Speech by Minster for Defence, Dr Ng Eng Hen, at the Total Defence Awards Ceremony 2020

My parliamentary colleagues,

Senior Minister of State (SMS) for Defence and Manpower Mr Zaqy Mohamad,

Minister of State (MOS) for Home Affairs and National Development Dr. Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim,

Permanent Secretary (Defence),

Chief of Defence Force Lieutenant-General Melvyn Ong,

Co-Chairperson of ACCORD Employer and Business Council Mr Tony Chew,

Ladies and gentlemen, award recipients;

INTRODUCTION

First, let me say how happy I am to be able to join all of you in Total Defence Awards (TDA) Ceremony. As all of you know, it is a difficult year and this year's TDA ceremony is held in a different form, and for good reasons. We want to be able to meet safely but in no way diminish the importance of either the ceremony or the award, so congratulations to all of you.

COVID-19, by all accounts, is a black swan event. In the Chinese zodiac, this would be a once-in-60 years destructive Metal Rat. Whatever animal you choose whether it is a rat or black swan, it has wreaked great havoc globally. It is a disruptive force. And probably matched only by the two previous World Wars both in reach and impact. Compared to February this year, cast your mind back to what you were doing in February, now nine months later. If you look at what we do, how we behave individually and in groups as a society, our lives, norms and social habits today have been turned upside down.

TOTAL DEFENCE AGAINST COVID-19

And we asked ourselves, what next? This TDA Ceremony is a time to thank each of you for your contributions beyond the call of duty, to extol your exemplary commitment and sacrifices to protect Singapore and Singaporeans as the video has shown. But I thought it would also be appropriate in speaking to the guardians of our country’s defences to cast our eyes beyond COVID-19, especially on the security challenges affecting our country and region.

So we have had good news about the vaccines. But I think all of us realise that this is not the end of the COVID-19 situation. It may not be even the beginning of the end, as they say. And we have to continue to be vigilant. But even with vaccines, we know that we will not return to a pre-COVID world entirely. COVID-19 did not cause all the changes, but it accelerated some trends like working from home, telemedicine, shopping habits etc. In concert with other forces, I think the post-COVID world will be very different from the pre-COVID world. Let me describe some of the forces. These other forces that are mentioned, of course, is the Fourth Industrial Revolution arising from technological advancements. Second is the social front, social media and a reversion to tribal instincts as agents of change. You see it around when people feel threatened, or feel that they have nothing or less to gain, it is difficult to expect that they will be open to outsiders or ideas. These are visceral instincts of tribalism and nativism explained in part the swing of voters to both extremes – left and right – resulting in greater polarisation of societies. Economically, I state the obvious in saying that many jobs are at risk. The labour market is soft with a downward pressure on wages for some sectors, and some sectors may never recover even after the COVID-19 pandemic has abated. Governments around the world have recorded record budget deficits. In geopolitics, the US-China strategic competition has sharpened and hardened, with the risk that other countries will be pulled into that contest, and it has already happened.

How will these disparate forces, ones that I have just described, and COVID-19 acting independently or in concert affect our security here and beyond. And that is a very important question for us, even as we mark this TDA Ceremony, because that is why we are here – to ask ourselves what is it that will threaten Singapore's safety and security, and also to look beyond that. I do not think anyone can predict or forecast the exact chain of events, but all of us know that in turbulent seas, we can expect a bumpy ride and ships can even capsize. Particularly for Singapore, a small country dependent on the outside world to survive and thrive, we will have to be watchful and vigilant lest these forces of change overwhelm us.

Let me by way of example cite another period in history which also had similar changes in the air. I am not suggesting that there is a parallel, but the following example that I give serves to illustrate how in the midst of rapid change, seemingly small and unconnected events can precipitate enormous systemic disruption. And the period I am choosing is 1914, quite some time away more than a 100 years ago, but I think you will recognise some similarities. In 1914, no one expected the events of that year to eventually result in 20 million dead and four empires decimated – the Russian Empire, the German and Austro-Hungarian Empires, and the Ottoman Empire – four long-standing empires. How could the proximate event, the assassination of an archduke by a small group of Serbian nationalist extremists lead to these cataclysmic outcomes of disastrous proportions? Like now, there were other forces afoot.

