SAF commander to be disciplined for removing mask while addressing recruits in public

The commander was seen with his mask pulled below his chin while speaking to around a dozen uniformed recruits near Pasir Ris MRT station on July 26. PHOTO: SCREENGRAB FROM IVAN HO/FACEBOOK

SINGAPORE - A Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) commander who was caught on video without a mask in public will be disciplined for breaching safe management measures, the Ministry of Defence said in a statement on Tuesday (July 27).

In the video shared on the Complaint Singapore Facebook group, the commander was seen with his mask pulled below his chin while speaking to around a dozen uniformed recruits near Pasir Ris MRT station on Monday morning.

Mr Ivan Ho, who posted a video and pictures of the incident, wrote that the commander spoke for around 30 minutes while unmasked.

He also uploaded pictures of the commander smoking by the roadside in the same post.

Mr Ho claimed that he approached one of the commander's colleagues to ask him to put on a mask, but the commander then confronted him and used an expletive on him.

The post has been shared more than 1,300 times since it was uploaded on Monday afternoon.

SAF investigated the incident, and Mindef said in a statement that disciplinary action will be taken against the commander.

"Safe management measures are critical to ensure the safe conduct of the SAF's training and operations, and our commanders are expected to set a positive example as well as enforce those rules to protect themselves and their trainees," the ministry said.

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