Colin Tan is from Singapore and receives a monthly payment from a private savings account named Central Provident Fund (CPF). This is not a pension scheme but a compulsory savings scheme. When former Prime Minister John Key finished working in Singapore, as a foreigner he got all his savings back. Singaporeans are paid their money in monthly instalments. Against all contrary evidence New Zealand's Ministry of Social Development (MSD) has declared his savings a pension scheme and keeps on deducting his personal savings from NZ Super.

Here Colin Tan describes his situation - which is also explained on the page The Law - and his thoughts in an open letter to Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, here published on 4 August 2020.

This article is Colin Tan's personal account and opinion, and is outside the responsibility of www.nzpensionprotest.com.

By Colin Tan

Everybody dies eventually, whether from COVID-19 or from natural causes. When you die, what do you leave behind - your partner, money, house, car, bicycle, boat, pets or reputation? Yes, you are right - your name in the obituary i.e. reflects what you were famous or infamous for, your reputation, your legacy.

Dear Jacinda,

On 15 April 2020, you said on TV when referring to landlords increasing rental charges during this COVID-19 lockdown: "Be a good human being."

In the YouTube video when you were in Opposition against the National government under the PM famously known as the smiling assassin, you spoke about the unfairness of Section 70: PM Jacinda Ardern

Since you came into power some years ago, you have remained curiously silent about the evil of Section 70 [now Sections 187 - 191], abused and implemented (against Singaporeans) by your former Chief Executive, Brendan Boyle, of the Ministry of Social Development (MSD). Instead, you have referred all letters from victims (Singaporean, British, German, Dutch etc.) of Section 70 to your Minister for Social Development, Carmel Sepuloni, who then referred to the MSD for replying to their victims.

What does your action or non-action: hone or blemish your reputation?

The evil face of NZ discrimination

If you google the word "idiot", a picture of Donald Trump comes into view in technicolor on your computer screen. This is telling indeed and does not need any explanation.

If you google the ex-Chief Executive of the Ministry of Social Development, the article: "The evil face of NZ discrimination", comes onto the screen. It is about the CPF (Central Provident Fund), a savings scheme which started in Singapore in 1955. It had not been deemed a pension by all the previous Chief Executives, and only under Brendan Boyle and during John Key's reign as Prime Minister of New Zealand, the CPF savings were suddenly redefined as a pension, payment, periodical allowance and benefit, similar to NZ Super. Singapore has no social security similar to New Zealand, and there are no free medical benefits at all.

Brendan Boyle is also remembered as the Chief Executive who instructed his staff to use fake names in Tribunals/Courts of law.

The irony is that John Key had collected his CPF savings from Singapore and he knows jolly well that the CPF is a savings scheme and not a pension because barely any country on this planet gives out pensions in advance of 65 years of age. [Note by www.nzpensionprotest.com: In some countries you can go into early retirement at e.g. 62 or 63 years, accepting lifelong lower pension payments. A few countries have a lower retirement age than 65, see here: https://www.etk.fi/en/the-pension-system/international-comparison/retirement-ages/.Some countries like Germany allow the payout of 50% of someone's contributions if they move overseas and give up the German citizenship, the employer's contributions are lost.]

New Zealand social security is not self-funded by employer/employee contributions like the CPF as NZ Super is funded by the state. Millions of people have seen the numerous websites on discrimination in New Zealand and laugh in derision at its superior ranking on the Human Rights ladder.

If you google the Chairwoman of the Social Benefits Review Tribunal, Marilyn Wallace, who defined the refunds from the Singapore CPF Board to be a payment, pension, periodical allowance and benefit, her conviction for unfairness against her tenants appears on the screen. This is also telling indeed.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/8864917/Lawyer-ordered-to-refund-tenants

[Justice Brewer decided that MSD was right in deducting Colin Tan's personal savings, saying he "characterised" the CPF as a pension.]

Six years of engineered delays by the Human Rights Review Tribunal

My complaint of discrimination by nationality to New Zealand's Human Rights Review Tribunal (HRRT) was shelved and discarded after six years of engineered delays by the HRRT, on the excuse that I didn't comply with an unlawful order from MSD and HRRT Chairman, Rodger Haines, meekly complied by issuing an order that was intrusive and unlawful under the NZ Privacy Act.

Just listen to the three recorded tele-conferences by the HRRT-biased Chairperson, and the truth will be revealed. I'm betting the UN Human Rights Commission is shocked at the subservience of the HRRT to your Parliament and to MSD.

On my Appeal to the High Court against the Director of Human Rights Proceedings, the judge was told by MSD that he had no authority to hear the case, and he changed the appeal to the MSD as the respondent. Therefore I had to appeal to the defendant MSD instead of the Human Rights Review Tribunal (HRRT) which struck out my complaint of discrimination against one nationality, Singaporeans, by Brendan Boyle, the ex-Chief Executive of MSD. Which government body struck out Case HRRT 059/2015 - MSD or the HRRT? This also makes one wonder if the judiciary in New Zealand is independent or not.

I wonder what you will get if you google New Zealand's Human Rights Commission (HRC) - whether it is independent or subservient to the Ministry of Social Development.

