Twenty years ago, we all boarded this plane that was suppose to take us to Switzerland. Most of us were dropped off nowhere near Switzerland while the pilot and his buddies landed on a paradise island with a tall ivory tower. An unfortunate number had to settle for a place no better than a 3rd world country and perhaps worse.
A few days ago Minister Yaacob Ibrahim spoke of the emergence of an ultra-underclass among the Malay community after a series of tragedies involving young children from broken homes[Link: The ST online article used the phrase "ultra-underclass" when it first appeared but removed it later]. I believe this underclass is not restricted to Malay community but exists in all ethnic groups. This ultra-underclass is caused by a combination of broken homes and low income resulting in children with poor upbringing. Why is there surprise over having people poor and marginalised when the income gap is so large? 20% of Singapore households have monthly income less than $1200 per month. Try supporting a family with this income in Singapore. While there are many reasons for seeking divorce, money is one of the leading causes of divorce and when you are trying to support your family with $1000 a month, the strain on the marriage is just enormous.
We don't have minimum wages, we have no safety nets, the govt believes in passing as much financial burden as possible to families when they get sick and there is little help for the unemployed. The govt's piecemeal minimalist approach to giving help adds to the stress and strain of the low income families. At the end of the day, when these families breakup and their children end up poorly educated, the cost to our society will be even higher. Many of these families are poor due to no fault of their own. The govt allowed low wage workers to be imported by the hundreds of thousands causing the incomes of the bottom 20% to become stagnant as the cost of living rose. The PAP govt added more challenges to those who are already challenged so Minister Yacoob....don't look so baffled by the emergence of this ultra-underclass, you have to look no further than the policies of the party you belong to.