed all relevant information to its stakeholders and the conclusion is GIC’s opacity is a cause for concern. Do the Norwegians cry foul at their government? Or Malaysians?
http://www.norfund.no/all-investment...tegory367.html (http://www.norfund.no/all-investments-table/category367.html)
http://www.norfund.no/annual-accounts/category601.html
etc.
The government should know by now that action speaks louder than words. Back to the decades-old question – where are our CPF monies invested?
Conclusion
NO pension funds in the world operate as opaquely as GIC. GIC appears to be an underperformer because it cannot generate CPF returns comparable with its peers without the government’s assistance.
The government has effectively guaranteed CPF members the lowest rate of returns in the world. Did CPF members agree to this?
Phillip Ang
*The writer blogs at http://likedatosocanmeh.wordpress.com/
Click here to view the whole thread at www.sammyboy.com (http://www.singsupplies.com/showthread.php?185484-Cpf-members-shortchanged-by-pap’s-guarantee-of-world-s-lowest-rate-of-returns&goto=newpost).