To my non-scholar brothers and sisters in the SAF, Police and Civil Defence:
In view of the predicted early arrival of the next general election in 2015, I would like to highlight the belief amongst our fellow Singaporeans that you all are very likely to vote for the PAP in order to 1) protect your “rice bowl”, 2) insure against the possibility that policy changes will make you redundant, and/or 3) because you feel that the generals in the PAP understand your culture and will protect your interests.
If you believe all this, please give me 10 – 15 minutes of your valuable time to offer you another viewpoint why you should not feel FORCED or OBLIGATED to vote for the PAP and why a vote for the opposition is a viable choice.
Belief #1: Voting for the opposition means that I will “kena” marked, be denied promotions (hanta kaki) and eventually be forced out of uniform.
Firstly, I’d like to stress that your vote REALLY is SECRET. If you decide to cast an honest vote for the opposition to protest the parasitic foreigner influx, sky high housing prices, failed transportation policy and other PAP F@%& ups, no one in your camp, naval base, airbase, police station or fire station will know. As long as you say nothing and do not broadcast who you voted for, your ballot box choice will be 100% confidential. Trust me on this when I say that the overworked civil servants who are the ad hoc election officials have neither the energy nor time to match the voting slip serial number to your NRIC. As with most other uniformed organisations around the world, your promotion and retention will be based on your displayed competence, exhibited leadership and how you navigate organisational politics. It has nothing to do with your secret vote choice.
Belief #2: If PAP falls, I will become redundant because military spending will be cut and NS reduced or abolished.
DO NOT let the PAP’s lapdogs and propaganda agents scare you! You will not be made redundant or summarily retrenched just because the opposition becomes the government. Basically, Singapore’s national security needs WILL NOT change. We will still need an effective defence force, law enforcement and fire and rescue services. Any new government will realise this and you should be comforted that your jobs will be safe. Of course military spending will fall but that is because our defence budget is BLOATED (other than Israel which is always warring with its neighbours, we who are AT PEACE have the 2ND highest per capita military spending in the world!). Stop for a moment and think logically……making the fair assumption that there are about 40 – 45 thousand regular uniformed civil servants in Singapore (including customs, immigration and auxiliary police), you guys form a major voting bloc and whoever forms the next government will not want to piss you off. Hence, I’ll be willing to bet my 13th month salary component (it’s owed to us, and NOT a bonus) that your pay and benefits are safe. If anything should be cut, it would be those ridiculous prestige purchases like F-15 strike fighters and expensive overseas merit scholarships, which the PAP uses to groom the next batch of civil service generals, admirals and commissioners to bully hardworking “farmers” like you.
As for full time NS and reservist, it is a foregone conclusion that these will be reduced by any incoming government. Due to job competition from foreigners which the PAP loves more than ordinary Singaporeans like you and me, the new government will have no choice but to slash NS commitments so as to quickly build support. HOWEVER, because our security needs remain unchanged, you regulars will still be required, valued and NEEDED. Do not be afraid that less NSFs or reservists to command means your eventual early retirement. There will still be a pressing need to retain workable SAF, Police and Civil defence personnel strength and if anything else, your salaries should actually rise in order to convince our youngsters to choose a military career. After all, the money saved from not having to pay NSF or reservist allowances can be used to improve salary prospects in the proud, capable and FULLY PROFESSIONAL uniformed services of Singapore.
Belief 3: Only the elite military leaders of the PAP fully understand us and they will guard our interests.
This opinion was first shared with me when I was a still an Air Force regular a few years ago. An overseas merit scholar who had just completed his tax payer funded overpriced degree in the US declared that, “ABSOLUTELY NOBODY in the opposition parties will truly protect the interests of SAF personnel!”
I believe then and still believe now, that this is PURE HORSESHIT. NS has been a facet of Singaporean life for so long that that all the male members of opposition parties fully understand the important role that our military, police and civil defence play in our national survival. Let us not forget that MP Chen and MP Sylvia Lim of the WP were once an infantry officer and police inspector in their youth. Also, considering the critical mass of votes present within the uniformed organisations, any new defence or home affairs ministers WILL heed the advice of their senior officers regarding service conditions and operational matters.
Additionally, you need to ask yourselves whether these “book smart” scholars are truly interested in the career fulfilment of all regulars and the operational effectiveness of our unformed services OR are these self-serving careerists only keen on THEIR advancement prospects and THEIR hope that they can be “helicoptered” into top civil service or political positions??
In closing, let me re-emphasise that your role as protectors and guardians of Singapore and its society will not be jeopardised by voting for the opposition, and may well be strengthened with greater professionalism in the uniformed services. Allow me to leave you with some food for thought…….you are the military, police and rescue personnel of Singapore, NOT of the PAP. It makes no sense for you, my honourable former colleagues to give your loyalty to the money worshipping PAP when they continue to sell Singapore out to foreigners and treat your civilian fellow citizens like slaves or even worse.
Yours Most Sincerely,
SSG (NS) David Seetoh
TRS Contributor