Tak surprising video budak-budak SCDF huru-harakan bunk mereka mendapat perhatian awam.
Apa kan tidak? Bunk dah bukan macam bunk lagi. Tilam ke mana katil ke mana. Yang satu lagi kelihatan meroko di dalam bunk. Ni semua perkara yang bukan diajar SCDF.
Tidak pernah saya dalam lebih 25 tahun saya dalam SCDF tengok loss of discipline macam ni.
We face the facts. Senang cakap,rata-ratanya budak-budak SCDF ni memang nakal-nakal. Their background, most of them, they do not have good qualifications some of them from broken homes, some of them parents keluar masuk jail. You have to look very hard to find a boy from a good school like RI or what not….Scholars and officers you don’t count.
But even though they come from unfortunate background, I can wholeheartedly say,for those people I trained and trained/worked with, I can trust my life in their hands.
They brave and courageous. Very good firefighters. You give them an order, they tak gentar tak terfikir berkal-kali. Dia pergi dia complete the task or the rescue.
Now the section commanders may not necessarily be the bravest or the fittest, but they are leaders and we epect them to lead. Some are reluctant. Most come from poly. A few sign-on after poly. They are very dedicated the regulars because this is their rice bowl. Cari makan orang Melayu kata. They don’t spit in that rice bowl.
So i don’t know how come his bunch so teruk gini.
I’m sure, you put men together,put them through thick and thin, in the end they forge a deep bond and camaraderie. They do naughty things. Blanket party. Play pranks. Like me. People put kiwi on my toothbrush. We laugh and we move on.
But these people destroyed property which was handed to them in good condition. They could have been told to sleep on matresses on the floor as part of the course. But no. Because SCDF care. It’s SCDF core values. Pride and care.
But these gentlemen never show that. This is not the kind of section commanders or leaders in the SCDF. What they think there’ll be Banglas or maids to clean after them? Ni kita tak nak fikiran macam gini, orang yang tak responsible dalam SCDF.
Should they be sent to DB or should they be removed of their ranks and FF badges? That is for SCDF to decide after investigation completed.
However pada pendapat saya, kita harus ingat yang mereka ni semua masih muda dan ada masa depan mereka. Some also may have to to take care of their familiy and may have young children or sick parents and grandparents that depend on them.
Whatever the punishment is, they have to understand that what they do is wrong and that future batches don’t follow the same way. But hopefully, we don’t destoy their future with the punishment. Build them up. Help them to reintegrate, especially the regulars. It’s not corruption or it’s not refusing to carry out their duties. If convicts can be rehabilitated, I am confident ini budak-budak boleh change their life.
The behaviour of the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) personnel who were captured on video wrecking their dormitory is out of sync with the rest of the force, said its spokesperson today (April 28), who stressed that the matter is being taken “very seriously”.
Two short clips uploaded in the past two days show a trashed dormitory where SCDF personnel sporting close-cropped hair were flouting rules, such as smoking. The videos have attracted criticism of the bad behaviour from members of the public.
But Colonel Abdul Razak Abdul Raheem, director of the SCDF Public Affairs Department, stressed today this was “an isolated incident”.
“It does not reflect the culture, discipline, decorum and conduct of SCDF officers and men, be it our front-line National Servicemen and regulars, or even our Operationally-Ready NSmen,” he told reporters in Joo Koon Crescent today, where firefighters put out a factory blaze. There were no reported injuries in the incident.
“As you can see in today’s fire, this is what we do day in, day out, putting ourselves in harm’s way, taking calculated risks to mitigate incidents, to minimise damage to property and save lives. This is SCDF.”
Col Abdul Razak added that investigations into the incident are ongoing and “will leave no stone unturned”.
The SCDF has said “disciplinary action will be taken against those who are involved”.
The two clips appear to be of the same incident.
The clip uploaded to YouTube today showed an individual using his boot to smear the dormitory floor with what looks like black shoe polish. Like the previous clip that was circulated on Monday night, the new video captured bunk beds and cabinets toppled over in the messy dormitory, with mattresses and litter strewn all around.
Shouts of “POP lo” could also be heard in the background. The acronym purportedly refers to “Passing-out Parade”, which is the graduation ceremony from training.
Firefighters interviewed by TODAY on condition of anonymity acknowledged that emotions can run high when trainees graduate, but said they have not seen such behaviour.
One of them said it is inevitable that trainees will “let loose and get a bit rowdy, but definitely not to this extent”.
He added: “It’s sad because there are so many people in the force who work so hard and selflessly to save lives and keep the country safe, and then a video like this surfaces and our reputation gets bashed.”
Another person who has been with the force for eight years said it was the first time he had heard of people celebrating by destroying the place they had been sleeping in during their months in training: “It’s definitely not the norm. We are quite taken aback because this affects everybody; it’s representing SCDF as a whole.
