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Did This NMP Say What No One Else Would On Ministers' Pay? | #866

Yah Lah But Podcast

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Kenneth Goh, current NMP, SMU Assoc. Prof & President of Singapore Aquatics, argues ministers' pay shouldn't be benchmarked against the top 1,000 earners. He compares winning Olympic gold to building a unicorn & defends Joseph Schooling, mocked after his 2016 win.

𝗦𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗼𝗿: 𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵 𝗪𝗲𝗲𝗸 𝗦𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗽𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲
𝘙𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘴 | https://www.gevme.com/Tech-Week-2026-...

𝘛𝘦𝘤𝘩 𝘞𝘦𝘦𝘬 𝘚𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘢𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘦 2026 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘩𝘯𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘺 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴, 𝘤𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘈𝘐, 𝘤𝘺𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘺, 𝘤𝘭𝘰𝘶𝘥 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘳𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦, 𝘋𝘦𝘷𝘖𝘱𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘢 𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘴, 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘵 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘢 𝘉𝘢𝘺 𝘚𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘰𝘯 29 𝘢𝘯𝘥 30 𝘚𝘦𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 2026.

𝘖𝘯𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘴 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘧𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘴-𝘰𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘭𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘢 𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘷𝘦𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘭𝘦 𝘤𝘺𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘯.

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𝗔𝗱𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗟𝗶𝗻𝗸𝘀
Associate Professor Kenneth Goh | MP
https://www.parliament.gov.sg/mps/lis...

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20 Comments

@boo87 2 weeks ago (edited)

somehow I'm seeing them more as "influencers" or "celebrities" now. so much time on social media, on top of some other jobs in private sector etc. Do they have time for real ministerial work? they are spokespersons at most, mostly their minions are doing all the real work and they just take credit!

I have been taking photos of a few of these ministers over many weekends now at events, really baffles me the amount of time they spend on publicity.

if they take a bit less salary, they can pay their free labour "volunteers" and sponsor athletics to represent the country.

@ohleemartin7184 2 weeks ago

How much or what figure of the salary for the ministerial political holders is perceived as “justified,” “sufficiently enough,” “not over successive,” or “too low” has always remained an arguable/debatable subject in the hearts of ordinary people.

@LiWeiLin-099 2 weeks ago

PAP ministers are not equivalent to SG's top 1000 income earners. Top 1000 income earners are productive. PAP ministers are counterproductive. Pay cut now.

@AskQuestions-l8f 2 weeks ago

Thanks a gezillion for putting this together! Mayor next please. Keep on NatServicing guys!

@soreeyez 13 days ago (edited)

The ruler insists on having their remunerations keeping pace with the private sector top earners. While they insist locals in the private sector limit what they can earn by imposing pay limits linked to further increases in productivity levels.

@ohleemartin7184 2 weeks ago

What PAP want is to have their cake and eat it.
Having ownself convinced ownself they need to be paid handsomely for their sacrifice, they still harp on sacrific of loss of income whenever it suits them.

@Street-legal007 9 days ago

Some critics believe that linking public sector pay too closely to private-sector standards could change the core motivation for political service. It might attract people more interested in financial rewards than in true civic duty, a public service mindset, or ideological commitment. High salaries often appeal to those from backgrounds like corporate CEOs, top lawyers, or senior bureaucrats, which can limit diversity in government and reduce representation from grassroots, activist, or non-corporate fields.

@cootooloo547 2 weeks ago

37:30 Very neat transition from athletes to public office holders.

@eternaldaft7696 2 weeks ago

Lunch and on a weekend? 😮🎉

@petrusromanus3790 2 weeks ago

Why should Singapore government pay ministers so high salaries unlike other nations who pay lower salary? Singapore ministers already has other sources of income like board director fee and director fee. It means Singapore ministers amount of total income could likely be no different from other nation unofficial income. If official salaries of Singapore ministers are so high, it make people question how much unofficial income are.

@mindofavay2k 12 days ago

Enjoyed this episode. Apart from being lighthearted and engaging while touching on hot-button issues, it was great to hear an NMP's perspective on political talking points as well as Singapore Aquatics.

@shinholee3788 2 weeks ago

Yah Lah....Yah Lah.......Singapore Aquatics need you to carry on.😁

@TheGracehew 13 days ago

Thanks YahLahBUT Team for an interesting and balanced perspective on the subjects discussed ~ indeed, cannot agree more that
continued Scrutiny and relevant Questions - are Always important to keep a close Check on Any government ~ ~*.
Cheers!☺️.

@malita354 13 days ago

If ministers have greener pastures they can go to, why have they not done so? They are not locked into their jobs right? They are free to go right? So what's stopping them?

@ps23-1-6 2 weeks ago

Kenneth Goh argues that the current method of benchmarking ministerial salaries against the top 1,000 earners is problematic because it primarily reflects roles focused on maximizing economic value, such as corporate executives and finance professionals (46:26 - 47:24). He suggests that this approach fails to account for the temporal variability of those high-earning private sector roles compared to the more stable earnings of a minister (47:34 - 48:14).

Furthermore, he emphasizes that the intense public scrutiny faced by political office holders should be viewed as something that requires a compensating premium rather than a discount (0:27 - 0:31, 49:08 - 49:26). He advocates for a more comprehensive, 'bottom-up' approach to determine valuation, aiming to reconcile different methodologies to provide greater public confidence in the pay structure (46:09 - 46:16, 51:39 - 52:05).

@johnchan8857 13 days ago (edited)

Pls remember that they also get a big boost of power. That's why the rich want to be politicians, money is not enough anymore but still most have lah. So even if they get a, pay cut (most don't I think. Only those from the private sector may get a pay cut. But many are from the armed forces and civil service.), they get compensated with hugely increased power and influence.

@kennySg101 2 weeks ago

Top 1000. Make sure these individuals are attracted to SG n they are protected so their income will be high.

@louislim2004 2 weeks ago

Whats the use now? You have given the mandate to pappies already. Basically the pappies can pass any laws in parliament and give themselves 5m salaries and you cant do anything about it.

@ryanyoutube7315 13 days ago (edited)

I suggest pm open floor to his team that whoever thinks current money not enough, to step down.. then we can see where the heart is... Thus end the future conversations on salary ..

@coolsigns-h6s 10 days ago (edited)

As a parent with kids in swimming — Kenneth's perspective resonates.

Sport isn't just medals. It's discipline, resilience, being part of something. Schooling showed what's possible — but it took years of hard work and whatever his family could support.

Swimming doesn't have to feel out of reach. Could be as accessible as football in Singapore.

Hope Kenneth and the agencies push for more and grow the ecosystem — more kids in the water, staying longer, finding meaning beyond results and have real impact on lives and communities