All signs point to Major Retrenchments, yet Permanent Secretary Flaunts Wealth

Tag civil service pay to private sector to get good people. I agree, but have we forgotten "civil service" is also meant to serve the nation.

Where is our moral value and loyalty towards the country if everything need to be rewarded by money. I am not sure how long this scheme can sustain.

@aw: I agree with you totally. That said, if I were him, I would probably think twice about writing such a piece in this climate though.

agree with the above, but if u read his article, it definitely sounds a bit 'hao lian' though in some parts he sounded 'humble'. heck, if he laments food is 3 times more ex, why din he enrolled his family in local french cooking courses conducted by shatec!!??

More comments here http://theonlinecitizen.com/2009/01/empathy-where

the article should not have made it to the papers anyway..nothing insightful nothing interesting..but full of potential pitfalls..in short think he got saboed...

I agree with aw and 5m10y. It's up to him what he does with his legally earned money. It's another thing to have sensitivity and empathy not to publicize such a thing in the time where people are retrenched and struggling to meet their financial obligations.

Agree that the matter is probably blown out of proportion when examined objectively, but the timing, the timing....

After all, it's plausible that he could have gone on holiday on his wife's income as a "senior investment counsellor". To those who think that civil servants serve the public, think again - they serve their ministers who are accountable to the public. It may seem a small distinction, but it's a significant one. The ministers are politicians, there by the grace of the public's trust and votes. Civil servants are administrative professionals who happen to be working in the public sector. That is the justification for paying civil servants competitive salaries with those in the private sector because the skill sets are presumably similar - though this argument holds considerably less water to explain why ministers should be paid a high salary since a political career should be seen as distinct from an administrative one.

if he is not doing his current job, he may be earning as much doing another.

capitalism and globalisation = top talents are paid most.

average joes too bad. cos they are replaceable.

not happy ? change the system, or be your own boss.

This "sensational" news is reported in Malaysia's daily: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp...&sec=focus

Reuters wrote about Tan Yong Soon too!
http://af.reuters.com/article/oddlyE...BrandChannel=0