SAF HONOURED WITH SIF AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING OVERSEAS CONTRIBUTION

Heroes will always rise in times of need, and during the recent earthquake and tsunami disasters, the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) had risen above all to provide crucial humanitarian assistance and relief to the country's neighbours.

For their valiant actions, the SAF was awarded with the Singapore International Foundation (SIF) Award by President S R Nathan on 19 May.

The SAF has done Singapore proud and brought much goodwill towards Singapore in this region and beyond. I would like to thank them for following their convictions with determination, courage and fortitude, said Mr Nathan.

Accepting the award on behalf of the SAF was Chief of Defence Force, Lieutenant-General (LG) Ng Yat Chung, who attributed the swiftness and efficiency of the SAF in responding to the disaster to the capabilities and operationally readiness of the men and women involved.

The resources and effort put in over many years had been effective, but more important is having the right people. We have men and women in the SAF who have the professional competence to produce results to make the mission a success, said LG Ng.

The fifth in its series, the SIF awards aim to recognise and honour Singaporeans at home or abroad for reaching out to needy communities.