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The Minister in Prime Minister's Office (PMO), Mr Lim Swee Say, reviewed the commissioning parade for 363 officer cadets of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) at the SAFTI Military Institute this evening.
Mr Lim reminded the graduands that for the SAF to excel, it must have able and committed leaders. He said that through many weeks of gruelling training, the cadets had learnt to lead soldiers under their charge into battle, inspire them to be committed, and imbue them with a strong sense of mission and purpose. Mr Lim also emphasised that as officers and leaders, they have a greater responsibility in bringing our citizen soldiers together, fostering teamwork, and transforming them into a cohesive fighting unit. The key to all this is winning their men's hearts and minds, and getting them to understand why national service is important.
The parade marked the completion of 38 weeks of rigorous training at the Officer Cadet School (OCS) where the officer cadets were put through demanding and realistic training to develop their combat, planning and leadership skills. The Officer Cadet Course included a three-week Joint phase, where the cadets visited units in the Army, Navy and Air Force to gain a better understanding of the operational concepts and networked fighting capabilities of the 3rd Generation SAF. Upon graduation, the newly-commissioned officers will assume operational, instructional or staff appointments in the SAF.
The cohort of 326 Army cadets and 37 Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) cadets was the first batch to be commissioned this year. Standing out amongst their peers were three officer cadets who were awarded the prestigious Sword of Honour. Among the graduating cohort were also officer cadets from the Royal Brunei Armed Forces, the Malaysian Armed Forces, the Royal Thai Armed Forces and the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
Members of Parliament, senior MINDEF officials and SAF officers; the Assistant Chief of General Staff (Operations) of the Royal Thailand Armed Forces, Lieutenant-General Gant Sumano; Director, Directorate of Personnel of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces, COL Pengiran Zulkifi Bin PG HJ Ismail; and families and friends of the newly commissioned officers were also at the parade.
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