Meet Singapore’s first Malay general
Singapore promotes first Muslim Malay army generalSINGAPORE, June 26 — To hear Colonel Ishak Ismail, 46, tell it, hisdecision to become a regular officer in the Singapore Armed Forces(SAF) was greeted with some incredulity.
He recalled yesterday that someone asked him pointedly: “This is your name — you sure you want to sign on?”
He has replied in the affirmative many times in the last 28 years.
Yesterday, his time in the military was capped in historic fashion — he has become the first Malay general in the SAF.
His promotion marks a milestone in Malays’ efforts to be fullyaccepted in the military, a controversial issue ever since it wasdisclosed in 1987 that the SAF adopted a cautious approach in placingthem in key positions.
Ishak was one of five who headed the SAF’s annual promotion list andattained the rank of Brigadier-General or Rear-Admiral (One Star).
The other four were: Colonel (Dr) Benjamin Seet and Colonel LeeShiang Long from the Army; the Republic of Singapore Navy’s Colonel TanWee Beng; and Colonel Kwek Kok Kwong of the Republic of Singapore AirForce.
The five were among 464 from all three arms — both regulars andoperationally-ready National Servicemen — presented with theircertificates of promotion at a ceremony at Bukit Gombak Camp yesterday.
The promotions will take effect from July 1, which is SAF Day.
For Ishak, moving to the rank of Brigadier-General is reward forwhat he calls a consuming passion: Developing people to their potential.
Calling himself a “servant leader”, he said: “What gets me up in themorning and gives me the passion every day is the same reason I becamea regular officer: Being able to influence people to something thatthey may not see themselves accomplishing.”
He has served in numerous appointments and is now the Commander of the 6th Singapore Division.
Last year, he received the Public Administration Medal (Silver) (Military) Medal.
He paid tribute to his wife, who put her career aspirations on holdto become a homemaker and mother to their two daughters, aged 15 and 17.
His “mission”, he said, is to spend quality time with his family: “Ihave never made the SAF an excuse for my family to be sidelined.
“They don’t have enough of me, so I think I should give as much as I can.”
The other officers promoted yesterday to one-star rank also spoke of the sense of purpose they get from defending the country.
Said the RSAF’s Kwek, who has served for more than 20 years:‘Defending the country is a very honourable task, and is what keeps megoing.’
Tan said that his most rewarding moments come from “working side by
side with people towards a common goal”.
Commenting on Col Ishak’s promotion yesterday, the Minister for theEnvironment & Water Resources and Minister-in-charge of MuslimAffairs Yaacob Ibrahim said it was a proud moment for the Malay-Muslimcommunity and for all Singaporeans.
He said it showed that hard work and playing by the rules would bring its rewards in a meritocratic society.
Asked if he hoped more Malays would follow in Ishak’s footsteps, hesaid it was hoped this would happen, although it would depend on theirability and their interest.
“No Malays should now feel like they can’t do it. If Col Ishak can do it, we can all do it,” he said. — The Straits Times
p/s:dis is interesting,antara 5 Brigadier-General :) mana nak taruk..paling kuat logistik je..:lol: #1 montana
Kol Ishak ni pegawai infantri, x salah aku dri 3 SIR kan? 2# zvicmorrow
power tu bro! logistics yg make or break a campaign Dubuk tak naik pangkat ke? :L dubuk terus jadi field marsyal bai.............hehe 2# zvicmorrow
nampaksah tak baca article atau tak faham english...:) 3# jazim
dia dulu CO 6SIR lepastu CO 12 SIB lepastu CO BMTC, and now CO 6 DIV Ade juga melayu eh, aku ingat policy diorg xde Malay langsung, maybe lepas LKY balik dr visiting Malaysia haritu dia berubah fikiran kot, maklumlah, lama sgt dok Pulau, skali kuar baru nampak dunia ;P 9# rastablank
Actually he was already commander of 6 DIV ( which is a BG slot ) before LKY went to Malaysia... 10# DarkBaron
LTC Mohd Fadzuly Abbas (Inf) yg batalion dia dpt SAF Best Infantry Unit Award beberapa tahun lepas masih service lagi ke? there's another guy not mentioned di Straits Times, Mejar Mohd Fahmi baru naik pangkat ke leftenan kolonel, dia ni pun melayu pertama jadi CO 3rd Guards.... ada gambar tak ? ni musti ada muslihat LKY nih..hehehehe 13# HangPC2
kat pioneer magazine tapi gue dah buang.. 13# HangPC2
Cuba bukak segmen video laman web MINDEF Sg, Defence News kemudian tengok dlm berita "SAF Promotes 464 Officer". 1# Mondtana
If during war with either Malaysia, Indonesia or Brunei, this surely BG Ishak Ismail will beat and kill any his brother Muslim Malay enemy soldier bloodily.
gubra Post at 27-6-2009 17:14 http://forum.cari.com.my/images/common/back.gif
yes true, and thats what we'll do.....we are loyal to our country. let me ask you a question, if arab muslim attack malaysia, will you defend your country malaysia or betray and join the arabs? kita nak tengok bila the first malay can fly spore air force fighter plane..in dream perhaps:shutup::lol: Tahniah kerana ada org Melayu mjadi Jenderal dalam Angkatan Bersenjata Sg..it took very long time for Malays to achieve that level in the republic armed forces, perhaps the meritocracy and standard is set very high..:P 19# zvicmorrow
Keretapi KTM anda telah berlepas...:)