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SINGAPORE: When it was announced on April 6 that Basic Military Training would be temporarily suspended in accordance with Singapore’s COVID-19 “circuit breaker” measures, training at the Officer Cadet School (OCS) was saved from suspension.
The training school is necessary to maintain the operational readiness of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF), the Defense Ministry said at the time, and will continue with improved security measures.
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But what has not been spared is the full OCS experience, where cadets go on a 38-week journey to emerge as commissioned officers and capable soldier leaders. About 765 cadets are currently receiving OCS training.
While OCS Commander Col. (COL) Edwin Goh, 46, said security measures will not compromise the content and rigor of the training, he acknowledged that cadets will have a different experience.
Cadets must use designated ladders to reach their bunks. (Photo: Jeremy Long)
Rather than tight ranks, cadets now march in open files 1m away. To get to their bunks, they use designated routes reserved for each platoon. The signs pasted along the hallways show a fierce-looking commander reminding them to stay 1 meter away.
During training, the masks remain, except during strenuous activities. After using free weights outside of their bunks, cadets must clean them up. Rather than dining together in the kitchen, meals were reduced to eating in plastic take-out bins for two.
OCT Hariharan Vebeshun having lunch in his bunk. (Photo: Jeremy Long)
But perhaps the most important changes are the key activities of the cadets.
Overseas exercises, a large part of cadet training, have been canceled. So is the traditional practice of parents who come to visit OCS. The kick-off parade, a proud day to which parents, media and religious leaders are invited, will be replaced by a smaller, modified ceremony with no visitors.
A sign reminding cadets to comply with COVID-19 security measures. (Photo: Jeremy Long)
“To be honest, I think (the OCS experience) will not be the same,” COL Goh told reporters at the camp on Monday (May 11). “But we are highly motivated to ensure that we give cadets the most fundamental and crucial competencies.”
EXERCISES MADE ABROAD LOCALLY
This means that some exercises abroad, conducted in countries like Brunei, where conditions and terrain pose a more challenging experience, must be replicated in the Pulau Tekong jungles.
In Brunei, soldiers learn jungle survival skills, such as collecting water and building shelters. They will learn the same skills in Singapore.
Cadets checking their equipment before an exercise. (Photo: Jeremy Long)
“Overseas training is generally recognized as the pinnacle of cadet training in terms of intensity as well as fast pace,” said platoon assistant commander, Lt. Mohamed Haiqal Mohamed Zainal, 24.
“We make sure that the so-called revised local trainings maintain that intensity and consecutive mission profiles … so we instilled that mental readiness in them.”
Cadets have to wear masks most of the time. (Photo: Jeremy Long)
In addition, LTA Haiqal said more “deliberate planning” must be done to ensure that the training complies with COVID-19 security measures.
This includes holding more briefings in smaller groups, reserving more buses to transport troops for safe distancing on board, and allocating enough time to accommodate different groups in extended training.
WHY NOT LEARN COMPLETELY AT HOME?
Wherever possible, commanders have put online theoretical lessons such as gun handling so that cadets can study them from home and have shorter weeks at camp.
But COL Goh said that it is not possible to implement comprehensive home learning for OCS, unlike its counterpart, the Basic Military Training Center.
Cadets that simulate a helical insert drill. (Photo: Jeremy Long)
“Official cadets are at a more advanced stage of training,” he said. “It requires that they not only practice basic training, but also go beyond basic military skills.”
Learning at home cannot fully replicate things like leadership, team dynamics and resilience training, he said.
“They must come to the field,” he added. “These are aspects of the advanced training of the Official Cadet School that need to be continued.”
WHAT DEFINES OFFICERS
Cadet (OCT) Officer Hariharan Vebeshun, 22, said training on the ground rather than at home gives him more confidence to lead his men in the future.
“If we are just at home … we might not be as confident and competent as when compared to training,” he said. “We will lose that experience and knowledge.”
OCT Songkiat Ow doing online learning in his bunk bed. (Photo: Jeremy Long)
However, fellow OCT Songkiat Ow Shiyuan, 22, admitted that daily activities have become more regulated due to the application of COVID-19 security measures.
“As a future commander, viewing COVID-19 measures as a nuisance is definitely wrong,” he said. “We are not doing this for ourselves, but for the people who will be under our command tomorrow.”
Cadets seated through a short mission. (Photo: Jeremy Long)
And while OCT Ow said the cadets are a bit sad because the overseas exercises and commissioning parade have been suspended, he emphasized that what matters is not the journey but what comes out of it.
“It is what we learned and obtained from the experience, and how we are going to translate it for our men,” he added. “That is what makes us officers.”
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