PATERNALISM is the philosophy behind the Employees Provident Fund (EPF). As a mandatory savings plan imposed on every employee, except those on a government pension scheme, the intention was always, and still is, to guarantee a substantial nest egg for a retiree. The assumption is that most individuals are not prone to save for their old age, a fact easily discernible from the EPFs findings: most of the money withdrawn at retirement age is spent within a short five years. Given that people remain healthy for much longer nowadays, older folks may find themselves struggling to make ends meet over the years. This is a problem that can be easily aggravated by deteriorating health conditions that come with aging.
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