National servicemen will not be the only ones to benefit from an upcoming one-stop hub in Bukit Gombak - it will be open to their families and the public too.
The facilities and amenities at the NS Hub - to be ready in 2023 - include food and beverage outlets, a childcare centre, outdoor community areas with fitness equipment, a running track and a football field.
Speaking at the ground-breaking ceremony yesterday, Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen said the NS Hub will represent more than a building where national servicemen gather.
It will let pre-enlistees do their psychometric tests and medical checks, while full-time national servicemen can visit the Military Medicine Institute for specialist medical and dental care, among other things.
The hub will be directly connected to Cashew MRT station via an overhead bridge, as well as to the Rail Corridor, a green stretch that runs from Woodlands in the north to Tanjong Pagar in the south.
"The NS Hub is the physical embodiment of Singapore's unique national service commitment and culture. After 52 years since its inception, national service has become an accepted rite of passage for all male citizens and permanent residents," said Dr Ng.
"Beyond training to defend our country, national service is also where they forge deep bonds that last their lifetime. NS is part and parcel of the Singapore identity."
Dr Ng said the public can use the hub as a place for leisure, to learn more about national service, and consider a career in the defence industry. Like Safra clubhouses, it will be a good place to relax with family and friends, he added.
In his speech, Dr Ng reiterated the importance of national service, which started in 1967 because of the pain and suffering in World War II.
"Many of us, of you, have parents, grandparents, who lived through the Japanese Occupation when Singapore fell, even though it was protected by a seemingly invincible military."
Dr Ng said the Central Manpower Base, where he enlisted, used to be in Dempsey Road. He said that when his family eats at one of the restaurants there, he would tell his children that this was where the doctors had examined him.
"I don't think they are very interested... But it's embedded, and I believe that when we build this NS Hub, that will be the experience of future generations of NSmen...
"They, I hope, will recount to their children when they are older - and there is still national service, and a Singapore that we can and want to protect - of their experiences here," he said, adding that the NS Hub is likely to be a permanent site.
He hoped the hub will become a national icon for future generations of servicemen - "one that represents this nation's commitment to a strong defence for Singapore".