Court of Appeal confirmed discrimination by nationality

The Court of Appeal judges confirmed MSD's discrimination by nationality in paragraph [20] of CA 235/2017: MSD disadvantages Singapore citizens unless they discard their Singapore Citizenship and take on NZ citizenship. Does MSD disadvantage other nationalities? The answer is NO.

Paragraph [20] reads as follows: "Nor does it make any difference to the analysis that Mr Tan could have received his full entitlement in a lump sum if he had chosen to relinquish his Singaporean citizenship. Mr Tan did not take that course and the funds remained subject to administration by the Singapore government as part of its social security system to meet retirement and other needs. Because he retained his citizenship, Mr Tan was only entitled to receive the periodical allowance that became payable from the Fund upon his attainment of the requisite age."

The above paragraph confirms the discrimination against one nationality by the MSD and the complicities of the New Zealand government supporting the dead dictator of Singapore who ruled that Singaporeans can only be refunded their CPF savings if they discarded their citizenship - and this is a blatant Human Rights transgression. If I choose to give up my citizenship, it will be my choice and nobody has the right to coerce or force me to give up my citizenship - and for my own CPF savings? And how does a refund of your own CPF savings become a periodical allowance?

A periodical allowance for Singaporeans but not for John Key

The truth is that the CPF savings of its members cannot become a "periodical allowance" for Singaporeans only, while Sir John Key's CPF savings are his own, as well as thousands of Kiwis with CPF accounts in Singapore, and their CPF savings are not directly deducted by MSD which commits this discrimination against Singapore nationals.

One nationality, Singaporeans, have already been discriminated by the dead dictator, and another nation, New Zealand, compounds the evil by the direct deduction of Singaporeans' CPF savings. What does it make this second country? The answer is beyond detest and reeks immorality, unfairness, greed and poor manners by the former CEO of the MSD. The latter also applies to John Key who also refused to discuss the truth.

This blatant lie has been perpetuated by MSD's former CEO, Brendan Boyle ("can be seen as a pension"), confirmed unfairly by Marilyn Wallace and again unjustly by Justice Brewer.

Please face the truth and do not continue to preach kindness, transparency and fairness as the Kiwi way of life because your actions or non-actions will determine what people remember you by when six feet underground. It is time to act as a decent human being and correct this crime.

The truth about the CPF:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JzKmweCzn4Y&feature=youtu.be

A country with a sense of humanity?

On 16th April 2020, your deputy, Winston Peters, remarked on TV when talking about bringing back NZers stranded overseas, that "New Zealand is a country that has a sense of humanity".

This is the man who had a website before the last election asking for donations from retirees promising to abolish Section 70 [now Sections 187-191] when he came into power. What has he done for the pensioners who contributed money to him? Nothing!

"Sense of humanity" - yeah, right. It sounds more like a sense of entitlement to raise electoral funds from retirees, like MSD has the entitlement to discriminate against one nationality, and the NZ Human Rights Commission supports this theft of a life-time of employer/employee contributions from Singaporeans with no Singapore government contributions at all.

Singaporeans have had their CPF savings hijacked by the dead dictator and loath the theft of their CPF savings - a victim of theft will not take kindly to the next thief that comes along. Please check with your Minister of Tourism how many tourists from Singapore now visit New Zealand (or invest in NZ), as half the population of Singapore have read of New Zealand's discrimination against Singaporeans when every household there have received a flyer informing them of this unfairness and complicity in the second theft of their CPF savings.

Has the New Zealand government informed the CEO of MSD about basic humanity?

{G} On 6th May 2020, you remarked "Basic Humanity" when commenting on Cash Convertors pursuing a woman who owed them money.

Well, has the New Zealand government informed the Chief Executive of MSD about the meaning of basic humanity - to steal from a disadvantaged nationality a second time?

Have you informed the Human Rights Review Tribunal of the true meaning of the words, "Basic Humanity"?

Listen to the three recordings of the Tele-conferences chaired by the biased Rodger Haines QC and find out the truth for yourself, because the United Nations Human Rights Commission will discover these recordings soon.

Public speeches of platitudes and hypocrisy

To continue and maintain the discriminatory and unfair status quo, and give public speeches of platitudes and preach fairness, human rights, "we are one", "be kind", "be a good human being", "basic humanity", etc is indeed, hypocritical.

Surely, one does not want to be remembered in this way?

You have done a good job in controlling the spread of the Corona virus with your leadership in implementing Alert Level 4, but people remember the mistakes more often than the things you do right - this is human nature and this applies especially true towards politicians.

The dead dictator did some good to advance Singapore in the 1960s and 1970s but people remember him by his greed in paying himself five times the salary of the President of the USA, his hijacking of the CPF savings from the poor and the ordinary people, his locking up (without trial, under the Internal Security Act) of his political opponent, Dr Chia Thye Poh, for 32 years (even Nelson Mandela was locked up for only 27 years), mandatory hanging of drug dealers, astronomical taxes on motor vehicles, etc.

I trust that you will do the right thing, as continuing to perpetuate a lie that MSD's Brendan Boyle started, that the CPF savings of Singaporeans are benefits, pensions and periodic allowances, but are personal savings for John Key, Kiwis and other nationalities, and therefore are not directly deducted, is complicit discrimination against one nationality: against Singaporeans.

Colin Tan

(Published on this website on 04.08.2020)