Tan Kin Lian launches bid for Presidential Election, stresses desire for candidate outside ‘establishment’

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SINGAPORE: Former NTUC Income chief executive Tan Kin Lian announced his bid to run for President on Friday (Aug 11), emphasising his belief in the importance of offering Singaporeans the chance to vote for what he described as an independent candidate.

And while fellow presidential hopeful George Goh is an “independent person”, Mr Tan said he decided to throw his hat into the ring following comments and his team’s advice that Mr Goh might not meet the qualifying criteria, resulting in a possible two-way contest between former GIC chief investment officer Ng Kok Song and former senior minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam.

“I believe I will be the only candidate from outside the establishment,” added Mr Tan, 75.

Speaking at a press conference where he launched his presidential campaign, Mr Tan added that he was initially prepared to “stand aside” when Mr Goh expressed interest.

“I have high respect for him, I have high respect for his enthusiasm and his team,” Mr Tan said of Mr Goh.

“We don’t want to have a contest between two candidates that are from the establishment, and it will also look very bad … because the people of Singapore will be very sceptical,” added Mr Tan.

In response to CNA’s questions about whether he will continue if Mr Goh qualifies, Mr Tan said he does not want to split the votes between non-establishment candidates.

“I will certainly want to make sure that there is only one non-establishment candidate, that we will not split the votes … How it is going to happen depends on who and whatever the circumstances are, we’ll know about (it) when the time comes,” said Mr Tan.

Mr Goh, who is the founder of Harvey Norman Ossia, had on last Friday addressed doubts about his eligibility by laying out details from his summary of submission to the Presidential Elections Committee (PEC). 

To meet the private sector service requirement to be President, an applicant must have served as the chief executive of a company for at least three years. During this time, the company must, on average, have shareholders’ equity of at least S$500 million (US$372 million) and made a profit after tax for the entire time. 

“I have a group of five companies that have a combined shareholders’ equity of S$1.521 billion over three years,” said Mr Goh, adding that this is collectively equivalent to an average shareholders’ equity of S$507 million annually for the group as a whole.

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CNA Explains: Slump and recovery – what is the current state of the Singapore economy?

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SINGAPORE: Singapore is set for tepid growth through the rest of the year, as the economy sees diverging prospects for its different sectors, economists said on Friday (Aug 11).

“The story of Singapore’s economy is really a story of two different parts,” said Oxford Economics’ senior economist Alex Holmes.

Singapore has narrowed its projection for economic growth this year, citing a weak outlook for external demand.

The growth forecast was trimmed to a range of 0.5 to 1.5 per cent, down from an earlier estimate of 0.5 to 2.5 per cent, the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) said on Friday (Aug 11).

So far in 2023, Singapore’s economy has seen tepid growth. On a year-on-year basis, gross domestic product grew 0.4 per cent in the first three months before improving slightly to 0.5 per cent in the second quarter.

On a quarter-on-quarter seasonally adjusted basis, the economy eked out growth of just 0.1 per cent in the second quarter, a reversal from the 0.4 per cent contraction in the first quarter.

WHAT’S HURTING EXTERNAL DEMAND?

Singapore is a small economy that is highly dependent on external demand.

From 2015 to 2019, external demand accounted for around 67 per cent to 72 per cent of Singapore’s GDP, according to a piece published by MTI in its first-quarter economic survey in May.

Key markets include the United States and the Eurozone, but growth prospects in these economies are set to slow even more in the second half of the year when the effects of elevated interest rates take hold.

China’s growth is also expected to moderate through the rest of the year, as the post-pandemic recovery in services slows in tandem with deteriorating consumer confidence.

In addition, the ongoing global electronics downturn is “proving to be a little bit more protracted” than initially thought, MTI said.

A gradual recovery is only “expected towards the end of the year at the earliest” – a view echoed by HSBC economist Yun Liu.

“Trade headwinds are not dissipating,” said Ms Liu. “While there are some initial signs that point to stabilisation in the tech cycle, tech-heavy economies have not seen a meaningful turnaround.”

