Some people believe that the goverment sholud take care of old people and provide financial support after they retire. Others say individuals should save during their working years to fund their retirement. What is your opinion? Is it a postive or negative development?

Population ageing is an inevitable global phenomenon. Some citizens think that the

state

should provide long-term care services to seniors and offer financial subsidies to them after their retirement,

while

others think that it should be the older adults' responsibility to save money during their working period so as to have sufficient cash to support their retirement life. Personally, I stand with the former view that it should be our

state

's role to safeguard the citizens' old-age life as it has a positive effect on society. In

this

essay, I will give my opinion on why saving during working years are unlikely to happen and it will give reasons why having the

state

's backing is better than depending on the younger generation. The average monthly salary is inadequate to survive, let alone cash-saving. Individuals in Hong Kong, who is not a professional, generally earn around HK$15,000 per month. After settling the housing rent, transportation fees for the commute, and the food and groceries, there is not much left for saving. In fact, considering not many older persons in Hong Kong have the ability to save money during their working time, the Hong Kong Government provides several schemes to eligible senior residents aged 70 years and above,

such

as the elderly health care voucher for medical consultations and the 'fruit money' that worths HK$1300 per month for the cost of living.

This

strategy not only removed the financial barriers of the elderly persons but

also

enhance their quality of old-age life. Without the

state

's allowance, it is very likely that seniors will have to rely on their younger family members to afford their retirement lives. That will eventually lead to stress for younger adults and depression for older people. Several research studies reported that older people living with and depending on their children are 10 times more likely to have suicidal thoughts or a suicide attempt.

In other words

, if the

state

provides greater assistance to older adults, it can potentially reduce the stress to both parties and eliminate the tragedy happening in society. In conclusion, the

state

should support all aspects of retired seniors not only because it is unrealistic for people to save their salary during their years of employment but

also

to reduce the burden on the younger generation.