I'm a little confused about Workers' Party in Singapore.
Either they believe people are so dumb that they will buy anything they say or they themselves have no clue what they are talking about.
So, WP "fired back" at the claims it advocated cutting HDB supply in its 2019 paper. They now "explain" that the quote used was taken out of context and it missed the apartments that they requested to be supplied as a part of their Universal Sale and Lease Back Scheme.
(there's an error in the image, as I copied it directly from Wake Up, Singapore, just to show that WUS has no effin' clue how WP's own policy is called and what it means - you really can't make this up :D )
So, let's get this straight, this policy is about buying flats that have diminishing tenures left (up to 30 years left on the leasehold) and leasing them back, to supplement incomes of older Singaporeans and releasing more affordable rental apartments to younger ones.
The government would acquire these apartments and then would be able to e.g. offer affordable rentals for the public.
There are just two problems, that WP is either unaware of or is hoping most people won't notice:
1. There are no apartments with just 30 years of leasehold left in the country and will not be for at least another 20 years. This is because the earliest HDBs date to mid-1960s (if they survived at all). Most older apartments are actually from the 1970s - it means they're only just turning 50 years old.
Under WPs policy they would not be acquired for another two decades AND YET, the party's housing paper expressed concern about HDB supply TODAY not in the future.
2. These apartments WILL NOT add to the supply. They are old flats that are already occupied by someone. Even if the state buys them these people will have to live somewhere and if they die these properties would become a part of someone else's inheritance - but that's already happening with EVERY property in the market.
In other words, the state wouldn't be providing anything new - it would be merely facilitating a change between old and new owners, looking for more affordable rentals (not ownership) in much older housing.
Is there any sane, honest person there? Is there anybody who knows what they're saying?