“The video spread quite fast, and we were told by SCDF today not to continue spreading it around, and not to let it affect our morale,” he added. “Officers said they will investigate and deal with it by the book.”
A third firefighter agreed, saying: “There’s quite a thick line between stupidity and bravery. It’s disappointing to see their actions.”
A married cop who illegally accessed the police computer system to check on a woman he had been having an affair with was fined $4,000 on Tuesday.
Senior station inspector Rick Goh Fu Yuan, 39, had wanted to lodge a police report against 28-year-old Joice Rosiana as he had suspected her of making nuisance calls to his wife.
He carried out an unauthorised search using the Frontline Officers’ Computerised System (Focus) by keying in her identity card number in the search field on Nov 11, 2011.
The system enables authorised officers to lodge police reports and carry out searches on reports filed by members of the public.
Goh, who was deployed as a court officer, pleaded guilty to one of three charges of computer misuse at Central Police Division headquarters.
Goh’s lawyer Michael Chia said in mitigation that his client had Ms Joice’s details as she had been a very close friend for some time. He wanted to make sure the information he had was accurate before he lodged a report against her.
He said the officer of 18 years is likely to face further disciplinary proceedings and lose his career in the SPF.
Mr Chia added: “He actually had a bright future ahead of him and he would have had the opportunity to serve the nation had this one foolish act not occurred. Of course, he should have known better.”
Goh got to know Ms Joice, an assistant admin executive, when he was studying at the Singapore Institute of Management University in 2010.
Mr Chia said that by June 2011, he had begun to distance himself from her as he felt their relationship was developing into an improper association as he was still married at the time.
He said his client committed the offence “in a moment of absolute folly and desperation to protect his then wife from harassment”.
He did not benefit from the act, nor cause any damage.
Goh could have been fined up to $5,000 and/or jailed for up to two years.
Almost 4,000 Saudi forces fled their border bases in anticipation of Riyadh’s order for launching a ground assault on Yemen, European diplomatic sources said on Sunday.
“The intel gathered by the western intelligence agencies showed that the Saudi military forces have fled their bases, military centers and bordering checkpoints near Yemen in groups,” diplomatic sources were quoted as saying by Iraq’s Arabic-language Nahrain Net news website.
The European sources said that the Saudi forces’ mass AWOL forced Riyadh to declare ceasefire and dissuaded it from launching ground attacks against Yemen.
Other reports also said that over 10,000 soldiers from different Saudi military units have fled the army battalions and the National Guard.
Experts believe that the Saudi army lacks strong morale to launch a ground invasion of Yemen and such an attack would be considered as a suicide for Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia has been striking Yemen for 32 days now to restore power to fugitive president Mansour Hadi, a close ally of Riyadh. The Saudi-led aggression has so far killed at least 3,005 Yemenis, including hundreds of women and children.
Hadi stepped down in January and refused to reconsider the decision despite calls by Ansarullah revolutionaries of the Houthi movement.
Despite Riyadh’s claims that it is bombing the positions of the Ansarullah fighters, Saudi warplanes are flattening residential areas and civilian infrastructures.
On Tuesday the monarchy declared end to Yemen airstrikes after four weeks of bombings, but airstrikes are still underway.
Nepal’s utter inability to effectively respond to the catastrophic earthquake that rattled the small Himalayan nation on April 25 can be perhaps best explained by the fact that its army has only one big helicopter to its name.
The massive earthquake—followed by waves of aftershocks—has already killed over 3,000 peopleand injured thousands across this mountainous nation of 28 million. The exact extent of the damage in large swathes of rural Nepal is still unknown, although entire villages may have been wiped out.
In the midst of this terrible disaster, there is a slender silver lining for Nepal: The international community—from economic giants like India, China and the US, to tiny Bhutan and faraway Israel—has responded swiftly and generously to help search and rescue efforts in one of theworld’s poorest nations.
India
Within four hours of the earthquake on April 25, New Delhi dispatched the Indian Air Force’s first C-130J super Hercules aircraft with members of the National Disaster Response Force. So far, 285 members of the team have been sent to Nepal, along with three army field hospitals and civilian doctors.
Thirteen military aircraft and three civilian aircraft from Air India and Jet Airways have also been pressed into service to help the rescue operations, according to India’s foreign ministry.
In addition, six Mi-17 helicopters and two Advanced Light Helicopters have been deployed, and two other Mi-17s are on standby. These choppers have been used to survey outlying areas where road networks have been damaged.
The Indian government has also sent ten tonnes of blankets, 50 tonnes of water, 22 tonnes of food and two tonnes of medicines to Kathmandu. Indian nationals stranded in Nepal are also being evacuated.
On April 26, Nepal’s northern neighbor sent a 62-member search-and-rescue team, while promising 20 million yuan ($3.3 million) in aid. China will send emergency shelters, clothing, blankets, and power generators to Nepal, according to the country’s commerce ministry.
