My letter Give further boost to IPPT incentives was published in the ST Forum 3 days ago.
The following text is my original letter, before editing.
The Committee to Strengthen National Service (CSNS) has come up with many measures that will benefit national servicemen.
However, I felt that the committee could have been bolder in improving the incentive awards for IPPT.
The monetary incentives for IPPT has been unchanged for many years and it’s real monetary value has decreased significantly due to inflation. The proposed $100 increase does not even make up for it’s loss in value throughout the years.
The fact that the CSNS has recommended an extra $6000 Medisave grant for every NSmen shows that they are sparing no efforts and money to recognize and reward NSmen.
I hope that the current IPPT incentives can be significantly enhanced. The pass with incentive category can even be removed altogether with a monetary incentive given to everyone who manages a pass.
Better financial incentives can motivate more people to pass IPPT, which will also translate into lower costs needed to run the Remedial Training (RT) and IPPT Preparatory Training (IPT).