Public Speaking

In my short life of 19 years, I've never given a public address. Those that we had to give during Project Work presentations and classroom discussions are not counted. And I would never have thought that I would be speaking on behalf of my course, addressing a lieutenant colonel. Wrong. It should be lieutenant colonels. There were two of them present today.

Just yesterday, PC dropped a bombshell on me and gave me a great shock when he told me that I was selected to represent my course, and deliver a course reflection. My initial reaction was "You must be kidding, PC! Are you sure you want me to do it?"

But reality began to sink in, and soon I embarked on something I've never done in my life. Write a speech and deliver it.

So below is what my speech looks like. Pardon me, it may be a little dry.

Good morning, Commanding Officer SIW LTC Lim Sir, Commanding Officer 2SIR LTC Wong Sir, Senior Commanders and my fellow ATGM trainees.

On behalf of 06/05 ATGM Operators and Commanders' Course, I would like to express our sincere and heartfelt gratitude to the instructors of our course. In particular, we want to give special mention to our Course Commander Warrant Rahman Sir, and our Course Warrant, Warrant Ranchoor Sir.

Time really flies. Before we know it, we have already spent close to one month in SIW. It seems only yesterday when we were admitted and now we have completed the course. Throughout our stay here, we have learnt several things and gained valuable lessons from the instructors. On top of that, we were privileged to tap on their vast experiences. The instructors were brief and concise in the conduct of their lessons, and we as trainees benefitted tremendously. No doubt training was tough and taxing, both mentally and physically, but we all managed to pull through as a course. And it gives men great pleasure to say that we have made good progress.

One of our most memorable times in SIW has to be the Milan live firing. Hours of preparation were put in, and the firers were selected after several rounds of intensive practices with the DX 143 simulator. Eventually, 2 top class firers were selected and they had the honour of firing the live Milan. They are PTE Poh Junde and PTE Desmond Tan. As PTE Poh says, "The live firing has been nothing short of magnificent. It's really amazing to see what we learnt in books become so real." For the rest of us who witnessed the live firing, we were speechless.

Another highlight of our course was the 4km Man Pack Exercise. Carrying a load of up to 25kg on our shoulders and walking 4km was no joke. It took great strength and determination. For many of us, it was a challenge we had to conquer. The load seemed to be heavier each step we take. We were tired but deep down in our hearts we knew that when we complete the exercise, we would be one up. That thought alone gave us the strength to press on.

Next came the Simulator Gunnery Test. Who could ever forget the 600m run down at the start, carrying the missiles and firing posts? What about how breathless we were and yet we had to set up the firing posts and prepare for firing? And of course how our aiming skills took a dip when we had to fire while gasping for breath?

The climax for our course was no doubt the summary exercise at Lim Chu Kang. With our camo on, we were all ready to set out for the mission. Finally we had the opportunity to put what we have learnt into action. Off to Lim Chu Kang in our jeeps, we arrived with a great sense of anticipation of what we were about to embark on. Of the summary exercise, PTE Tay Qin Yuan has this to say, "We have a good taste of what a mission is like. It was really physically and mentally straining but we worked together as a team. And that was really important."

Not only was the summary exercise beneficial for the operators, it was also a learning experience for the commanders. For 2SG Wu Wen Jie, it was another milestone in his service. "The summary exercise was tough but challenging. It built up my confidence to lead my team through the mission and most importantly, their survivability."

To sum it up, our experience in SIW has been encouraging. It has been a positive spell. I have really enjoyed my stay in SIW. Though it was only a short time, what I experienced was both enriching and memorable. I was able to improve my gunnery skills and make new friends with people from different unit. I will definitely remember my days in SIW and it will be one of the best memories throughout my 2 years in service.

Indeed. Today marks the close of a chapter in our National Service and the beginning of another. Hopefully, when we return to our respective units, we would add value and enhance the fighting capabilities of our battalions.

Thank you.

I was pretty much nervous while making the address, and CO SIW had to ask me why my hands were so cold when we shook hands. Hmm.

Special thanks to Grand Advisor for helping me correct the grammatical mistakes, and Jon for helping me start the address.

I was rather surprised that CO was impressed with my address. Sir, if you are pleased, I only request for more offs. Nothing more, Sir.