Minister of State for Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of National Development, Associate Professor Dr Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim inspected the 51st Specialist Cadet Graduation Parade at Pasir Laba Camp this evening. A total of 923 cadets, comprising 787 from the Singapore Army, 45 from the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN), 53 from the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF), and 38 from the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF)'s Command, Control, Communications, Computers and Intelligence (C4I) graduated as Specialists and Military Experts of the SAF. This is the first full graduation parade at the Specialist Cadet School since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Addressing the graduands at the parade, Dr Faishal emphasised the importance of having an operationally-ready and capable SAF to safeguard Singapore from both traditional and non-traditional threats in an ever-evolving uncertain and volatile environment. He said, "Given our reality as a small nation, we must not take our territorial integrity and sovereignty for granted. We must always be prepared to defend ourselves without relying on the help from others. This is why Singapore has invested consistently to build up a credible and strong SAF and ensure that we remain ready in the face of a rapidly changing operating environment and increasingly uncertain geopolitical outlook."

Dr Faishal also underlined the important roles the Specialists and Military Experts play in safeguarding Singapore's sovereignty. He said, "The strength of the SAF does not only lie within its leading-edge capabilities, but more importantly, it is in our people and our shared commitment to enhance Singapore's peace and security. Graduands, as you step up in your role as leaders in the SAF in the face of an evolving security environment, you must always remain steadfast and resolute to safeguard our way of life and to protect the ones we love."

The graduation parade marked the completion of the 22-week Specialist Cadet Course for graduands from the Singapore Army, the RSN, the RSAF and SAF's C4I, where they trained under rigorous and realistic conditions to sharpen their respective vocation expertise. The newly graduated Specialists and Military Experts will go on to assume command, training and staff appointments respectively in the SAF. Present at the parade were senior SAF officers, and families and friends of the graduands.