Minister of State, Ministry of National Development and Ministry of Manpower, Mr Zaqy Mohamad, reviewed the 42nd Specialist Cadet Graduation Parade at Pasir Laba Camp this evening. A total of 1,050 cadets comprising 811 from the Singapore Army, 82 from the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN), 94 from the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF); and 63 from Joint (of which 21 are graduands from the Cyber NSF Scheme) graduated as Specialists of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF).

Addressing the graduands, Mr Zaqy emphasised their roles and responsibilities as leaders in the SAF. He said, "Today, you will don the Specialist and Military Expert ranks, and become part of the backbone of the SAF, to lead soldiers on the ground to achieve mission success… With this rank, you are entrusted to lead men and women to accomplish missions successfully and safely to protect Singapore's sovereignty and way of life."

Mr Zaqy also commended the SAF's role in supporting Singapore's fight against Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). He said, "Many Singaporeans drew comfort and assurance from seeing the SAF bringing its resources, leadership, and organisational abilities to bear, in support of Whole of Government efforts… And each and every one of you here today, should be proud of to be part of an organisation that gives strength to Singapore and Singaporeans in our times of need."

The graduation parade marked the completion of the 22-week Specialist Cadet Course for graduands from the Singapore Army, the RSN, the RSAF and Joint, where they trained under rigorous and realistic conditions to develop leadership and combat skills, and deepen their respective vocational expertise. Present at the parade were families and friends of the graduands as well as senior SAF officers.

In light of the COVID-19 situation, enhanced measures were implemented at the parade this evening. All guests were required to submit mandatory travel declarations and had their temperatures taken prior to entry into camp. To minimise contact among the attendees, the number of invited guests for the parade were reduced. Attendees were also reminded to approach the parade organisers should they feel unwell during the parade.