NCDCC Day Message

NATIONAL CIVIL DEFENCE CADET CORPS DAY 2007
12 APRIL 2007

MESSAGE FROM LTC LIM KAH SENG
COMMANDANT NCDCC
NATIONAL CIVIL DEFENCE CADET CORPS


Officers and Cadets,

Accounts of real-life crises around the world have shown that many survivors were in fact rescued by fellow citizens who were around them at the time of crisis. As such, for our society to continue to be resilient, there is a need for conscious efforts in increasing emergency preparedness amongst our people. In this light, I am pleased to note that in NCDCC, we have over a thousand NCDCC cadets who are trained practitioners in Civil Defence skills and knowledge. They have assisted at many Community Emergency Preparedness events in the various constituencies across Singapore, passing on what they have learnt to their fellow citizens. They stand ready to be active and useful citizens in helping to ensure that our nation will be well prepared in times of need.

Emergencies do not only refer to terrorist threats, they also refer to industrial mishaps, fires, natural disasters, accidents etc. NCDCC members are trained in skills such as putting out fires, Urban Search and Rescue, dealing with hazardous materials and CPR amongst many others. These skills would certainly be useful in times of emergencies.

Beside acquiring skills, the NCDCC training also ensures character building. Resilience and strength of character are key takeaways for many NCDCC cadets from confidence building scenarios in our annual Adventure Challenge Camp, Adventure Training Camps and Kayaking Expeditions. Challenging Civil Defence activities such as the annual CD Quiz and CD Skills Competition also provide the platforms for character development of our cadets.

Going beyond the shores of Singapore, NCDCC HQ is now organizing an overseas study trip to visit our Hong Kong counterpart – “The Civil Aid Service Cadet Corps”. Selected NCDCC teacher-officers and cadets will learn from their counterparts the best practices in character development even as they participate in cultural exchanges. These best practices in character development would then be shared with other officers and cadets.

To acknowledge and reward the efforts of schools and teacher-officers who have carried out the NCDCC training well and also put in place useful new initiatives and the commendable efforts and achievements of the NCDCC cadets, NCDCC HQ will pilot the Unit Overall Performance Award (UOPA) in 12 units this year. After the first set of trial results are released in March 2008, NCDCC HQ will work with the pilot units to refine the processes and criteria of the UOPA. Thereafter, the UOPA will be rolled out to all NCDCC units with four levels of cadets. For the NCDCC units, the UOPA can be a very good benchmarking tool, use it to benchmark yourself against the best in your field and also as an encouragement to outdo yourself each year.

I would also like to take this opportunity to share a quote from the Irish poet William Butler Yeats, a Nobel prize winner: ‘Education is not the filling of a bucket, but the lighting of a fire’. It is my sincere wish that all teacher-officers in NCDCC shall strive not just to imbue CD skills and knowledge in the cadets under their mentorship, but also to ignite a fire in all NCDCC cadets that would carry them throughout their lives.

On this note, I wish all Officers, Cadet Lieutenants and Cadets in NCDCC an enjoyable and meaningful NCDCC Day.