Annuities May Not Be Compulsory For All

Source : TODAY, Monday, September 10, 2007

Not all Singaporeans may have to join the compulsory annuity scheme.

Exemptions could be granted to those with certain health conditions who would not expect to live long, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Lim Boon Heng told reporters yesterday.

At a seminar earlier, Mr Alvin Lim, CEO of Bizlink Centre, a job agency for the disabled, asked for certain groups – such as muscular dystrophy patients – to be exempted.

The Minister said the concern was “valid” and urged for feedback to be sent to the Manpower Ministry. The annuity scheme will be detailed next week in Parliament.

Government Parliamentary Committee (Health) chairman Halimah Yacob told TODAY it was a reasonable request. “If there are pockets of people who know they are not going to benefit, it’s just not logical to insist they be covered under the scheme,” she said. “Excluding them does not contravene the original objective of having annuities.”

Asked if this might open a Pandora’s box, with various groups asking for exemptions, she said each request should be “examined on its own merit”.