Kill National Service Before It Kills Again

ARCHIVES 2013

By admin-s On Oct 6, 2013

In years to come, how many more are going to suffer eating food infested with maggots, how many more are going to be sexually harassed, how many more are going to die? Whose child will it be next?

Kee Thuan Chye

Let me be upfront about this. I’ve never been in favour of our National Service (NS) programme, and I think it should be scrapped immediately.

From the day it was implemented in December 2003 – in fact, even when it was first proposed about two years before that – I had thought of it as nothing but a propaganda opportunity for the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) government, as another medium it could exploit to pollute young minds with its warped ideas about nationalism and patriotism. And goodness knows what else.

In fact, one of its declared objectives is – brace yourself for it – developing a generation that is obedient and loyal to the Government.

This of course is totally uncalled-for and misplaced. And it confirms my fear that our young are getting wrongfully indoctrinated during their NS stint. Loyal to the country – yes. But loyal to the Government (and it may not just be the BN government; it could one day be the Pakatan Rakyat one) – an absolute no. There is a big difference between country and government.

I had also thought of NS as nothing but another money-making scheme for the Government’s money-grubbing cronies. Think of the extra ringgit embedded in the marked-up costing for the provision of camps, trainers, supplies, etc. Extra ringgit that would go into the pockets of those involved in the racket as kickbacks. Extra ringgit that would be duly paid by the unsuspecting public, i.e. you and me. And all for what?

Compared to Singapore’s National Service, ours is a farce. There, the trainees are attached to the armed forces or the police or the Civil Defence Force and trained for two years. When they come out, they are ready to take up arms if they are called upon to defend their country, or to serve as emergency rescue personnel.

Here, our boys and girls undergo a three-month programme that does not quite train them to be battle-ready. How could you do that in three months anyway? Instead, our orientation is towards developing a young generation who are patriotic, caring, willing to volunteer, active, intelligent, confident and imbued with positive characteristics and good values.

Wow! That’s a big job to do! And again, how could it be accomplished in three months? Whoever thought up those aims must have had unrealistic ambitions.