WINNING HEARTS AND MINDS - THE WAY AHEAD FOR NEW OFFICERS

Before you can lead others, you have to show that you can exercise personal leadership - to overcome your own setbacks. This was one of the key takeaways 2nd Lieutenant (2LT) Muhammad Shahreezal Bin Rasit got from his 38-week officer cadet course which just ended.

Before he enlisted for National Service (NS), 2LT Shahreezal had moved out to stay with his friend, and supported himself through part-time jobs when he pursued a diploma at Singapore Polytechnic. His parents were divorced and he wanted to help with the financial burdens of his father.

Juggling work and family issues affected his studies. He took four and a half year, instead of the usual three, to obtain his diploma in marine engineering. However, it was through this experience that he honed his resilience.

"It made me a better soldier in the sense that when you are outfield, when your buddies need help, you need to be the one to be depended on. As long as you are dependable, people will look up to you," said the 22-year-old.

He was one of the 300 officer cadets who were commissioned as officers in a parade held at SAFTI Military Institute on 19 Apr. It marked the completion of 38 weeks of rigorous training at the Officer Cadet School (OCS).

2LT Shahreezal, who will be posted to 3rd Battalion, Singapore Guards (3rd Gds) hoped to use his life experience to inspire soldiers under him to realise their full potential in NS and life, and to work better together.

Reviewing Officer Minister for Communications and Information, Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, had a similar message for the graduands: to work well with the Military Experts, Warrant Officers and Specialists.

Addressing the graduands, he said: "The Warrant Officers, Specialists and Military Experts, together with the Officers, play a key role in strengthening the SAF's operational structure and training systems The strength of the SAF rests on the three corps working closely together to achieve mission success."

The message resonated strongly with 2LT Aden Ang who realised the true meaning of leadership during his training at OCS.

He had held various leadership positions back in his school days, such as vice-captain of his secondary school volleyball team, but his understanding of leadership then was all about having authority.

"(In OCS,) I learnt that authority does not make you a leader; it (only) gives you the opportunity to be one," said the Air Force Sword of Honour recipient. "If you look behind you, and realised that no one is following you, then you would have failed."

To win the hearts of his men, 2LT Ang will make it a point to join his men and colleagues to do all the "dirty work".

"You must go through thick and thin with them, only then will they regard you as part of the team," said the 20-year-old who will be a Fire Control Officer in 163 Squadron, a Ground-based Air Defence unit.

The parade also saw a pair of twins commissioning together.

2LT Chew Chen Hao and 2LT Chew Zhi Hao, both 19 year-olds, were from the same Company in Basic Military Training and same Wing in OCS.

The healthy sibling rivalry between them has been helping them to push each other to greater heights since their primary school days together, they said.

"We both see it as doing our family proud, not so much of me against him but of doing it for our family," said Chen Hao, who was one of the Infantry Sword of Merit recipients.

The duo shared similar values about leadership, such as caring for your men.

Chen Hao, who will be posted to 3rd Gds, planned to do so by getting to know each soldier personally.

Zhi Hao, on the other hand, will face a tougher challenge - he will be leading second-year soldiers in the 4th Battalion, Singapore Infantry Regiment.

"They have been one year in the army, I cannot go in and expect to change things," he said. "To win their respect, I'll have to let them know that I care for them."

The parade also saw 2 graduands from foreign armed forces.

One of them was New Zealand's 2LT Lyle Patterson, who volunteered and was subsequently selected to train in Singapore. The other was Thailand s 2LT Songsin Namdee.

2LT Patterson came to Singapore because he wanted the opportunity to navigate in the close terrains here, something different from the vast expanse of his home country.
Besides picking up soldiering and leadership skills in OCS, 2LT Patterson was happy to have built strong friendships with his Singaporean counterparts.

"At the start, no one really knew me but then all the experiences we went through together (bonded us)," said the 19-year-old who will return to New Zealand for further training before assuming the role of a Platoon Commander in the 1st Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment.

Witnessing his commissioning was the Chief of Army of the New Zealand Defence Force Major-General (MG) Arthur Gawn, who was on a five-day introductory visit to Singapore.

Asked about his thoughts on 2LT Patterson's training in Singapore, MG Gawn said: "The training here is very similar to what we run back home for our officer cadets. And the relationship between Singapore and New Zealand, particularly at this level, is very, very close, and it builds on the relationship we had."

The parade was attended by Members of Parliament, senior SAF officers and Ministry of Defence officials, as well as families and friends of the graduands.