Rudyard Kipling"
“When you're left wounded on Afganistan's plains and
the women come out to cut up what remains, Just roll to your rifle
and blow out your brains,
And go to your God like a soldier”
General Douglas MacArthur"
“We are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction.”
“It is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it.” “Old soldiers never die; they just fade away.
“The soldier, above all other people, prays for peace, for he must suffer and be the deepest wounds and scars of war.”
“May God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't .” “The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his.
“Nobody ever defended, there is only attack and attack and attack some more.
“It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived.
The Soldier stood and faced God
Which must always come to pass
He hoped his shoes were shining
Just as bright as his brass
"Step forward you Soldier,
How shall I deal with you?
Have you always turned the other cheek?
To My Church have you been true?"
"No, Lord, I guess I ain't
Because those of us who carry guns
Can't always be a saint."
I've had to work on Sundays
And at times my talk was tough,
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.
But, I never took a penny
That wasn't mine to keep.
Though I worked a lot of overtime
When the bills got just too steep,
The Soldier squared his shoulders and said
And I never passed a cry for help
Though at times I shook with fear,
And sometimes, God forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.
I know I don't deserve a place
Among the people here.
They never wanted me around
Except to calm their fears.
If you've a place for me here,
Lord, It needn't be so grand,
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand."
There was silence all around the throne
Where the saints had often trod
As the Soldier waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God.
"Step forward now, you Soldier,
You've borne your burden well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell."
Malaysiakini : COMMENT | The photo of the former
prime minister, Najib Abdul Razak, donning army fatigues and
accessorising the look with tan-coloured Timberland ankle boots, made a
mockery of the uniform of the Armed Forces.
Just over a year ago, Lt-Col (Rtd) Mohd Idris Hassan and his peers complained
that politicians were promoting themselves to the rank of General,
Colonel or Captain, and also "commissioning" singers, actors, sportsmen
and social activists. Mohd Idris said that none of them had fired a shot in defence of the
nation, or even completed a day's military training. Some received
Parachute Wings, without making a single jump. He was appalled when a
few of these politicians had the audacity to wear the much coveted
maroon beret of the airborne units.
Today, his appeal was repeated by the leader of the veterans group,
the National Patriots Association (Patriot), Brig-Gen (Rtd) Mohamed
Arshad Raji. He condemned the actions of former ministers and
politicians for treating the military uniform as a fashion statement and
wants the practice stopped.
Arshad called on the new Defence Minister Mohamad Sabu, who is widely known as Mat Sabu, to refuse to wear a military uniform or military insignia, and said, "We had to slog all our lives to attain these ranks.“This has to stop. There are only two bodies that can wear uniforms –
the military and the police. Even the defence minister should be
discouraged from wearing a uniform."
Arshad: Revoke the honorary ranks
Arshad said politicians were a “disgrace” because they failed to wear
their uniforms properly but worse; none of them had undergone the
rigorous tests and courses, which are spread over many years.
He rubbished the honorary ranks which were given to menteris besar,
politicians and celebrities, and he prompted the new defence minister to
revoke past honorary ranks that had been awarded to civilians.
One person whose late father saw active duty during The Emergency
said, "I salute Arshad for his suggestion and I hope Mat Sabu listens. He said: "We grimace when watching politicians, whom we now know to
be corrupt, and spineless, wear the uniform of the Armed Forces. It is
an insult to the brave men, some of whom died while serving this
country.
"The uniform means everything to a soldier. It is like his second
skin. When my father wore his uniform, he was a transformed person,
proud to serve the King and country. People respected him for his
service to the nation. Strangers would come up to him and say thank you
and shake his hand."
His uncle, who served during the Indonesian Confrontation, said:
"These awards are dished-out like confetti to undeserving people, just
because they are celebrities or politicians. Our frontline troops bore
the worst of the troubles in the Indonesian Confrontation and The
Emergency. Some of these civilians have no clue about sacrifice."
The Parachute Wings, are only worn by paratroopers. Arshad wants
politicians to stop wearing them when inspecting guards of honour. He said, “People have died to save their country in (parachute) jumps. Have they ever made a single jump? “Have you seen the British and French defence ministers wearing army uniforms?”
Arshad, who was promoted to Brigadier-General rank prior to his
retirement, said that most of the civilian volunteers were awarded the
rank of Colonel, but never that of Brigadier-General. However, he
claimed, this rank had also been given to politicians and celebrities
who never had to work hard, or even pass basic military training, to
receive it.
One can only imagine the secret fury of many serving and retired
military personnel and policemen when Malaysia's top badminton player,
Lee Chong Wei, was made an honorary Commander in the Royal Malaysian
Navy Volunteer Reserve Unit in 2016. He had previously been made a
Lieutenant-Commander (Honorary), in 2012. Social media was abuzz with remarks like "Can he even swim, or
command a ship?" and "You can't lob a depth charger like a shuttlecock".
The same ridicule was heaped on Khairy Jamaluddin, the former Youth
and Sports minister, when he was made a honorary Brigadier-General. A retired army commander remarked scathingly, "By right, he has to
surrender the rank upon relinquishing his post as commander of the
regiment; but he was a minister and an Umno-Baru bigwig, so they allowed
him to keep his rank.
"He did a month's military training, at the territorial army camp in
Ampang, KL. That's about all. There were no additional career courses,
like those which we were required to take." Although honorary commissions are covered under Section 8 of the
Armed Forces Act, 1972, the fact that some retired officers have openly
voiced their disapproval, should not be dismissed.
