BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN

A TOTAL of 121 young recruits yesterday graduated from their basic firefighting course in a passing out parade held at the Fire and Rescue headquarters at Old Airport, Berakas.

The course which started in November last year saw participation from 96 male firefighter recruits from the 46th squad and 25 female recruits from the Ninth Squad.

Eight recruits and one instructor was also awarded for their exemplary performance; four from each male and female squads were given Best Trainee in all fields, Best Trainee in Practical, Best Trainee in Physical Training and Best Trainee in Theory while the male instructor was given the Best Instructor award.

Female recruits awarded with excellence commented that perseverance is equally important as discipline for those who wanted to choose a career in uniformed services. Nursyahirah Muhammad Syazwan Teo, Best Female Recruit in all Fields said that one of the most challenging exercises was use of the “breathing apparatus”.

Present as the guest of honour at the event was the Permanent Secretary of Ministry of Home Affairs Hj Mohd ‘Abdoh Dato Seri Setia Abd Hj Abd Salam

In his speech, the permanent secretary said besides a continuous effort to arrange programmes, training should also be done as part of its succession planning.

“Repetitive training will not be an advantage to us if we do not set any targets. A written succession plan is aimed to be reached within a specific period of time,” he said.

“Service schemes will be lifeless without a succession planning system that is applicable or reliable; departments will only be administering the affairs of members and staffs, and not managing and making plans for its working resources,” he added.

Hj Mohd ‘Abdoh also urged instructors to focus not only on the basic knowledge in firefighting and emergency skills, but they should also make use of the expertise they gained through overseas training. “I deliberately highlighted this infront of the 121 new members of the fire and rescue department because I wanted to provide a picture that employment as well as knowledge in firefighting, leadership and management is vast and important,” he said.

“Employment is a source of income to the family, allowing them to have ambitions, make career progression plans and ensure the future of each family member; besides it being a task and obligation, it will also open one’s heart to become a good and responsible person,” he added.

He also said that discipline should not only be shown during the early years of service but it should also be consistent starting from the beginning until the end of service, and it should also be well-preserved among members of the Fire and Rescue Department.

“Do not stop in the middle of the road because of discipline; the top management should strictly guide them especially in terms of discipline. “They must be swift to act and contain any weaknesses relating to discipline,” he said.

“I would also like to advise members of the Fire and Rescue Department to maintain respect between one another and adhere to rules and regulations especially the Fire and Rescue Act; if you are ready to learn these skills then you can start from the beginning, with the best discipline to carry out your tasks, double your efforts in training and be perseverant,” he added.

The Brunei Times