The life of a retiree isn’t always bad

Many live on retirement funds if they have it or on past savings or with their children's help. Some give home tuition or drive a taxi.

ONE of the things I noticed as the process of ageing deepened in recent years was that strangers would start a conversation with me not in English or even Mandarin – but dialect.

The trend became more pronounced as wrinkles multiplied and the body weakened.

When I was younger, most people would use English on me. Now, dialect is the norm probably on the assumption that the pre-War generation can't speak English.

Actually it was not without basis. Few of my contemporaries did better than a secondary education. Most had not gone past primary school and grew old with it.

Recently, a foreign friend asked me: "How does a retiree in Singapore cope with living in one of the world's most expensive cities?

"When you're retired, no money comes in, but money goes out every day," he clarified, so how does the elderly without an income grapple with Singapore's high cost of living?

The short answer is that collectively we are not doing too badly, coming from Asia's second richest city. Living standards are relatively high. But individually things are different – in many cases, anyway.

Many live on retirement funds if they have it or on past savings or with their children's help. Few of my friends give home tuition or drive a taxi.

The well-to-do are driven around, eat at five-star restaurants and go on annual holidays, sustained by flourishing businesses or property rentals.

A former banker said a retiree's welfare depended on how long he lived beyond retirement.

"The first few years would be less of a problem, but the trouble would come when he lives long after leaving his job, say 15 or 29 years," he added. The funds would run out.

Affordability, however, is only one factor. Struggling with modernity and new technology can be more of a headache.

Once, I watched an old gentleman on a wheelchair repeatedly explaining in Hokkien, the only language he knew, to a hospital receptionist what his problems were.

But the lady, like many youngsters, could speak only English and Mandarin. She had to recruit an older nurse who helped with the dialect.

Then, a new problem ensued. He did not know how to sign his name on a form. The girl whipped out a thumbprint pad. Problem solved!

This is not uncommon. I have seen young doctors unable to communicate with elderly patients because they could not speak dialects. Translators were needed.

Ironic, isn't it? Chinese Singaporeans unable to talk to each other in this modern city.

On another occasion, an old patient struggled for some five minutes to pull out a paper cup for a drink of water until a younger person helped him out.

To the old generation, new-tech life is often brain-wracking – the higher the technology, the bigger the problem.

Healthcare in Singapore – first-class in quality – costs a bomb. Last month, I spent 16 days in hospital related to failed kidneys and a weak heart.

The bill was a whopping S$ 5,100 (RM12,400) – subsidised rate. I am told that half of Singapore's retirees, who total some 288,000, suffer from some form of chronic sickness.

But life for us isn't always bad. For one thing, we get discounts in fees paid for a number of things ranging from public transport to watching a movie, from visits to the zoo and to several resorts.

And in the 2012 Budget announced last month, the authorities drew up more benefits for senior citizens.

During years of travelling in trains, I have not encountered too many occasions when younger people, including Bangladeshis, did not give up their seats for me.

Some of my elderly friends have not enjoyed the same level of graciousness, insisting that this is an exception rather than the norm. From my experiences, I have to disagree.

Last week, when I was struggling with a chair at a restaurant, a young man sitting nearby came over to help.

Such interactions from the young are crucial in making our lives a lot more bearable as we move around this densely over-crowded island.

Courtesy has still some way to go, but a government study last week found that young Singaporeans under 30 – or Gen Y – appeared to have become more gracious.

The bad news is that welfarism is a dirty word here, although in recent times the authorities have introduced changes to help the poorer and senior citizens.

But this affluent city, which enjoys worldwide reputation for its rapid development, still has one black mark.

To me the biggest failure is that too many elderly people are cleaning tables at food courts or washing public toilets instead of playing with their grandchildren at home.

In worse cases, they collect used cardboards for sale or sleep in street corners.

Retirement age is 65 and the government has said it wants to raise it to 69.

But, an extensive practice of bosses replacing workers once they reach 50 with younger, cheaper people – particularly foreigners – has made retirement age a bit redundant.

Many Singaporeans believe that the government should use the city's huge reserves to take care of the older generation which had contributed much to build this country.

Some have appealed for a minimum wage structure, which is vehemently rejected.

"Instead of investing them in foreign ventures we use the reserves to provide S$ 200-S$ 300 (RM488-RM730) a month to every citizen once they reach retirement age," suggested a reader.

That is unlikely to happen.

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