On top of that, there remains a host of uncertainties such as more persistent-than-expected inflation in the advanced economies, as well as the risk of escalation in the war in Ukraine and geopolitical tensions among major powers.

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Punitive tax plan for Western firms still in Russia

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In Russia this summer, you can still enjoy a Cornetto, but you can forget about eating a Tunnock’s tea cake or a Big Mac. This is because Cornetto’s UK-headquartered parent company, Unilever, is still operating in Russia after its invasion of Ukraine, alongside many other Western firms such as PepsiCo.

While lots of firms, including McDonald’s and the Scottish confectionery maker Tunnock’s, have cut business ties with the country since the war started, the Kiev School of Economics estimates Western companies still operating in Russia made over US$213.9 billion in revenues in 2022.

The resulting $3.5 billion in taxes on profits paid to Russia is only a small part of their contribution to the war: the income taxes and social contributions of their employees, as well as the VAT on their sales, feed into the state’s budget. The sense of normality they give to Russian citizens also arguably fosters support for the invasion of Ukraine.

Companies still doing business in Russia also hurt the citizens of the countries they come from. By essentially supporting the war, they share responsibility for higher energy prices, for example. They also increase the cost on Western taxpayers of supporting the defense of Ukraine.

Like many Western companies that have stayed in Russia, PepsiCo and Unilever (Cornetto’s parent company) have defended the decision by claiming they provide essentials and need to stay for humanitarian reasons.

In addition to detailing donations made to Ukrainian refugees, the statement from PepsiCo said the company “must stay true to the humanitarian aspect” of its business as a food and beverage company by continuing to offer “daily essentials” in Russia “such as milk and other dairy offerings, baby formula and baby food.”

PepsiCo pointed out it also continues “to support the livelihoods of our 20,000 Russian associates and the 40,000 Russian agricultural workers in our supply chain.”

Unilever said in a statement earlier this year that, while it’s still selling products in Russia, it stopped imports and exports, all media and advertising spend and other capital flows into and out of Russia in March 2022. It’s not “trying to protect or manage” its business in Russia, the company said, but “exiting is not straightforward.”

Indeed, many of those who provide non-necessary items say they cannot leave because the Russian government would seize their assets and intellectual property if they do.

But every time a business makes the choice to leave Russia or has their assets seized, the ones who stay face lower competition, and potentially make even more profit. As of today, the only price they pay for staying is a tarnished reputation in Western countries.

A tax on the cost of war

But there is a way to make foreign companies pay the cost they impose on the world, while acknowledging the impossibility of making them completely leave Russia.

In fact, Western governments have already designed the two main tools necessary. What it would take is a coalition of sanctioning countries and a mechanism that’s already being used in other regulations: the “Pillar 2” OECD strategy on taxation, due to come into force next year, as well as the EU’s new Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, due to come into force in October 2023.

The coalition of sanctioning countries must first implement a tax on a Western company’s Russian revenues. This is public information available in company financial reports – other organizations already track this information.

The tax would cover the company’s sales, based on the goods and services bought by people in Russia. But the tax would be collected by the country in which the company is headquartered.

Hands counting Russian notes, piles of rouble-denominated notes on the table in foreground.
Doing business in Russia. Photo: Shutterstock via The Conversation / Andrey Sayfutdinov

In the case of sales of Cornetto ice creams, for example, Unilever is the parent company and is based in the UK. So the UK government would have the first option to tax Unilever, but if it chose not to, any other country in the coalition could do so instead.

That would mean a country has nothing to gain from protecting its national businesses. If the UK does not tax Cornetto sales in Russia, Unilever could be taxed by the EU or US and the proceeds would go into their government coffers instead.

The OECD’s Pillar 2 tax agreement uses this principle in its aim to end the practice of fictionally locating profit in tax havens. By the end of this year, countries have committed to charge at least 15% in profit tax to the largest multinational companies in the EU and in the UK.

If some part of a multinational’s profits is not taxed abroad, the country in which the company is headquartered can tax extra, up to the 15% limit. And if that country does not impose the extra charge, other countries in which the firm is active can collect the unpaid tax.

