Keynote Address by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Teo Chee Hean at the 2010 Singapore Armed Forces Overseas Scholarship Award Presentation Ceremony

Good evening Parents, Principals, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen, and SAF Overseas Scholarship recipients. It gives me great pleasure to be here this evening at the SAF Overseas Scholarship Award Presentation Ceremony.

We celebrated our 45th year of independence last week. Our founding generation has come through many trials and tribulations to create the Singapore that we live in today - the Singapore that we are all so proud of. We are a small country, but we continue to surprise many people with not just our existence, but also with our signal achievements in building a peaceful country, a harmonious society, and a better life for our people. A key factor that has allowed us to achieve this, and enabled us to punch well above our weight in the international arena is the Singapore Armed Forces.

The Singapore Armed Forces - the Bedrock of our Security

For the past four decades, a strong and capable Singapore Armed Forces has been the ultimate guarantee of our sovereignty and independence. The Singapore that we call home - our continued existence - is built upon the security that forms the bedrock of Singapore's peace and prosperity. The SAF provides us the space to decide our own future and gives us the peace and stability that allows us to enjoy strong economic growth.

We live in a turbulent region. The fundamental forces shaping the geo-political dynamics of our immediate region remain unchanged. But overlaying these are new challenges that have emerged.

South East Asia stands at a crossroads where powerful forces intersect. New emerging powers and established powers eye each other warily. The ASEAN countries have to find ways to work with them to accommodate each other's interests, and enhance cooperation and the peace and stability of our region, so that we can all continue to develop and grow.

An SAF that is able to contribute to the security of our region, by offering ideas and capabilities, allows us to help shape the future security architecture of our region in a way that safeguards our own security and interests.

The region also faces non-traditional security challenges which the SAF has to respond to - the real and immediate threat of terrorism; and the need to render assistance when natural disasters strike in our region.

Technology too has changed the nature of military operations and brings new challenges, such as the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. But technology also offers us the opportunity to transform the way that the SAF operates and trains, making better use of our limited, but technologically savvy soldiers.

These new security challenges and opportunities mean that SAF officers must be able to deal with a wider spectrum of threats, employing a wider range of capabilities.

SAF officers and soldiers now find themselves not just carrying out realistic and challenging training and exercises with our key security partners, but they are also deployed in operations as diverse as humanitarian and disaster relief, UN peace-keeping operations, anti-piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden, and assisting in the stabilisation and reconstruction of Afghanistan. Such operations contribute to Singapore's security interests.

A Premium for Capable Leaders in the SAF

Ensuring that the SAF has the best possible leadership is the key to a capable SAF. The new generation of officers who will lead the SAF in the 21st Century need to have the intellectual capability, the professional knowledge and experience, the mental fortitude and the strength of character to drive and shape the SAF as she continues to transform to meet the challenges of the future. It is precisely because leadership in this key national institution - the SAF - is crucial to ensuring the survival of our nation, that those who lead the SAF must come from among the best people in our country.

This will help ensure that our citizens' armed forces are well-led and retain the confidence of our citizenry both in times of crisis as well as in peacetime.

The SAF also plays an important role in Nation Building, by helping to shape future generations of young Singaporeans as they share the rite of passage of National Service, imbuing in them the values that underpin our nation.

This was the very reason why the late Dr Goh Keng Swee had the foresight in 1971 to introduce the SAF Overseas Scholarship, second in importance only to the President's Scholarship. Every year, only the best are selected, after having proven themselves academically, in CCA and leadership positions; and performing well during their basic military training and as officer cadets. Indeed a good number of our SAF Scholars are also President's Scholars.

In the last 39 years, a total of 271 SAFOS have been awarded. This year, we have selected 5 more outstanding young persons to join their ranks. They are MID Soh Kah Loke and OCTs Goh Koon Leong Joshua, Seah Jun Hao, Tan Xin Hui Sharon and Tay Jian Hua.

For many years, women have served in a variety of command, staff and instructional appointments in MINDEF and the SAF. We have been awarding the SAF Merit Scholarship to women since 1993. OCT Sharon Tan is the first woman to be awarded the SAF Overseas Scholarship. My heartiest congratulations to our 5 young men and women who have been awarded the SAF Overseas Scholarship this year.

SAF Scholars - Leaders in Every Facet of Society

Much is expected of our SAF Scholars. They have to learn fast, develop their qualities of leadership and earn the trust of their soldiers. The learning curve is steep, and the expectations are high. They are evaluated at every stage of their careers, and when they meet these high standards, they will have fast-paced and challenging careers in the SAF.

The knowledge and experience, and the leadership and management skills they gain in the SAF are important not just for their advancement in the SAF, but will also prepare them to be better leaders in whatever subsequent endeavours they may choose to undertake. The SAF remains the only organisation that places such a huge responsibility on young shoulders.

By his early thirties, an SAF officer who proves himself can be commanding a ship or a battalion of more than 600 soldiers. He is responsible for them - for their training and battle readiness, and managing their welfare and morale. To ensure that they are ready, he leads them on realistic and challenging exercises in Singapore and overseas. He has to earn their trust and confidence so that they will follow him into battle.

Command responsibilities are interspersed with key staff appointments in Operations, Personnel, Intelligence, Logistics or Long-term Planning which shape the Army, Navy or Air Force and the whole SAF.

By the time they are about 40, they are ready for major Command and Staff appointments such as Division or Fleet Command, as generals or admirals leading thousands of servicemen and women in multiple complex missions. They would have their experience and knowledge broadened, for example with a postgraduate degree, and possibly a posting in another ministry.

The SAF runs an open and meritocratic promotion and appointment system. Every officer has to prove himself.

And the very best rise to the top leadership positions - the Chief of Defence Force, and the Chiefs of the Army, Navy and Air Force. Among them will be a good number who started their careers as SAF Overseas Scholars and have subsequently proven themselves.

Many SAF Overseas Scholars have also moved on to have successful careers beyond the SAF. They serve in a variety of positions that allow them to make contributions to improve the lives of their fellow Singaporeans - as Permanent Secretaries, and Deputy Secretaries in various ministries, as Chief Executives of Statutory Boards.

Many other senior Civil Servants in the Administrative Service also spent their formative years in the SAF, after being awarded the SAF Overseas Scholarship.

SAF Overseas Scholars have also gone on to achieve success in the private sector, with many serving in leadership and key positions in major listed companies.
A number now serve in the Singapore cabinet.

Conclusion

Being awarded the SAF Overseas Scholarship opens doors to the finest education opportunities, and a challenging career. But it is above all a commitment to serving our nation and our people. As you progress in your career, so too do the responsibilities that you bear for our nation grow.

It is an honourable and onerous task, but a deeply satisfying one.

I congratulate once again the 5 young scholars who have taken their first step on their own journeys of discovery and development. Do your duty, make a difference - in the lives of your soldiers, and of your fellow Singaporeans.

I wish you all the best as you take up the challenge of leading the SAF and Singapore into the future.

More Resources

Five Receive SAF Overseas Scholarship Awards from DPM Teo