http://www.mindef.gov.sg/imindef/news_and_events/nr/2007/feb/06feb07_nr.html
Major-General (MG) Desmond Kuek Bak Chye, currently Chief of Army,
will take over as Chief of Defence Force on 23 Mar 07.
Lieutenant-General (LG) Ng Yat Chung, the outgoing Chief of Defence
Force, has served the SAF with distinction since his enlistment in
1979.
Brigadier-General (BG) Neo Kian Hong, currently Chief of
Staff-Joint Staff (COS-JS), will be appointed as the new Chief of
Army on 20 Mar 07.
The President has accepted the advice of the Prime Minister that
Major-General (MG) Desmond Kuek Bak Chye, currently Chief of Army
take over from Lieutenant-General (LG) Ng Yat Chung as Chief of
Defence Force on 23 March 2007. Brigadier-General (BG) Neo Kian
Hong, currently Chief of Staff-Joint Staff (COS-JS), will be
appointed as the new Chief of Army on 20 March 2007. These changes
are part of the continuing process of leadership renewal in the
SAF.
Since his enlistment in 1979, LG Ng Yat Chung, aged 45, has served
the SAF with distinction. As Chief of Defence Force since 1 April
2003, LG Ng laid the transformational blueprint for the 3rd
Generation SAF and demonstrated bold leadership in its execution.
He has been instrumental in transforming the SAF as a networked,
knowledge-based force by driving close integration between the
Army, Navy and Airforce, developing new operational concepts and
assimilating cutting-edge technologies in building up the SAF's new
force structure.
During his tenure as Chief of Defence Force, LG Ng has
significantly strengthened the SAF's full spectrum capabilities to
meet new security challenges such as terrorism and low intensity
conflicts, effectively prosecute peacetime operations and raise the
SAF's capabilities for conventional operations. LG Ng successfully
commanded the overall deployment of the SAF in peace support
operations in East Timor and in humanitarian and disaster relief
operations under Operation Flying Eagle in Aceh and Phuket after
the tsunami in 2004 as well as to Yogjakarta and to Phitsanulok,
Northern Thailand in 2006, following natural disasters there. These
and many other such operations and exercises demonstrate the high
level of operational readiness to which he has brought the SAF. In
addition, LG Ng has helped broaden and deepen the SAF's extensive
network of professional relationships with other armed forces, to
further Singapore's role as a constructive partner in regional
security. LG Ng will return to the Administrative Service after
attending the Advanced Management Programme at Harvard
University.
The incoming Chief of Defence Force, MG Desmond Kuek Bak Chye, aged
43, joined the SAF in December 1981. In the course of his military
career, MG Kuek has held amongst other appointments, that of
Director, Joint Intelligence Directorate; Commander, 3rd Division;
Assistant Chief of the General Staff (Operations); Commander, 4th
Singapore Armoured Brigade; and Commanding Officer, 41st Battalion,
Singapore Armoured Regiment.
As Chief of Army, MG Kuek steered the Army towards organisational
excellence, transforming its force structure to enhance operational
efficiency and eliciting peak performance from servicemen through
the L.I.V.E (Leadership and Learning, Image and Identity, Values
and positive Experience) movement. He significantly improved the
Army's combat capability, especially in the areas of command and
control, firepower and urban operations. MG Kuek attended the
Command and Staff Course at Camberley Staff College, United Kingdom
in 1991. He holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree (Hons) (Engineering
Science) and a Master of Arts Degree (Engineering Science) from the
University of Oxford, UK. He also holds a Master of Public
Administration Degree (Macro Economics, Statistics) from Harvard
University, USA.
The incoming Chief of Army, BG Neo Kian Hong, aged 42, joined the
SAF in March 1983. In the course of his military career, he has
held amongst others, the appointments of Commander, Army Training
and Doctrine Command; Commander, 9th Division; Assistant Chief of
the General Staff (Operations); Assistant Chief of the General
Staff (Personnel); Commander, 7th Singapore Infantry Brigade; and
Commanding Officer, 1st Battalion, Singapore Guards.
BG Neo also served as the SAF's contingent commander for INTERFET
(International Force for East Timor) in 1999, and played a pivotal
role in establishing the national contact and tracing system during
the SARS crisis in 2003. BG Neo attended the Indonesian Army
Command and Staff Course (SESKOAD) in 1994. He holds a Bachelor of
Engineering Degree (Hons 2nd Upper) (Electrical Engineering,
Electronic Engineering) from King's College London, UK; as well as
a Master of Science Degree (Management of Technology) from the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA.
The Ministry of Defence wishes to express its deep appreciation to
LG Ng Yat Chung for his sterling service and outstanding
contributions to the development of the SAF.
LG Ng so thin... 