They want the authorities to restrict the use of uniforms, insignia
and ranks by non-military personnel and limit their use to those who
meet strict criteria. Some are alarmed when wedding grooms stick two pips on their
uniforms, to pretend they are of a higher rank and use non-military men,
clothed in uniform, to act as sword-bearers. They do not want the
uniforms and insignia to be treated like fancy dress.
Mat Sabu should scrutinise the previous administration's abuse of the honorary awards system.
Mudah untuk BG bersara berkat-kata. Yang sendiri dok pakai beret walau dah pencen tu akta mana yang atok guna? Beret tu sebahagian dari uniform. Kalau dah pencen tu, pakailah preman.
I have commented about the abused of military uniform many times before. The complainans in the article above themselves do not know the laws that prohibit non military to wear military uniform and badges. No need to complaint. The following are some existing laws that prohibit civilian wearing military uniforms:
1. KANUN KESIKSAAN (N.M.B Bab 45)Seksyen 140. Memakai Pakaian Askar, Kelasi atau Penerbangan. Barang siapa, yang bukannya seorang askar, kelasi atau penerbang dalam perkhidmatan tentera darat, laut atau udara Yang di-Pertuan Agong, memakai apa-apa pakaian atau membawa apa-apa tanda yang menyerupai apa-apa pakaian atau tanda yang digunakan oleh seseorang askar, kelasi atau penerbang itu dengan niat supaya boleh dipercayai bahawa ia adalah seorang askar, kelasi atau penerbang itu, hendaklah disiksa dengan penjara selama tempoh yang boleh sampai tiga bulan, atau denda yang boleh sampai seribu ringgit, atau dengan kedua-duanya.
2. AKTA KESALAHAN KECIL 1955 (AKTA 336)Seksyen 16. Memiliki Secara Haram Barang-Barang Kepunyaan Askar, Tentera Laut, Tentera Udara atau Polis. Sesiapa pun yang dengan sengaja mendapatkan, membeli, menukarkan atau menerima dari sesiapa pun yang berkhidmat dalam Angkatan Tentera Malaysia atau pasukan pertahanan tempatan atau angkatan tentera pelawat atau mana-mana anggota Polis Diraja Malaysia atau Polis Singapura sebarang kegunaan, pakaian atau lain-lain barang atau peralatan askar, tentera laut, tentera udara atau polis atau sebarang harta benda kepunyaan Kerajaan Malaysia atau Singapura atau Kerajaan Negeri atauKerajaan Angkatan tentera pelawat, atau sebarang bintang-bintang kurniaan untuk jasa baik atau untuk perkhidmatan terpuji atau lain-lain atau sesiapa memiliki atau menyimpan sebarang kegunaan tersebut, pakaian atau lain-lain barang, kegunaan atau kepunyaan lain atau bintang-bintang kurniaan sepertidi atas dan tidak dapat memberikan penjelasan yang memuaskan bagaimana dia mendapatkannya boleh dikenakan denda yang tidak melebihi lima puluh ringgit atau dipenjarakan tidak melebihi enam minggu atau kedua-duanya sekali.Seksyen 25. Memakai Pakaian Seragam Yang Tidak Dibenarkan. Sesiapa jua pun yang memakai tanpa kebenaran yang sewajarnya pakaian seragam yang ditetapkan bagi kegunaan mana-mana angkatan bersenjata Malaysia atau manamana angkatan tentera tempatan atau angkatan tentera pelawat atau pasukan polis Malaysia atau Singapura atau mana-mana Kerajaan atau Pihak Berkuasa Tempatan atau apaapa pakaian yang merupai atau mengandungi apa-apa lencana pasukan atau lain-lain lencana yang jelas bagi pakaian seragam itu atau apaapa tiruan warna terhadapnya jika disabitkan boleh dikenakan denda tidak melebihi lima puluh ringgit, dan apa-apa pakaian seragam, pakaian, lencana atau tanda tersebut boleh dilucut hak. Dengan syarat bahawa tiada apa-apa jua dalam seksyen ini boleh menjejaskan pemakaian pakaian seragam tersebut bagi maksud apa-apa pertunjukan pentas.
3. AKTA RAHSIA RASMI 1972 (Akta 88)Seksyen 9. (1) Menggunakan Uniform Tanpa Kuasa. Jika seseorang dapat masuk atau membantu seseorang lain supaya dapat masuk ke suatu tempat larangan melalui sesuatu yang lain daripada tempat masuk yang dibenarkan atau bagi maksud mendapat masuk, atau bagi membantu seseorang lain supaya dapat masuk, ke sesuatu tempat larangan, atau bagi apa-apa maksud lain yang mudarat kepada keselamatan atau kepentingan Malaysia:(a) Menggunakan atau memakai, tanpa kuasa yang sah, apa-apa uniform tentera laut, tentera darat, tentera udara, polis atau apa-apa uniform rasmi yang lain atau apa-apa uniform yang hampir-hampir serupa dengannya hingga mungkin memperdayakan, atau dengan palsunya merupakan dirinya sebagai seorang yang berhak atau telah berhak menggunakan atau memakai manamana uniform itu; maka dia adalah melakukan suatu kesalahan yang boleh dihukum dengan denda tidak melebihi sepuluh ribu ringgit atau penjara selama tempoh tidak melebihi tujuh tahun atau kedua-duanya.
Mudah untuk BG bersara berkat-kata. Yang sendiri dok pakai beret walau dah pencen tu akta mana yang atok guna? Beret tu sebahagian dari uniform. Kalau dah pencen tu, pakailah preman.