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MINDEF has recently carried out a
thorough review of the full-time National Service duration. MINDEF has
concluded that it can reduce the full-time National Service duration for those
who currently have to serve 2½ years by 6 months, to 2 years, while
maintaining the operational readiness of the SAF and its ability to fulfil its
mission.
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This means that all National
Servicemen will therefore serve 24 months or 2 years of full-time National
Service....
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MINDEF will implement the revised
24-month full-time NS duration with effect from the batch of National
Servicemen who will be enlisted in December 2004, that is, at the end of this
year.
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To minimise transitional anomalies
where servicemen who enlist later complete their full-time NS before those who
enlist earlier, there will be a graduated reduction in duration for batches
enlisted earlier than the December 2004 batch.
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Those who are enlisted between
June and November this year for 2½ years of full-time National Service will
get a four-month cut in full-time NS duration.
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Full-time National Servicemen who
are currently serving their 2½ years of service will get up to a two-month
cut in service duration. I say up to a 2-month cut because the earliest date
that the ORD for these in-service National Servicemen can be brought forward
to will be 30 June 2004, to allow time for the units to do their
administrative out-processing arrangements.
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Full-time National Servicemen
returning from disruption to serve out the balance of their 2½ years of
full-time National Service will also be given a corresponding cut in their NS
duration based on the cohort in which they were enlisted.
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There will be no change for those
serving two years of full-time National Service.
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The current 8 week reduction in
National Service duration given to National Servicemen who have attained a
pre-enlistment fitness level of at least a NAPFA Silver will remain. This
8-week reduction for fit enlistees will be granted in two parts – 4 weeks at
the beginning of their service during the Basic Military Training phase, and 4
weeks at the end of their full-time National Service period.
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The Ministry of Home Affairs will
be implementing the corresponding changes for National Servicemen currently
serving in or who will be enlisted into the Singapore Police Force and the
Singapore Civil Defence Force.
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MINDEF will be working with our
local universities to better align the university intake schedules from 2007
when the first batch of National Servicemen serving the new NS duration
completes their full-time National Service.
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Full
text of speech
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Excerpted from Defence Minister
RADR Teo Chee Hean's speech in Parliament on 15 Jun 2004
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Source: Ministry of Defence News
Release 15 Jun 2004
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National Service cut to 2 years from Dec 2004 batch