What about non-Western companies?

Charging the tax on Western companies only would disadvantage them in global markets. It may also make it even more profitable for other countries to trade with Russia. To avoid such “leakage”, non-Western companies who trade with the West and continue to do business with Russia should also be made liable for the tax.

This amounts to a form of extra-territorial trade sanction. The approach is simple: if a company wants to do business with the West, it must pay a fine for any trade in Russia. The US already does something much stricter to companies trading with Iran or Cuba. French bank Société Générale paid US$1.3 billion to the US government in 2018 as a punishment for providing financial services in Cuba.

Taxing foreign companies to level competition is very similar to a border adjustment mechanism for polluting industries. This is what the EU will begin to do in 2026 under the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism.

It will charge a carbon tax on certain products or activities, starting with the most energy-intensive industries such as cement, iron and steel production, unless a company can prove it has already paid the equivalent at home.

Child with flowers in hair holding sign with Ukrainian flag colours that says
Photo: Shutterstock via The Conversation / Mykola Romanovskyy

Global public opinion has turned against Russia since the invasion of Ukraine. Just like with global tax evasion and climate change, most countries understand that it is in everyone’s interest that a nuclear power is not allowed to invade other countries with no consequence.

The tools the world has developed to cooperate on international taxation and carbon emissions could now be used to take definitive action on economic sanctions and make the war in Ukraine much more difficult for Russia to sustain.

Renaud Foucart is Senior Lecturer in Economics, Lancaster University Management School, Lancaster University

The writer does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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Khao Laem National Park prepares for influx as entry fees waived

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PUBLISHED : 11 Aug 2023 at 14:50

Khao Laem National Park prepares for influx as entry fees waived
Tourists visit Khao Laem national park in Sangkhla Buri district, Kanchanaburi. The natural beauty of the national park and popular tourist sites inside the park are expected to draw at least 1,000 visitors a day during the three-day holiday period from Saturday to Monday. (Photo: Piyarat Chongcharoen)

KANCHANABURI: Khao Laem National Park in Sangkhla Buri district is gearing up for an influx of tourists during this three-day holiday, as entry fees for national parks and wildlife sanctuaries across the country will be waived for Thais on Mother’s Day on Aug 12, the birthday of Her Majesty Queen Sirikit The Queen Mother.

Abhisit Sombatmat, head of the 1,500-square-kilometre national park, said on Friday that more than 30 park officials are prepared to ensure convenience and safety for visitors from Saturday to Monday.

Khao Laem National Park is expected to welcome at least 1,000 visitors a day during the holiday period, he said.

Popular destinations, such as as Kroeng Krawia and Dai Chong Tong waterfalls and Phom Pee viewpoint, are still magnets for tourists. These attractions are located along Highway 323 (Thong Pha Phum – Sangkhla Buri route).

Other well-known attractions along this route include Saphan Mon, the country’s largest wooden bridge spanning the Song Kalia River, Wat Wangwiwekaram, also known as the underwater temple, and the Three Pagodas Pass at the border with Myanmar, Mr Abhisit said.

On Mother’s Day, Thais will have free access to national parks, wildlife sanctuaries and non-hunting areas nationwide.

Kroeng Krawia Waterfall inside Khao Laem National Park in Kanchanaburi province. (Photo: Piyarat Chongcharoen)

Kroeng Krawia Waterfall is one of the popular attractions at Khao Laem National Park. (Photo: Piyarat Chongcharoen)

Wat Wangwiwekaram is a well-known tourist destination in Kanchanaburi’s Sangkhla Buri district. (Photo: Piyarat Chongcharoen)

Myanmar workers cross the Three Pagods Pass. (Photo: Commerce Ministry)

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Dad who went to prison for daughter’s accident jailed for perverting justice, judge says he was ‘misguided’

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Ong’s daughter, who did not have a driving licence in Singapore, made a U-turn along Tampines Avenue 2 without stopping and hit a motorcycle that had the right of way, leaving him with a fractured wrist, multiple abrasions and a broken motorcycle.

