Speech by Senior Minister of State for Defence, Mr. Zaqy Mohamad, for the 27/24 SAF Senior Military Expert Appointment Ceremony on 31 Jul 2024

Chief of Defence Force,

Service Chiefs, 

Senior Commanders,

Graduands of the 27th Graduating Cohort

Ladies and Gentlemen,

INTRODUCTION

A very good evening and congratulations to all 193 newly-appointed Senior Military Experts. The journey to reach this milestone has indeed been challenging, but I am confident it has prepared you well to step forth as military leaders in the SAF. As we celebrate this significant milestone, I would like to extend my appreciation for the family members’ unwavering support, and our instructors’ commitment towards grooming our next generation of leaders. 

Today, we celebrate the largest graduating cohort of Senior Military Experts to date, reflecting the continued importance of the SAF’s Military Domain Experts Scheme. We also have the largest Digital and Intelligence Service (DIS) graduating cohort since the inception of DIS two years ago. This is a testament to the SAF’s commitment to grow DIS and expand our digital and cyber capabilities to guard against evolving digital threats in the global security landscape. 

TOTAL DEFENCE AND THE NEED FOR A STRONG AND CREDIBLE SAF

The global security environment has become increasingly volatile and fragmented. Conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, are harsh reminders that the risk of an armed conflict has become non-zero.

As we navigate these troubled times, the need for a strong and ready SAF has never been clearer. 

A strong and credible SAF is crucial to defending Singapore’s sovereignty and to safeguard our national interests. The SAF also gives weight to Singapore’s voice and standing in the international arena, and acts as a deterrent against aggression towards Singapore.

Beyond the threat of military confrontation, Singapore contends with the far-reaching consequences of global issues. Our open economy and diverse society are vulnerable to economic shocks and disinformation campaigns, which are borderless in nature and pose significant threats to our national cohesion and resilience. For example, the ongoing conflict and humanitarian crisis in the Middle East has disrupted global supply chains and inflamed polarising public opinions and narratives online, which may potentially undermine social harmony and solidarity. 

These challenges underscore the integral role our wider community plays in safeguarding Singapore’s peace and prosperity. Against the increasingly sophisticated and multi-dimensional issues confronting us, our national commitment to Total Defence is crucial in guiding us to remain united and resilient. Total Defence involves every citizen contributing and defending the country against all forms of attack, whether military or non-military. Total Defence is a continual effort to cultivate resilience and readiness within all Singaporeans, towards any threats that come our way.

ENSURING MISSION SUCCESS THROUGH EXPERTISE AND LEADERSHIP

What does this mean for you as Senior Military Experts and leaders in the SAF? 

Your primary responsibility is to uphold the SAF’s credibility and readiness in defending Singapore. As Senior Military Experts, you are entrusted with ensuring mission success through your expertise and leadership. 

Recent conflicts have illustrated the importance of building competencies in key military domains, such as Cybersecurity, Digital, and Intelligence. 

To this end, our Military Experts play pivotal roles in the development of new capabilities to overcome emerging threats. Integrating advanced technologies into increasingly complex systems-of-systems requires deep expertise and engineering acumen. A strong core of engineers and system experts is crucial in maintaining and advancing the SAF’s warfighting capabilities. The set up of DIS to consolidate and integrate existing Command, Control, Communications, Computers, and Intelligence (C4I) and cyber capabilities, ensures that the SAF is resilient against the pervasive threats in today’s digital and cyber arena.

Equally as important, Senior Military Experts are leaders responsible for inspiring and leading our servicemen and women to achieve the SAF’s mission. It is a heavy responsibility to undertake. You will be looked upon to nurture competent and committed individuals; rally them together to form cohesive teams; and to achieve mission outcomes consistently and safely.

ENHANCING OPERATIONS THROUGH INNOVATION

The drive to innovate and push boundaries has always been a key enabler for the SAF to overcome our constraints and achieve our mission outcomes. The deep expertise and specialised knowledge of our military experts are of paramount importance here. To tackle the challenges ahead, we must continue to strengthen our expertise core and scale the spirit of innovation.

The recent conflicts have shown that sophisticated and expensive equipment alone does not guarantee victory on the battlefield. A lean yet technologically advanced defence force can pose outsized threats through unconventional and asymmetrical tactics. Today’s fast-evolving nature of warfare favours those who are more agile and innovative; they will seize the advantage on the battlefield. 

