I Remember

Page 27

My National Service Days

National Service was 50 years* since 1967. I served my National Service from December 1975 to June 1978. It was two and a-half years of service to the nation. Now the length of National Service (NS) had been shortened to just two years. Things have vastly improved since the earlier years of NS. I remember waking up to morning breakfast prepared by NS personnel in the cookhouse. These people were not professional cooks. They just happened to be in the vocation of a cook for NS. There was a constant joke that we were not eating fried beehoon1 but eating wire. It was that bad. Now NS engages commercial food caterers to supply food for the NS personnel. My recruit days were spent at the Pulau Tekong camp. I remember a time when the camp water supply was scarce. We were given strict order to shower in a shower parade. It was quick “soap, water down and then out” you come out of the shower. People could not flush the toilets after use. It was disgusting. This problem was headline news and SAF supervising officers were charged for this incident. At that time, we were raw recruits and we did not know that it was ill treatment. Now NS enlistees are more fortunate. There is the Committee to Strengthen NS (CSNS) to look into the interests of NS personnel. In our days, we just trained and did not expect such perks for being in the NS. I am happy that Mindef did not forget us, the lao peng2. In their latest reward NS50 recognising our past contributions, we will be given $100 vouchers for use in selected retail and F&B outlets just like everyone else who had/have participated in NS since 1967. This is a good move and it would also help the economy with added domestic consumptions to the tune of about $100 million. (Source: The Straits Times, >1 million national servicemen x $100) 1 vermicelli 2

old soldier

* Post written in 2017.


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Articles inside

Epilogue

1min
pages 59-60

From Executive Diary to Smart Phone

1min
page 56

My Uncle from Malaysia

1min
pages 57-58

Coopers & Lybrand

1min
page 55

My Education

2min
pages 53-54

My First Driving Licence

0
page 52

My First Property to Live In

1min
pages 48-49

My parents stayed in rental flats of public housing

1min
page 47

Investing in Investment Property

1min
page 50

Joy of Reading

1min
page 51

My journey through National Service

2min
pages 45-46

My Parents stayed at Craig Road before

0
page 44

DBS Fixed Deposit in 1993

0
page 43

Do you plan for retirement?

1min
page 42

National Day Parade in 1971

1min
page 38

Matriculation for Accountancy course in 1978-9

1min
pages 39-40

GCE “O” Level Results were published in Newspaper

0
page 37

Enrolled in English-Medium stream in primary school (1964

1min
page 41

You write long-distance and then wait days for reply

1min
page 36

You will know this special bond

1min
page 35

PSC Undergraduate Scholarship 1976

1min
page 34

National Library of yesteryears

1min
page 31

My years in National Junior College

2min
page 33

Early years of bus transport

1min
page 30

My Hobbies

0
page 32

I did woodwork and metalwork

1min
page 29

My National Service Days

1min
pages 27-28

Bukit Ho Swee Fire

0
page 25

My First Savings Account (POSB

1min
page 26

From poor to rich

1min
page 24

Chinese New Year

1min
page 22

Games played

3min
pages 19-21

Credit facility

1min
page 23

My Home at Ganges Avenue

3min
pages 17-18

Living each day as it comes

0
page 16

A Private Person

2min
pages 14-15

Saving habits

2min
pages 12-13

I Remember

2min
pages 7-8

Preface

0
pages 5-6

My School Days

0
page 9

Career

2min
page 11

Inferiority Complex

1min
page 10
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