Tradegy in the Army

This was a short week disrupted by the Labor Day holiday on Tuesday. A topic was on my mind for most of the week – no, it was not Trump (which was fireworks all over, no thanks to Rudy Giulaini).

On Monday, we were told that a National Service (NS) boy had died while in the Guards unit. He apparently had a heat stroke 10 days ago during training and subsequently fell into a coma. All nationwide NS training was suspended for that day. Soon, an anonymous letter from a Guards platoon mate started to make the rounds, pointing the finger at trainers who were negligent in their duties and went overboard in the punishments.

Anxious parents (we included) were worried if our sons will face the same situation at some stage of their NS training. Angry parents demanded answers and the authorities assured everyone that an inquiry into the incident will be forthcoming.

For the rest of the week, I had various Whatsapp group discussions on this topic with friends who had served NS many moons ago. Though the tenor is now shortened to 22/24 months versus 2.5 years during our time, there is still the element of danger in each of our Ah Boys to Men journey. We speak in hush tones of hearsay gossip of fatalities then and now, where statistics cannot be verified.

The common conclusion was that perhaps we should have trainers who are regulars in the army, rather than have 20-year-old youngsters who have just completed training to teach the new batch of 19-year-old recruits. This could add more professionalism and experience to the training process.

The other question was whether NS should be shortened further to just 12 months if training is to be conducted by seasoned professionals. It seems like S’pore has one of the longest military service periods in the world. Given that we have modern warfare now, does it make sense to still train to fight a war in the traditional way?

As we reach or pass 50 years old, a number of my mates who were officers in NS seems to have started to have old injuries coming back to haunt them. Most had over exerted themselves during training and now have back or knee problems. The question is: was it all worth it? But as young 18-year-old boys then, the sky was the limit. It was mind over body all the time and trainers encourage you to push your body to its limits.

It was a timely reminder to us that we were young once and that we do grow old eventually. Now that our sons are going to start their NS journey, what should we advise them? A friend shared the following with me which I find so relevant but yet tongue in cheek. It summarizes most of what I would like to tell my boys :

https://www.facebook.com/wearemajulah/posts/2164244046937790

The messages are as follows :

1.  The things I want to say to my son when he goes to the army :
2.  You may be a soldier to our country but you are a son to us, a husband to your future wife and a father to your future child
3. You go army is to train and not to become a hero
4. Don’t need to be the first but also don’t aim to be the last
5. In Hokkien “Kiang Tio Ho, Mai Kei Kiang.” Means being intelligent is good enough. Don’t act smart
6. No one has more responsibility for your own safety than yourself
7. There is no shame in falling out. Our MRT also falls out every other day
8. It is their job to push you. But it is your job to know your limits
9. You won’t be jobless if you fail your SOC, your IPPT and your Range. Just try your best
10. Don’t do things alone, except when you are showering
11. If your instructor asks you to do something dangerous, ask him to demonstrate first
12. Seeing a doctor when you are unwell is not called Chao Keng. It’s called Puah Pey (Sick)