That period was also undergoing an industrial revolution, like we are today – in fact it was called the First Industrial Revolution. Increasing automation – particularly for textiles, steam engines and the electric telegraph – were great technological advancement of that time. It had effects which were not envisaged, such as in the conduct of wars. Let me explain. Prior to the telegraph, the fastest communications that militaries have were by horse, then despatch riders on vehicles. So just imagine this, you are on the battlefront, and you need to send something back to the central headquarters (HQ) by horse or vehicles. The time it took for the situation report, as we call it, from the battlefront to the central HQ, and then back again from the central HQ to the battlefront with instructions was about six weeks. That was how long it took. That was the pace warring countries got used to, to receive new orders, to mobilise resources, men, equipment and stores. In the meantime I suppose troops at the frontline engaged in skirmishes, but by and large, it was a waiting game until the next set of orders. On top of that, most militaries tried avoid starting or stepping up wars in winter – the conditions were just too harsh, whether it was for the horses or rudimentary mechanical vehicles. But the telegraph and mechanical engines changed all that. Suddenly, central commands received updates at electronic speeds, and could mobilise resources more quickly to the battlefront. New and more destructive machinery could be produced on a larger scale and at a faster rate than before. Historians cite some of these reasons for the devastating consequences of World War I. For many leaders who were engaged in World War I, they thought it would be a routine conflict that would end in a few weeks or at most months – not the four years of untold and wanton destruction that changed the world and laid seeds for the Second World War.

Some history buffs among you would be quick to point out that that period in the early-1900s experienced too an influenza pandemic from 1918 to 1920. You would be correct, but as I have caveated – I am not drawing parallels. I cite this example in 1914 more to prompt our thinking to this existential question – how does a country and its people, especially small countries like Singapore with limited resources, prepare for such unexpected security threats where the underlying forces and influence are largely out of our control?

Even in 1914, long-standing empires change as a result of these uncontrollable forces. What more the impact on small countries like Singapore today. How do we answer that important question? I do not think that there are pet or easy answers to that all important question. I can only say that we must prepare for the worst only to hope for the best. And Total Defence is a big part of that preparation. When Total Defence started in 1984, it was still a concept, and an unproven one. It was an attempt to galvanise a population, Singaporeans, to come together to protect one another and our country. In 1984, who knows how it could have gone? It may have just remained an idea or show that it did not quite work. Thankfully it did.

And today, Total Defence is a living ideal, where Singaporeans will marshal their own resources and of others, and collectively give of themselves to the defence foundation. We saw this in our fight against COVID-19. Frontline workers from all walks of life, including the SAF, braved the risks of infections to take care of the infected and contain the spread of the disease. So they went to the dormitories, they went into community care facilities to help out, to make sure that those who were infected or monitored got well, as well as [ensure that] the disease does not get out of hand. Our defence scientists and engineers worked long hours to produce diagnostic kits and better systems for contact tracing and treatment.

Private companies like Air Liquide Singapore stepped up supplies of medical oxygen and equipment to treat COVID-19 patients. Micron Semiconductor Asia Operations and Crimsonlogic undertook fundraising efforts.

CONTINUED RELEVANCE OF TOTAL DEFENCE

We do not know the precise course global and regional events will take in the years and decades to come. But we know changes will come. All we can do is to ensure we remain intact and emerge stronger amid these changes. We keep vigilant, continue strengthening our defence capabilities, build partnerships with other friendly countries and stand together solidly as one people for Total Defence.

For the SAF, a strong support for National Service is vital to Total Defence. I want to thank all our NSmen and their employers for your continuing support. The acknowledgment today for the 148 recipients is but a small token for your contributions.

CONCLUSION

This COVID-19 pandemic has reminded us about the importance of country, family and friends. These are what and who we fight for. Thank you to each of you for your contributions.

More Resources

Singaporeans Must Stand Together as One People for Total Defence: Dr Ng Eng Hen