UNBREAKABLE BONDS

Four men share their experiences in becoming officers of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF), as they celebrate the 45th anniversary of their commissioning this year.

Their candid back-and-forth banter betrayed the kind of familiarity only old friends have with each other. And every meet-up was a trip down memory lane for Mr Puah Neo Peng Chiew (PN), Mr Sim Jhon (SJ), Mr Mohamed Jamil Bin Mohamed Amin (MJ) and Mr A Krishnamoorthy (AK). They were among the 107 officer cadets who graduated from the then SAF Training Institute (SAFTI) in the late 1960s.

The four, now in their sixties, relived the still-vivid memories of their training when they held a reunion on 17 Mar, exactly 45 years from their commissioning day at the institute which is now known as SAFTI Military Institute.

"Friendships developed during hardship last forever. Friendships developed in a pub last only as long as there is beer! It was the shared experience which kept us together all these years," said Mr Puah Neo.

What made you join the SAF?

PN: "Truthfully, in the beginning, it wasn't for any patriotic dream or to fight for the nation. It was a pragmatic kind of thing. I don't think Singaporeans had that kind of thought that they must protect the country. But the patriotism and sense of duty did develop through the years."

SJ: "When I saw the racial riots, I thought then that we had to have an army to protect our families. At that time, when Singapore left Malaysia, we were very vulnerable and we didn't have an armed force."

What life lessons did you take away from SAFTI?

MJ: "I suppose the most important thing that we learnt was that you had to be true to your word. When you make a commitment to a friend or a fellow officer, there is no need for contracts, because you keep your word, that's integrity and trust."

PN: "The one thing I've carried with me till now is this belief that none of us is as good as all of us. It dawned on us from the very first day of our training that if we didn't cooperate with each other, we would sink together. When you achieve something, everyone benefits."

SJ: "We were prepared to sacrifice. Our weekends were very precious. Even when you did something minor, you would get confined for the weekend. But we took it because we all wanted so badly to be officers, and we didn't complain. During confinement, we would sneak out to the field and look for fruits and other things and enjoy ourselves. You learnt to make the best of any situation."

AK: "Another thing we took away was this concept of shared responsibility. One of our chaps lost his rifle magazine... so when we came back and found it missing, we all went back to search and retrieve it. Of course, we were all cursing the guy who had lost it, but at the same time we asked ourselves, 'what if it had happened to me?'"

MJ: "You also learnt how to understand people from the other racial groups because you did everything together. This helped us to break down many misconceptions and taboos."

AK: "We were practically colour blind. We saw all of our fellow cadets, whether Indian, Malay or Chinese, as the same."

SJ: "We called each other names, too, but no offence was taken!"

What was the training like?

SJ: "It was compact and intense. Sometimes, we had to repeatedly run through thick undergrowth and by the time we were done, there was a nice footpath!"

MJ: "To a point, you are pushed so hard that you become rebellious. The instructors pushed us hard and we worked even harder. You keep pushing me harder; I will stand up to you and do it. That taught me not to give up at the slightest setback."

How was life as an officer?

MJ: "There was a lot of pride in being an officer. It also helped that we had people who were very professional, people like Hong Seng Mak ('Tiger' Hong). While you were an officer cadet, they put you through very tough paces. But after you were commissioned, the next morning they salute you and had no problem addressing you as 'Sir' and giving you all the respect due to an officer. So you had that moral responsibility of upholding that respect."

AK: "'Tiger' Hong was a man who was highly respected and feared."

PN: "And you are looking at his favourite cadet. Moorthy used to get the most punishment from him!"

AK: "I can truly say that after all these years, joining the SAF was the right decision. I've never looked back since."