Skip to main content

Advertisement

Advertisement

Those responsible for CFC Dave Lee’s death will be taken to task: Defence force chief

SINGAPORE — Wrongdoers responsible for the death of full-time national serviceman Dave Lee will be held accountable for their actions, Chief of Defence Force Melvyn Ong pledged on Tuesday (June 19) during a wide-ranging interview ahead of Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) Day next month.

Chief of Defence Force Melvyn Ong Su Kiat speaks to soldiers from 4 SIR on June 19, 2018.

Chief of Defence Force Melvyn Ong Su Kiat speaks to soldiers from 4 SIR on June 19, 2018.

Follow TODAY on WhatsApp

SINGAPORE — Wrongdoers responsible for the death of full-time national serviceman Dave Lee will be held accountable for their actions, Chief of Defence Force Melvyn Ong pledged on Tuesday (June 19) during a wide-ranging interview ahead of Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) Day next month.

In the inteview, Major-General (MG) Ong also revealed that an external safety panel — tasked to examine the existing system for managing heat injuries in the wake of the incident — has found shortcomings in the SAF's prevention and response to such injuries, even though other aspects were in line with industry practices and those of other foreign militaries.

"Those who have been shown to have done something wrong over the course of the incident will be held accountable — this I guarantee you," said MG Ong, who also underscored the importance of public support for National Service (NS) which, he stressed, cannot be taken for granted.

"And we are all committed to this. We have (held), and we will continue to hold, our commanders accountable to the highest standards. You have our assurance on this."

His comments came nearly two months after the high-profile death of Corporal First Class (CFC) Lee, a 19-year-old Guardsman from the 1st Battalion Singapore Guards. CFC Lee died in hospital on April 30 after more than a week in intensive care. He was admitted after he displayed signs of heat injury following an 8km fast march in Bedok Camp on the morning of April 18.

The incident is being independently probed by the police, and a Coroner's Inquiry may be held depending on the outcome of the investigations.

Separately, the Armed Forces Council has convened a Committee of Inquiry, which is chaired by a senior official from the Ministry of Education.

The wake of full-time national serviceman Dave Lee. Photo: Ooi Boon Keong/TODAY

A public outcry ensued after news of CFC Lee's death broke, and an unnamed soldier's account of the events made its rounds online. The soldier, who said he was from the same battalion as the deceased, claimed that the commanders had shown "reckless behaviour", forcing CFC Lee to complete the march even though he was showing signs of extreme physical exhaustion.

The young man's death prompted his mother to call for an immediate halt to "tekan" or "punishment" sessions in the military, the culture where commanders may intentionally give full-time national servicemen a rough time by forcing them to train harder or take on more duties.

When asked if such sessions have been stopped, MG Ong, who assumed Singapore's top military post in March, said that every training activity must be accompanied by a properly documented training programme and safety coverage.

"What the army did in the aftermath of (the incident) was to emphasise this point that training needs to be accompanied by instructions… have adequate safety coverage and all the administrative practices and procedures that come along with it," he said, adding that this was emphasised throughout the SAF.

When asked to comment on public criticism of the harsh punishment culture in the Guards formation, MG Ong, who was a former Chief Guards Officer, said every training activity that soldiers undergo must fit within a "mission-essential task list", and be carried out for a purpose.

"If there is no purpose and the training is levied on the soldiers without reason, and there's an abuse of the way the training is conducted in the process, we'll hold (those responsible) accountable for it," MG Ong said, stressing that this applies not only to the guards formation but also to other services such as the navy and the air force.

"If these are absent, and especially absent of purpose and reason, we will not tolerate this. In this particular case, if it is found to be so, we will hold all responsible accountable."

Saying he was very saddened by CFC Lee's death, MG Ong said that the steps taken in the aftermath to examine safety processes and training programmes across the SAF were done "very deliberately".

Commanders across the chain of command emphasised the need to ensure all practices and training are administered correctly. "We're reasonably confident that commanders are aware of their responsibilities and continue to train to what's required of them," he said.

Shortly after the incident, Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen said that his ministry was commissioning an external medical panel to review and recommend improvements to the existing system for managing heat injuries.

Giving an update on Tuesday, MG Ong said that the five-member panel visited Bedok Camp and went through the protocols that were in place during the incident. This, the Ministry of Defence said, included a brief by Headquarters Guards and viewing a demonstration of how the camp's medical centre treats heatstroke cases.

The panel — helmed by Associate Professor Mark Leong, a senior consultant with the Singapore General Hospital's Department of Emergency Medicine — also examined the processes, measures and policies for heat injury management in the SAF.

Panel members found that the SAF's policies and measures on heat injury management were sound and aligned with industry practices and those of other foreign militaries, MG Ong said, but the group has singled out the prevention and response to heat injuries as two areas for improvement.

When pressed for details, he declined to elaborate, saying that the panel's findings will be made public when ready. He estimates that this will take several more months.

MG Ong said that, ultimately, the strong public support for NS — borne out by the many ground-up events organised by companies and the public to celebrate 50 years of NS last year — cannot be taken for granted.

"We must always continue to make sure that our NS training system (and) safety system are always up to date, and continue to support the training and operations of our national servicemen," he added.

Read more of the latest in

Advertisement

Advertisement

Stay in the know. Anytime. Anywhere.

Subscribe to get daily news updates, insights and must reads delivered straight to your inbox.

By clicking subscribe, I agree for my personal data to be used to send me TODAY newsletters, promotional offers and for research and analysis.