Three new clubs for HometeamNS from 2020: Shanmugam

SINGAPORE — Three new clubhouses for national servicemen from the police and Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) are in the works, with the first of these slated to be ready by 2020, announced Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam on Monday (Feb 13).

The three clubhouses will be located at Khatib-Yishun, Bedok Reservoir, as well as at the upcoming Tengah Forest Town as part of a long-term planning exercise for HomeTeamNS for the next 10 to 15 years, said Mr Shanmugam, who was speaking at the launch of the Home Team's NS50 celebration to commemorate 50 years of National Service (NS) and the opening of HomeTeamNS’ fifth clubhouse at Our Tampines Hub.

The Khatib-Yishun clubhouse is expected to be ready by 2020 and will replace the current clubhouse in Sembawang. The Tengah clubhouse will replace the Bukit Batok clubhouse when ready, whereas the Bedok clubhouse will be a new club. Details of when the Bedok and Tengah clubhouses will be completed will be made known in due time. 

Separately, the existing Balestier clubhouse will be reviewed, added Mr Shanmugam. 

The HomeTeamNS, which is a non-profit association set up to recognise the contributions of police and SCDF national servicemen, has a membership base of over 180,000. 

Speaking to the media at the sidelines of the clubhouse launch, chief executive officer of HomeTeamNS Agnes Eu said the new club at Khatib-Yishun will cost around S$78 million to build. In planning for the locations of the new clubhouses, Ms Eu said there were two key planning parameters: that the new clubhouses should be build closer to where its National Servicemen were, and that it should be accessible and convienient. 

On Monday, Mr Shanmugam also shared more details of the Home Team's NS50 celebrations, including a parade helmed by members from the Home Team, as well as a reunion for all police national servicemen. 

The parade, to be held from May 3 to 6 as part of the Home Team Show and Festival, will be led by regular servicemen and women from the Home Team, volunteers and contingents from the National Police Cadet Corps, and the National Civil Defence Cadet Corps. 

The show and parade will be held at Singapore Indoor Stadium and its surrounding areas. It will culminate in a gala show on May 6, with President Tony Tan as guest-of-honour. 

Meanwhile, the police will also be hosting a reunion, held on July 22 at the Old Police Academy, for all police national servicemen, retired and current officers and their families. 

In his speech on Monday, Mr Shanmugam noted the changing nature of the Home Team national servicemen's work. 

Commenting on how in the early years, national servicemen in the Home Team were "seen as an important resource to augment our regular force in the police and SCDF", Mr Shanmugam said now both regular and national service officers are trained the same way because of the changing nature of threats. 

"Many of our NS officers perform the same duties as regulars," he said, while noting that more NS officers have been put in leadership and specialist roles, and more have been deployed to frontline and operational duties. 

Moving forward, Mr Shanmugam said NS officers will be deployed to new areas, but he did not elaborate. 

This year, Singapore marks 50 years since NS was started in 1967, with a year-long series of activities planned to recognise and thank the more than one million men who have enlisted or gone through NS. As part of the celebrations, last week, the Home Affairs Ministry and Defence Ministry jointly announced that all servicemen who have completed their National Service will get a year's free membership at either Safra or HomeTeamNS.