A RECRUIT from the Basic Military Training Centre (BMTC) on Pulau
Tekong, said to have been having problems coping there, attempted
to swim back to mainland Singapore last December.
Responding to queries from The Straits Times, the Ministry of
Defence (Mindef) confirmed that the recruit 'attempted to swim out
of Pulau Tekong towards the main island of Singapore'.
He was, however, spotted and picked up by the Police Coast Guard
and handed back to the authorities in BMTC.
Mindef spokesman Desmond Tan said the young man was found on the
Kechil Land Link, a strip of land linking Pulau Tekong and Pulau
Tekong Kechil.
The incident is believed to be the first time someone has
tried to swim out of the island since the 1980s.
Pulau Tekong lies 2km from the mainland at its closest point; the
distance from its jetty to Singapore is 3.8km.
Former military psychologist Stanley Chua, 33, said he hoped this
incident would not spark talk that today's enlistees are softer or
that national service (NS) is easier than before.
The former major in the Republic of Singapore Air Force, who now
runs private consultancy N.S. Formulas, said the recruits today
'have a harder time' making the transition into military life and
coping with the mental and social demands NS makes of them.
He added that it is not the Singapore Armed Forces' job to prepare
young men for NS: 'The BMT commanders and buddies will only know
the recruit for a few weeks... The onus is on parents, who have
brought up their sons and should know better how they cope with
difficulties or stress.'
Article is in today's Straits Times print edition.
