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SINGAPORE: 259 Singaporeans and permanent residents (PRs) failed to enlist for National Service (NS) or return after their exit permits expired last year. Of them, 78 were PRs. This was an increase from the 204 NS defaulters in 2010. In 2010, 148 of the defaulters were Singaporeans, while 56 were PRs. Defence Minister Dr Ng Eng Hen provided the six-year breakdown, from 2006 to 2011, of NS defaulter cases in a written parliamentary response to a question by Member of Parliament for Aljunied Group Representation Constituency, Muhamad Faisal Abdul Manap. Mr Faisal also wanted to know how many were resident and overseas Singaporeans. Dr Ng said his ministry could not provide the updated place of residence for the defaulters as their whereabouts are unknown. … [Read more...] about More NS defaulters in 2011 than in 2010: Ng Eng Hen

SINGAPORE: There is no requirement that an injured soldier must first be sent to an SAF medical centre before they can be sent to a restructured hospital, Minister for Defence Ng Eng Hen clarified on Monday. Dr Ng said that in an emergency, the priority was to send the injured serviceman to the nearest medical facility. He said the nearest medical facility could either be the emergency resuscitation facility, which is within an SAF medical centre, or a restructured hospital's emergency department. In his reply to a question in Parliament, Dr Ng added that SAF medical officers may perform resuscitation procedures en route to the medical facility if necessary. "Evacuation to the hospital will be via land ambulance or helicopter if it's a faster mode, after taking into consideration accessibility to the pick up point and activation and flight pad," Dr Ng said. "The SAF training areas are concentrated mainly in the western and northern parts of Singapore. These training … [Read more...] about Injured soldiers will be sent to nearest medical facility: Ng Eng Hen

SINGAPORE: The full-time National Serviceman whose rifle was stolen by a civilian contract worker had put up a struggle when the incident occurred. And he made his best effort under the circumstances to prevent the worker from taking his rifle. Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen said in Parliament on Monday that this was revealed through investigations by the ministry. The incident occurred just outside the Pasir Laba camp perimeter in an SAF-gazetted training area where access is provided by public roads. Dr Ng said the rifle was not loaded and no ammunition was used in that training incident. He also said that such incidents are rare and that robust security measures are already in place. Nominated MP Nicholas Fang said: "What measures are in place to ensure that transport companies in their hiring procedure do a proper screen and scan of personnel that they hire to make sure that they don't present a security risk to our camps?" "There are strict procedures ensuring the … [Read more...] about Defence Minister Ng on security in SAF camps

SINGAPORE: Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen said Singapore's approach to military spending is to maintain a stable budget that grows gradually in absolute terms, and to manage it "prudently". He added that the government had previously said it is prepared to spend up to 6 per cent of GDP on defence, but the ministry "only asks for what we need each year". Dr Ng was responding to questions from MPs Ong Teng Koon and Pritam Singh in Parliament. He said that over the last five years, defence expenditure has grown steadily by about 4 per cent annually on average, from S$10.7 billion in 2008 to S$12.3 billion this year. "I want to assure MPs that MINDEF is mindful of our responsibility to spend carefully and wisely. We buy only what we need, scrutinise available options for the most cost-effective solution. Our first instinct is to upgrade existing platforms to extend their lifespan, instead of purchasing new ones," said Dr Ng. For instance, the Navy's 21-year-old Victory-class … [Read more...] about MINDEF manages its budget “prudently”: Ng Eng Hen

SINGAPORE: Over the past five years, two cases of sudden cardiac arrests occurred during or soon after the Individual Physical Proficiency Test (IPPT). This was revealed by Minister for Defence, Dr Ng Eng Hen, in Parliament on Friday. About 116,000 SAF personnel take the IPPT annually. This works out to an incidence rate of 0.35 cardiac fatalities per hundred thousand persons. Dr Ng said despite this low rate, the SAF takes any training-related injury or fatality very seriously. All national servicemen go through comprehensive medical screenings during their entire NS period. Dr Ng said the IPPT remains an efficient and effective tool for testing the fitness of large groups of servicemen. "You need a test which is efficient and effective, and we've looked at other models. Each time we review it, you could change a few items, but at the end of the day, people are used to it... it's still an adequate test," said Dr Ng. … [Read more...] about Medical screening for NSmen comprehensive, IPPT to stay: Ng Eng Hen