Contrary to Mr Ng Chee Siang's belief ("Retirement not an entitlement"; Sept 3), retirement is both a privilege and an entitlement.

By the time we reach the retirement age of 62 years, we would have worked for some 40 years, or two-thirds of our lives so far.

Considering the time, hard work and energy we expended, and the anxiety, uncertainty and other work-related predicaments we were subjected to, are we not entitled to retire?

Retirement is an inevitable phenomenon, regardless of the retirement age.

Employment immortality is a myth, given that age impacts both our cognitive and physical abilities and, hence, our capacity to contribute effectively. So it is prudent to embrace retirement and prepare for it.

In any case, working until ill-health or death beckons is a life not worth living.

Retirement is a privilege which is earned and must be enjoyed. Freed from the shackles of working life, we now have the time to engage in pursuits which we could not engage in when we were busy building our careers and eking out a living.

It is a tragedy if we have to work beyond the retirement age because of insufficient savings.

Retirement-planning is a personal responsibility, and should start when we are young.

"No one owes us a living" should be the mindset. We should not be a burden to our family and society.

Lawrence Loh Kiah Muan