TO HEAR Colonel Ishak Ismail, 46, tell it, his decision 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 fully accepted in the military, a controversial issue ever since it was disclosed in 1987 that the SAF adopted a cautious approach in placing them in key positions.

Col Ishak was one of five who headed the SAF's annual promotion list and attained the rank of Brigadier-General or Rear-Admiral (One Star).

The other four were: Colonel (Dr) Benjamin Seet and Colonel Lee Shiang Long from the Army; the Republic of Singapore Navy's Colonel Tan Wee Beng; and Colonel Kwek Kok Kwong of the Republic of Singapore Air Force.

The five were among 464 from all three arms - both regulars and operationally-ready National Servicemen - presented with their certificates of promotion at a ceremony at Bukit Gombak Camp yesterday.

The promotions will take effect from July 1, which is SAF Day.

For Col Ishak, moving to the rank of Brigadier-General is reward for what he calls a consuming passion: Developing people to their potential.

Calling himself a 'servant leader', he said: 'What gets me up in the morning and gives me the passion every day is the same reason I became a regular officer: Being able to influence people to something that they may not see themselves accomplishing.'

Read the full story in Friday's edition of The Straits Times.