AIA Power Critical Cover as an Option to Mitigate the Impact of Critical Illness

Studies have shown that the majority of Singaporeans lack up to 80% of their critical illness coverage.  Most Singaporeans are not aware that medical inflation in Singapore is in double digits.  In the 2018-2019 period, it even went up to 20% inflation.  This means that while the average shield plan will cover much of it, the critical illness payout will likely be used to cover the deductibles, which can be substantial, or cover treatments that are not on the schedule.

Critical illness also means a lost of income during the treatment and recovery period, if there is a recovery.  This may mean the loss of more than one income stream, partially or in totality, as other family members become caregivers.  This has a knock on effect on the other aspects of family finances and retirement planning.  It may require the liquidation of assets and the cashing in of other policies to cover the cost of living.  Long term care, including medication, lifestyle changes, and changes in diet also add up.

The average Singaporean, on high income, would reasonably need to be covered between $300,000 to $500,000 for critical illness coverage.  This may be expensive, especially for older professionals, but it is preferable to medical bankruptcy, or a greatly reduced quality of life.

Considering AIA Platinum Retirement Elite

The vast majority of people in Singapore underestimate the amount of funds they need to set aside to maintain, even a semblance of their current standard of living, for retirement.  Here are some points to consider.

Firstly, because we have one of the longest life spans in the world, the average Singaporean is expected to live to around 80 years of age.  Assuming the average person retires at age 65 years, we are looking at a period of at least 15 years, likely more.

Secondly, compounding goes both ways.  Just as we utilise the power of compounding to increase our investment value over time, we must be aware that inflation compounded over time severely erodes the value of our savings kept anywhere with a return lower than the inflation rate.

Finally, we have to consider that medical inflation is well over double digits.  As we get older, those costs pile up, and should be factored in.  Medical bankruptcy is a real concern for many people, and has to be factored in, to be adequately addressed.

In that light, we recommend considering AIA Platinum Retirement Elite as a viable option to address, in total, or in part, the needs of retirement.

Quora Answer: Why Does Singapore Need So Many Troops to Defend a Tiny Island?

The following is my answer to a Quora question: “Why does Singapore needs so many troops to defend a tiny island, while bigger countries like Malaysia have lesser troops?  Are there not going to be a congestion in deploying so many troops in the island?”

The Singapore Armed Forces is not a defensive force.  They are an offensive force to seize territory and create strategic depth in the event of war, through pre-emptive strike.  This also explains the high rate of mechanisation, and the large lift capability of the air force and navy.  Further to that, a large proportion of the SAF is not based in Singapore, but in overseas bases, within striking distance of potential belligerents.  They include Brunei, Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, and Taiwan, around the region.  Additionally, there are training detachments in the US, UK, and elsewhere.

In contrast, Malaysia actually needs a larger military to defend its land borders, and secure it maritime exclusive economic zone, and littoral waters.  This has been limited by a smaller budget, a weaker economy, and corruption.  This has lead to a disproportionate balance of forces.  That difference in size, along with the technology gap, means that Malaysia is woefully unprepared for any conflict with its neighbours, whether Indonesia, Thailand or Singapore.  It could conceivably fare well against the Philippines, in their disputed border in East Malaysia.  However, the lack of adequate lift capability by both sides means that it would be a stalemate as they stare at each other across the Sulu Sea.

Quora Answer: Will Malaysia Fight China if China Forcefully Tries to Claim Singapore as Part of Its Territory?

The following is my answer to a Quora question: “Will Malaysia fight China if China forcefully tries to claim Singapore as part of its territory?”

Firstly, China has no historical claim over Singapore.  Singapore is a sovereign state, almost 4,000 km away.  It is nowhere even near China.

Secondly, if the assumption is that China could invade Singapore, then that is also impossible  Assuming, for the sake of argument, we discount Singapore’s military, China does not have the military lift capability to send significant amount of troops over.  Neither does China have the ability to project the significant air and naval power required at the moment.  If China could, they would have tried to take Taiwan militarily first, and Taiwan is a lot nearer, being 130 km at the narrowest, across the Taiwan Straits.

Singapore is the most militarised state in Southeast Asia.  It has the largest, and most modern air force and navy in the region.  It is also a member of several defence pacts, and is one of the refit and refurbishment ports for US carrier groups.  The entrance to the Singapore Straits is at Horsburgh Lighthouse, which is a death trap for any fleet.  A naval flotilla coming from the south, the Karimata Straits will be intercepted by the radar station in the southern islands, and cannot sneak in.  They will have the disadvantage in air cover, and will be stopped in those waters.