“The Chinese side is willing to offer all necessary disaster assistance to the Nepalese side,” prime minister Xi Jinping said in a statement.
Pakistan
Pakistan has so far sent four Air Force aircraft for rescue and relief assistance, including a 30-bed mobile hospital. According to Radio Pakistan, 2,000 meals, bottled water, medicines, 200 tents, and 600 blankets have already been dispatched.
“Urban search & rescue team of Pakistan Army, equipped with ground-penetrating radars, concrete cutters, sniffing dogs and other equipment sent to help rescue teams,” Major-General Asim Bajwa, director general of Inter-Services Public Relations, said on Twitter.
Israel
On April 26, Israel sent a 260-member team to Nepal on two hired Boeing 747 jumbo jets. The mission comprises a medical staff of 122 doctors, nurses and paramedics, who also carried 95 tons of humanitarian and medical supplies.
Part of the team will immediately engage in search-and-rescue operations, and medics and other support staff are expected to set up a full field hospital in Nepal within 12 hours of landing.
Bhutan
A 53-member team from Bhutan is slated to fly into Kathmandu early on April 27.
“Upon the Royal Command of His Majesty The King, Bhutan will be sending a 37-member medical team assisted by 15 Desuups to Kathmandu to offer medical assistance for the earthquake relief operations,” the Bhutanese monarch’s office posted on Facebook. The team will consist of surgeons, medical specialists, nurses and technicians from the Bhutan’s ministry of health and the Royal Bhutan Army.
Japan
The Japanese government sent a 70-member disaster relief team on April 26 to conduct rescue operations. Tokyo has also offered to provide relief supplies including tents and blankets worth 25 million yen ($210,000), through the Japan International Cooperation Agency.
Singapore
Singapore has already sent a 75-member search and rescue team to Nepal in two C-130 aircraft, while another team is expected to leave today (April 27). The Singapore government has also offered $100,000 to the Singapore Red Cross, which is raising money for relief operations in Nepal.
Malaysia
Thirty members of the Special Malaysia Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team, together with the necessary equipment, are being readied to fly to Nepal, Malaysia’s prime minister Najib Razak said on April 26. Subsequently, another 20 doctors will join the team on a Royal Malaysian Air Force C130 aircraft. The aircraft will remain on standby to evacuate Malaysians from Nepal.
Sri Lanka
Colombo has so far sent 44 army personnel and four medical consultants to Nepal to assist in the rescue and relief operations. The Sri Lankan government also plans to send another team with 156 rescuers, including 14 sailors, 11 airmen and four civil medical consultants, which will be followed by a civilian aircraft carrying food supplies.
UK
The United Kingdom has sent an eight-member disaster response team, including experts in search and rescue. The government has also announced that it has released £3 million for immediate humanitarian assistance, with another £2m going to the Red Cross. A number of UK-based charity organisations are sending their own disaster management teams into the country, including Oxfam, Christian Aid, Save the Children, the British Red Cross and Plan International UK.
UAE
The United Arab Emirates has dispatched staff from its search and rescue agency to Nepal. The 88-member team will be accompanied by UN personnel. Simultaneously, another Emirati team will fly to India to purchase food and medical supplies and then airlift them to Nepal.
US and Canada
Canada and the US have offered $5 million and $1 million for humanitarian assistance, respectively. “USAID is preparing to deploy a Disaster Assistance Response Team and is activating an Urban Search and Rescue Team to accompany disaster experts and assist with assessments of the situation,” John Kerry, US secretary of state, said in a statement.
Australia
Julie Bishop, Australia’s foreign affairs minister, has offered aid worth AU$5 million (US $3.9 million) to Nepal. This will include AU$2.5 million to assist Australian non-government organisations, $2 million to support United Nations partners and AU$500,000 to support the Australian Red Cross.
The country has also sent two humanitarian experts and a crisis response team to Nepal.
Norway
The Norwegians have promised $3.8 million in humanitarian assistance to Nepal. “It is now important to get an overview of what the needs are so that relief efforts can be brought in as quickly and efficiently as possible,” the country’s foreign minister, Boerge Brende, said in a statement. “The funds will be channelled through the UN system and NGOs.”
The European Union
“The European Commission is making available €3 million in its immediate response to the vast devastation caused by the earthquake that hit Nepal on Saturday,” the EU’s executive arm said in a statement. “This comes in addition to the assistance from the member states and the deployment of European Commission’s humanitarian aid and civil protection experts to the crisis area.”
Countries such as Belgium, Finland, Germany, Greece, Netherlands, Poland and Sweden have offered their search and rescue teams to Nepal. The teams will also work on water purification systems and technical assistance. Italy, meanwhile, has announced that it has kept $326,000 available for emergency aid to Nepal. This will be channeled through the International Federation of the Red Cross.
