Dual NS vocations 'always on the cards': Ng Eng Hen
TODAY file photo
SINGAPORE — Placing national servicemen in dual vocations is "always an option" but there are limitations posed by time and space, Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen told reporters earlier this week, ahead of Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) Day.
He was responding to TODAY's question on whether the SAF is exploring arrangements such as dual vocations, as it confronts manpower challenges brought on by falling birth rates.
Dr Ng said servicemen spend a "packed" two years in full-time National Service (NS) and several more in their operationally ready NS units.
Problems could arise not only in terms of skill sets but also in unit cohesion if servicemen are placed in dual vocations, since they need to "perform as a unit" too.
"It's always something on the cards, but I think from a commander's perspective, they find that it's just not (about) teaching a soldier this skill and saying this is your job - and that's not quite a unit," he explained.
At this point, the SAF can "manage without it".
"I don't think we've to make that trade-off now. We're able to meet our needs and the threats that the SAF has to respond to," Dr Ng said, citing the use of technology and getting operationally ready national servicemen to do more.
Against the backdrop of a "limited manpower pool" - the pool of full-time national servicemen is expected to see a one-third reduction by 2030 - Dr Ng said the SAF has moved towards increased automation.
He pointed to "back-end" changes in dealing with air and maritime threats as instrumental.
In terms of air threats, for example, "the first line of integration" was previously carried out by soldiers, but this can now be automated with a programme that dishes out threat assessments and how to respond, cutting the reliance on manpower.
But in the event of multiple attacks on Singapore, Dr Ng said the country will need "all hands on deck", pointing to the larger number of soldiers who will be trained in homeland security from next month.
The SAF, he said, does not have "the luxury" of cutting back on the combat front as it confronts the terror threat, with the set-up of units such as the Army Deployment Force, and beefs up its cyber defences with a new cyber-defender vocation. "That's not the wise thing to do."
In the next decade, the SAF aims to have about 2,600 cyber security troops, comprising regulars as well as full-time and operationally ready national servicemen.
Dr Ng said the SAF uses a "manpower deployment chart" to find a balance. He acknowledged that a trade-off would have to be made if a soldier is both "super combat-fit and super cyber-defender", but this is a "good problem that I'd like to have".