This is why our acquisition of new defence systems has always been complemented by the build-up of deep expertise to ensure our capabilities are maintained and upgraded in a targeted and sustainable manner. This ensures the SAF has the ability to rapidly adopt and integrate new technologies and ideas, to best meet our evolving operational needs. For example, we have all heard of the Ukrainians modifying low-cost, commercial-off-the-shelf drones for surveillance and strike. These asymmetrical tactics have helped them offset Russia’s overwhelming advantage in conventional warfighting. Similar tactics of mass drone attacks could be employed by potential aggressors against us, and to respond with anti-air missiles would be disproportional and unsustainable. This is why our Army has modified our rifles with a Smart Fire Control System to assist in targeting small drones. It is a simple, practical, and cost-effective solution.

At the MINDEF/SAF IGNITE Innovation Symposium last week, the innovative spirit of our people was on full display. There were numerous award winners. Let me share a few examples: A team from the DIS created the CyTEC Metaverse to simulate a hyper-realistic training environment to sharpen our response against cyber-attacks on Operational Technology (OT) systems, allowing our cyber defenders to better train and appreciate the physical impact of these attacks visually in a simulated virtual environment. On the engineering front, our F-15SG Air Force Engineers designed a Digital Data Analysis Kit to enhance the troubleshooting of the F-15SG Landing Gear System, reducing the troubleshooting time by 80% and manpower required by 50%. Our Naval Engineers repurposed commercially available magnetic polyurethane patches, originally used for industrial leaks, to develop the Rapid Hull Damage Repair Patch for firefighting and damage control. This has allowed an originally 3-man task to be completed by one to two people. These innovations have improved operations and yielded significant savings for the SAF. I hope they inspire you.

FOSTERING COMMITMENT TO DEFENCE

With National Day round the corner and as we commemorate the 40th anniversary of Total Defence this year, I would also like to emphasise the role that everyone plays in fostering our national commitment to defence. Total Defence involves every Singaporean playing a part, individually and collectively, to build a strong, secure and cohesive nation. This underscores the importance of People as our most valuable resource. In your leadership journey, you will meet many Singaporeans under your charge – Regulars, NSFs, and NSmen. Use these opportunities to connect with them, touch their lives and instil a sense of duty and pride. Make the effort to look after their welfare, safety, and personal development. Ensure that they take away a positive experience with the SAF. These efforts will go a long way in strengthening our commitment to defence and support for NS. Remember, the strength of the SAF comes from our collective commitment and will to defend Singapore. 

ATTRACTING QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS

The Military Domain Experts Scheme (MDES) remains a core strategic capability for the SAF. Introduced in 2010, MDES has steadily contributed to the strengthening of the SAF as Senior Military Experts such as yourselves undertake crucial roles in building decisive capabilities to defend Singapore.

The MDES Scheme continues to attract mid-career professionals who bring a wealth of experience to the SAF’s expertise core. Amongst our graduands today, we have ME5 Ernest Tan, who has joined us from the petrochemical industry. As a former project manager from a software engineering background and boasting an extensive portfolio of digital projects, he will contribute his expertise in building digital products with the RSAF Agile Innovation and Digital Department (RAiD). ME4 Alson Tan, another software engineer with experience in developing platforms for enterprise events, will join the DIS Cyber Defence Group.

Complementing MDES is the Enhanced Expertise Deployment Scheme (EDS), which allows the SAF to redeploy NSmen with the relevant civilian expertise to areas of operational need; five graduands here have joined us through the enhanced EDS channel. They, together with the mid-career professionals and fresh graduates, enable us to obtain a good blend of industry experience and fresh ideas. In being able to continually attract qualified and proficient personnel, the MDES scheme will grow from strength to strength.

CONCLUSION

In closing, I extend my heartfelt appreciation to the families and instructors of our graduands. Your support and dedication have been instrumental in nurturing them into the leaders and experts they are today. To the graduands, I assure you of a fulfilling and rewarding career ahead and wish you the very best in your new endeavours. Congratulations once again to all of you.

Thank you very much and have a pleasant night ahead.

193 Appointed as Senior Military Experts