Finally, the Malaysian Armed Forces, after years under successive corrupt governments, has suffered in the arms procurement process.  They have no means whatsoever to project themselves in any naval or air engagement.  They are not a factor in any such equation.  It will take years to rebuild the Malaysian Armed Forces into a credible deterrent.

Quora Answer: Will Raeesah Begum Farid Khan Still Face Fabricated Charges Now That She Has a Parliamentary Seat?

 The following is my answer to a Quora question: “Will Raeesah Begum Farid Khan still face fabricated charges, under S298 of the Penal Code, for 2-year-old tweets now that she has won a seat in the Parliament of Singapore?” 

Firstly, Raeesah Begum Farid Khan is under investigation by the Singapore Police Force.  Any report that involves the alleged wounding of racial and religious feelings, and threatens the social fabric of Singapore is given the highest priority, and investigated immediately.  An investigation, once opened, is not closed merely because someone has won a Parliamentary seat, or even appointed to the Cabinet.  Belonging to the legislative or executive branch of government does not put anybody above the law. 

Secondly, since the investigation is ongoing, no charges have been formally filed.  To claim that there are fabricated charges is mischievous and misleading.  Any charges filed will not be by the Singapore Police Force, but by the Attorney-General’s Chambers.  The Police Force does not decide on whether to proceed on charges; its role is only to substantiate the possibility that an offence was committed. 

Finally, since this is an active investigation, I will not comment on the possible outcomes since such an act may be viewed as prejudicial.  However, I will state that the Singapore Police Force deserves its sterling reputation in community policing.  We are not the police force in the United States with its documented history of institutionalised racism.  The Singapore Police Force puts great effort in being sensitive to minorities.  You will never find, for example, any police team that consists of people only belonging to one race.  This is an attempt to eliminate allegations of racism.

Quora Answer: Will a Coalition Government of Opposition Parties Work for Singapore

The following is my answer to a Quora question: “Will a coalition government among the opposition parties work for Singapore?”

Outside of government, the Opposition parties already bicker, and are unable to come together as a viable coalition to challenge the PAP.  Many smaller parties are successors of older parties, created when members quit and started their own little political fiefdoms.  For example, the Reform was started by Joshua Benjamin Jeyaratnam, after he left the Workers’ Party, and the Singapore People’s Party began as a faction of the Singapore Democratic Party.  They cannot get along as it is.

Do we imagine that they would all magically become friends in the unlikely event that we have a hung parliament, and they need to cobble together a majority?  The Workers’ Party will never work with Chee Soon Juan.  The Reform Party will never work with the Workers’ Party.  Progress Singapore Party would more likely form a coalition with the PAP than work with most of the other Opposition parties.  Desmond Lim Bak Chuan and Ravi Philemon are not likely to work with the National Solidarity Party.

If we ever came to that, such a coalition would be a disaster for Singapore.  Except for a handful of credible candidates, the rest of the Opposition candidates lack credibility, lack business acumen, lack intelligence even.  We have only to see in Malaysia, how badly Pakatan Harapan threw away all that political capital because people like Lim Guan Eng, and Mohamad bin Sabu were obviously out of their depth.  A Singapore Opposition coalition would fragment faster than ice thrown from orbit.

Cancer is the #1 Killer in Singapore

According to the National Cancer Centre, cancer cases have been rising over the years, and the number of people living with cancer will continue to increase.  During the period from 2013 to 2017, a total of 71, 265 cancer cases were reported in Singapore.  48.4% of the affected were male, and 51.6% of those cases were female patients.

With the average cost of chemotherapy ranging from $1,500 per cycle, when we count bed and board, that means it would cost around $14,000 a month, on average, to treat cancer.  This may vary upwards for rarer conditions.  Cancer also results in the loss of more than one income in a family – that of the patient, and or more care givers in the family.

Singapore is a wealthy nation.  This means that the average Singaporean will live long enough to get cancer, and other diseases of developed nations.  Logically, it means that insurance coverage against cancer is very much a necessity.  That is why AIA is introducing new AIA MultiStage Cancer Cover, to provide cheap coverage for cancer in the event of diagnosis.