Time is of the essence for SMEs, said Member of Parliament (MP) Seah Kian Peng, as the adverse business impact they are facing from the ongoing Covid-19 outbreak is significant and urgent.

Seah, who is also the CEO of NTUC FairPrice, opined that although there is "nothing much that one can find fault with our DPM and Finance Minister in this year's Unity Budget," some gaps remain in the Covid-19 measures announced by the government.

Translations of information about initiatives needed

In his speech, Seah said that he supported the budget, although he raised several suggestions for Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Heng Swee Keat.

He said that although government initiatives such as the Enterprise Transform package are welcomed by SMEs, smaller firms might have issues understanding them in English.

He suggested that information about these also be translated into Mandarin, Malay and Tamil, so the wider business communities can understand and make plans to take advantage of them.

Support measures "rather late", help also needed for foreign-manpower-heavy sectors

Seah also highlighted some of the gaps that the Covid-19 relief measures to support SMEs in affected sectors, such as tax rebates, bridging loans, rental waivers and wage subsidies, while appreciated, appear to leave behind.

He said that ground feedback on the Job Support Scheme, which will be given out in July 2020, is that it is "rather late" and does little to help mitigate cashflow issues for businesses.

He noted that there are no provisions for additional absentee payroll or training course subsidies for businesses affected by Covid-19 to send excess manpower for training.

In addition, he asked the government to consider a foreign worker levy waiver for businesses affected by Covid-19, given that foreign workers represent a significant manpower share in the F&B and retail sectors.

People who bought too much food should donate them to charity

Seah also addressed the panic buying frenzy two weeks ago, wearing his NTUC hat.

He said he witnessed the shopping frenzy by many people on those two days, and that the shopping behaviour was quite broad, covering all age groups, races and social strata.

Seah said that when NTUC FairPrice instituted purchase limits on some items to instil calm to the public, a minority group criticised FairPrice's move, although a big majority was in favour.

"In fact, many of them suggested to me that when this episode is over, that FairPrice should not allow people who stock up to return their excess goods to us to get a refund," said Seah.

He was referring to FairPrice's policy of allowing a refund as part a goodwill gesture.

This suggestion, he added, is intended to teach people a lesson on buying responsibly, and not to hoard and return the stocks later.

In response to these suggestions, Seah encouraged those who had bought too much to donate excess stocks to Food Bank Singapore, or Food from the Heart, a non-profit charity organisation that channels unsold food to the underprivileged.

"I am glad that we have POFMA"

In his speech, Seah also praised key decision-makers, including public health officials who acted quickly and decisively during the Covid-19 crisis.

He noted that measures such as entry restrictions, imposing Leave of Absence from work and Stay Home Notices were not easy decisions, and cause a lot of disruption to people's lives and livelihoods.

"But the price of leadership is to sacrifice the popular for the right," said Seah.

He also praised those who had to "make difficult calls at a time of fear and panic", including members of the public.

Seah said that during such trying times, there may be some who would take the opportunity to spread fake news.

"I am glad that we have POFMA. Left unchecked, the spread of deliberate online falsehoods will have serious consequences which society will ultimately have to pay a heavy price for," he said.

Top image via Unsplash.