Lousy Employer

Singapore time: 10.05 am 27th Apr 2007

Singapore government is a lousy employer in the sense they employ army and police personnels etc on contract basis.

Police and army personnels are very important human resources to the country and the PAP government are treating them like dirts, except for the top scholars who holds high rank in the forces. These high ranking officers are put into high profile jobs in government or government related companies like SIA, Singtel etc when they retire around 45 years old. Some are asked to go into politics to serve as ministers when elected.

To the rest, they have to tend for themselves. Most are dis-oriented when they are out of the forces and find adjustment to private life more depressing. Even some go into criminal activities just to make a living.

I suggest the retirement age should be 55 years old since the general retirement age in Singapore is 62 years old. So officers need not have to go through a mid-term crisis in their life. At 55 years old, most are still fit to work if they are required to pass a fitness test annually.

The main problem in the forces is that they rely on qualification to promote an officer. Like my son during his NS service, he was a mortar combat support man in 6 SIR, but was asked to help out in documentation and be a clerk, because he can do work faster than what his clerk or senior clerk can perform. When computer breakdown, he was asked to troubleshoot. He has only 'O' level with about 3 credits. But he was performing duty of a senior clerk. Even now in his reservist training, he was asked to do documentation. What are those senior rank officers doing ? Are they only paper qualified genius but work stupid personnels ?