However, instead of letting his daughter bear the consequence, Ong told the police repeatedly that he was behind the wheel.

He repeated his lies to the court and was sentenced to five days’ jail for causing grievous hurt in a negligent manner in 2020, which he served.

The law firm representing the motorcyclist in a personal injury claim discovered audio from Ong’s in-car camera that cast doubt on who the driver was.

The ruse was unravelled two-and-a-half years after the incident, when the lawyers wrote to the police, who reopened the case.

Ong’s daughter had admitted to her involvement and was sentenced to 17 weeks’ jail, a fine of S$500 and two years’ driving ban in June. 

On Friday, Ong pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiring with his daughter to intentionally pervert the course of justice and one charge of allowing his daughter to drive his car when there was no insurance policy in force for her use of the vehicle.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Jean Goh called for four to six months’ jail for Ong, along with a fine between S$500 and S$700 and 12 months’ disqualification from driving.

She said the offence went against “the very institution of justice itself” and contaminated the rule of law.

She also pointed to the detailed planning and persistence in perpetuating the conspiracy, with lies that were “layered and complex”.

She disagreed with the defence’s claim that the offences had occurred “in the spur of the moment”, saying that Ong had been thinking about how he could cover up his lies.

She asked the court not to take into consideration the five days’ jail Ong had already served, as this was “part of the criminal scheme” he perpetrated.

IT WAS FATHERLY LOVE: DEFENCE

In mitigation, defence lawyer S S Dhillon said this was a father and daughter relationship, where the daughter had committed the crime.

“The accused indeed committed no crime. If the daughter didn’t meet with an accident, he won’t be here today,” said Mr Dhillon.

“As a father, his fatherly love for the daughter made him decide to assume liability and to take the rap. There was no intention to cause harm or other consequences to any third parties,” said the lawyer.

“He is the author of his own misery, therefore he accepts the punishment. He is not complaining,” said Mr Dhillon. “He is pleading with your honour to note that his intentions were merely to save his daughter. He could not bear (the) fact that his daughter, who had just graduated with a degree from the United States of America, to be sent to prison. That’s his mistake in life.”

He said Ong had “certain pointers” as to what he did morally and ethically, but conceded that he was “absolutely wrong” in the criminal aspects.

“When the accident occurred and the police arrived at the scene, David spontaneously and instinctively told the police he was the driver. As a father, all he wanted was to protect his daughter. (Those) were his noble intentions – which had criminal consequences,” said Mr Dhillon.

He said that because the pair told the first lie, “they had to tell the second lie and the third lie”, adding that “they are connected lies, not additional lies”.

Mr Dhillon asked for three months’ jail, saying his client was remorseful and regretful.

“He has seen his daughter going to prison, and now he’s going to prison, for a crime he never committed,” he said.

DPP REBUTS

In response, the prosecutor said it was not true that Ong had not committed a crime.

“His crime was to allow an unlicensed driver to drive a motorcar, an individual with no valid insurance policy,” said Ms Goh.

On the defence’s point that Ong had acted “purely out of fatherly love”, Ms Goh pointed to a statement Ong had given, where he said: “I had taken the rap for my daughter because my vehicle was a rented car and only I was allowed to drive the car.”

She said that whether or not offenders are related cannot be an excuse for them to commit offences.

“No signal ought to be sent by this court that it is alright for one to assume criminal liability on behalf of another, whatever that particular motivation is,” she said. “It’s not a case where he was compelled to lie, rather a situation where he allowed the lies to build up.”

In sentencing, Judge Chin said he could not ignore the aggravating factors in the case, which includes the seriousness of the main offence Ong’s daughter had committed.

In assuming criminal liability for his daughter, Ong had himself evaded liability for his own offences, which include allowing his daughter to drive without insurance and a licence, said the judge.

Ong’s lies resulted in a miscarriage of justice, requiring a criminal revision in the High Court to quash his erroneous conviction and disqualification order and leading to “a significant delay and wastage of state resources”, said Judge Chin.

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