Officer's sword and bullet among the things offered for bidding;
Mindef is looking into the matter
By Ben Nadarajan , Straits Times
18 Jul 2003
MILITARY items from the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF), including an
officer's sword and a bullet, are being put under the hammer at
Yahoo's online auction site.
The sword, which every SAF officer is given when he is
commissioned, was offered for sale on Monday by 'diediedive'.
His asking price is $400; so far, no one has made an official bid
for it.
'Tianeng2002' is asking $58 for the bullet which does not contain
gunpowder and cannot be fired.
He described the item, which is used in weapons training, as 'very
rare' and promised 'it will not rust and will last a
lifetime'.
A Ministry of Defence spokesman said the drill round, as soldiers
call it, is a 'controlled item which should not have been taken out
of camp'.
If the man is found to have sneaked it out, he can be charged by
the SAF and could possibly face a fine or be sentenced to
detention.
Another seller is offering a Good Service Medal - given to
full-time NSmen who have put in five years of good service - for
$180.
Eyebrows were raised at the SAF and Defence Ministry when told of
the items on sale.
The Mindef spokesman said: 'The commissioning sword and the medal
are items which are presented to individual SAF officers in
recognition of their efforts and contributions.
'So, it's inappropriate for them to be sold for a profit.'
Mindef said that it will be looking into the matter.
The Straits Times tried to contact the three people who want to
sell the items, but the seller of the bullet did not respond to
e-mail messages.
Ms Bonnie Yong, who is selling the medal, said it belongs to a
friend who had migrated recently and had asked her to sell some of
his personal items.
Both have not received any bids for their items.
The man selling the sword, who calls himself Eric, said he was an
officer during national service (NS).
He said he works part-time in Tuas and that the sword is his
brother's, formerly also an NS officer.
In his advertisement, he said that he needed money.
'This sword is an extra one because my brother migrated and left
his sword lying around in the house,' he added.
When told that he was speaking to a reporter, he claimed other
officers are also selling their swords to collectors.
'Officers can always buy a new sword from the quarter-master for
about $300, so those like me who need the cash will just sell their
swords, then buy a new one when they have money,' he
justified.
But barely hours after that, the item was taken off the auction
website.
Retired major Raymond Chin is particularly upset about the sword
offer.
Putting the SAF sword up for auction 'cheapened' it, he said, as
'the sword signifies a certain code and loyalty that the officers
have for the nation'.
'It's irreplaceable and should not be treated so
flippantly.'
