Potential Problems

These are the 10 problems we have derived from the future scene.

• Potential Problem 1: 

Given that people who are not elderly enough will have to pay exorbitant taxes for the elderly to enjoy these special provisions, many people would be unhappy as they are giving money away for others to enjoy. This may lead to people going on strikes causing Singapore to be in jeopardy as nobody will be willing to work. Singapore could be unsafe and there might be civil unrest, causing problems to Singapore’s economy and many people may be unsatisfied. Foreigners might also feel that Singapore is unsafe and not come to tour or migrate here, which would cause further problems to Singapore’s economy as we are dependent on tourism.

• Potential Problem 2:

Given that people who are below the age of 80 have to fund for the Elderly Special Rights Act, many young people may not want to live in Singapore due to heavy taxes. However, the elderly, Singaporean or not, may want to migrate to Singapore to enjoy such treatment. This may cause Singapore to become an aging population. Due to the small number of young people in Singapore, the government might have to pose a greater tax on them and subsequently making them leave Singapore. The cycle repeats until there might not be young people in Singapore to pay taxes and the campaign would have to be abolished. Thus, this act is not self-sustaining.

• Potential Problem 3:

Given that the elderly in the future are allowed to drive, it may be not only inconvenient for other drivers, but also dangerous. As the elderly may drive at low speeds, they may cause jams and inconvenience to other drivers. Also as they are not able to hear and see well, they might not be able to notice other cars near them and this may result in car accidents. Thus, allowing elderly above the age of 80 drive cars may jeopardize the safety of other drivers and cause jams in roads as well, causing overall inconvenience.

• Potential Problem 4:

Given that the elderly are entitled to subsidized housing, this may indirectly cause a lack of housing land in Singapore, since more elderly are able to afford a house for just themselves. (e.g. An 80 years old man staying in an apartment with 4 rooms) Singapore is already a very small country and with the elderly buying more houses, this could result in less land space in Singapore. This could cause the price of land in Singapore to increase, making people want to migrate to another country as the cost of living is cheaper there, and people may also choose not to have children as the cost of living is too high, causing an aging population in Singapore.

• Potential Problem 5:

Given that the people that benefit from the Elderly Special Rights Act are only those of age 80 and above, people who are at about age 60 and below 80 who may face certain problems in life, for example in their income, might not receive attention and help from the government. This could lead to physical and mental stress of the elderly people who are not yet 80 years old, and the stress may lead to early deaths. people who are old but not old “enough” will not get any subsidise visiting the doctors when they are unwell. Also they may not get top service as compared to the people of age 80 and above. This may cause reluctance of people below age 80 to see the doctor and they may wait until they are 80 years old to see the doctor and go through therapies etc. In turn, this may lead to deaths of unwell people who are below the age of 80 due to the lack of medical attention.

• Potential Problem 6:

Given that crime syndicates are able to exploit the loopholes of the Elderly Special Rights Act easily, those with special rights, namely the elderly, will easily be manipulated by the crime syndicates to commit crimes. Stated in the future scene, elderly "brought before a court of law in Singapore cannot be sentenced to any form of imprisonment" just because of their age. Crime syndicates will be using this advantage to exploit and manipulate the elderly, and they will commit many crimes without being sentenced heavily. If this problem persists, Singapore will become an unlawful and unsafe place to live in.

• Potential Problem 7:

Given that the elderly will receive special treatment from the government such as free healthcare, transport and subsidised housing as seen in the future scene, the working citizens would be unhappy as they are not receiving the special rights that only the elderly can enjoy. As a result, problems will surface because they will start to discriminate against the elderly and do unpleasant things to displease them. This will also lead to social discord among the people and eventually and unstable society which is full of hatred.

• Potential Problem 8:

Given that the elderly will receive lots of special treatment from the government, and these treatment require funds to sustain it, this will cause the government to have an unstable fund system. The government might put too much money on elderly healthcare and neglect other areas such as housing. There would then be little money left for housing. If this continues, the government system might become very ineffective and the citizens would be angered.

• Potential Problem 9:

Given that the government provides free health care and gives great medical subsidies to the elderly, this might be a problem as some of the elderly might rely too much on the government and be unable to take care of themselves. This might lead to some of the elderly being unable to solve their own problems as they are too pampered by the government and thus might cause the elderly to look to the government for help whenever they face problems, leading to a potential group of elderly who are unable to survive without the government’s help.

• Potential Problem 10:

Given that people who are 80 and above have free transport and only must pay half the taxi fare that would be further subsidized, people may take advantage of it by dragging an elderly family member along to take a taxi and have a discounted taxi fare. The elderly cannot move around too much and if they are being treated like that, they may become unwell and their lifespan may be shortened. Also this may cause taxi drivers to earn less, the taxi service line to decrease and the transport services in Singapore may become less efficient.