A MONTHLY SUPPLEMENT OF RAKAN SARAWAK BULLETIN (People, events, activities and programmes which make for a total quality-managed Sarawak Civil Service) ISSN 1394-5726

Online Publisher:          Contents provided by:	Call for more volunteers for State Territorial Army (Askar Wataniah) "Our country needs more volunteers for the State Terri-torial Army"", said State Secretary Datuk Abdul Aziz Husain who is also the commander of the 511 Regiment State Territorial Army (Regimen 511 Askar Wataniah). Datuk Abdul Aziz who carries the honorary rank of Colonel took over the helm from former Regimen 511 commander, Tan Sri Datuk Amar Haji Hamid Bugo in 1999, urged all State government departments and agencies to help promote Askar Wataniah among civil servants in order to achieve the target of 3 volunteers to every regular military officers. According to Capt Raja Azamawi bin Haji Isa, a regular army officer attached to Regimen 511, the present number of about 80,000 regular army personnel for the country's population of 22 million people or an average of one army officer to 250 civilians is quite worrying. That's why we need more people to come forward to join Askar Wataniah and help bolster the number. We encourage more volunteers from both the public and private sectors, he added. In res-ponse to this, Datuk Abdul Aziz Husain has pump up effort to encourage more civil servants to sign as volunteers. Among the steps taken is to award honorary ranks to heads of governments bodies, departments and agencies which include all Residents and heads of departments. "Our objective is to have one company to one division with their own base complete with facilities needed for training or meetings," Capt Raja Azamawi added. What is Askar Wataniah ? Askar Wataniah is a voluntary army reserve unit meant as the second defense line-up to reinforce the regular army in times of crisis or emergencies affecting national security. Initially known as Pasukan Pertahanan Tempat (PTT), Askar Wataniah first came to Sarawak on June 8, 1973. The two regiments now in operation are Regimen 510 with its base in Sibu and Regimen 511 based in Kuching. Regimen 510 covers the Northern region while Regimen 511 takes care of areas within the jurisdiction of Sematan, Kuching and Sri Aman. Set up on Feb 1, 1980, Regimen 511 is currently co-located at Kem Ria, Kota Sentosa. Presently there are about 3,000 volunteers from both regiments 511 and 510. Recruits are members of the public from all walks of life ranging from the unemployed to CEOs of large corporations. How to qualify as new recruits" To qualify as a volunteer, one must be physically fit and healthy, possesses clear vision and stands at a minimum height of 5" 2"" for men and 5" for women. He or she must be literate in the national language (knowledge of English is a bonus) and the minimum education level of standard 6 is acceptable. Training The numerous training provided are not for the fainthearted. These include the following : 1. Local Training (fortnightly) 2. Advance Training (Twice a year for a period of not less than 7 days) 3. Annual Camp (Once a year for a period of no less than 2 weeks) 4. Basic Recruitment Training 5. Other training (including Potential Officers" Training for a period of no less than 4 weeks) 6. Seminars and courses 7. Shooting training (using live bullets) 8. Compass Reading training All volunteers will be taught on infantry tactics, marching drills and other basic regimental activities The objective is to produce individuals who are more disciplined, responsible, confident and assertive. Allowance All volunteers who undergo training will be paid training allowances based on the duration of their training. As a guideline, the allowance paid for a training period of more than two weeks is equivalent to the full basic pay of any regular army personnel of the same ranking. Promotion Regular promotions are being carried out via the print and electronic media to encourage more to sign up as volunteers. A website will be created by next year to enhance this effort. Regimen 511 is looking at recruiting 1,000 new volunteers each year. To date 758 persons have already enlisted. How to join For enquiries and application form, please contact Sel Pengambilan, Regimen 511 Askar Wataniah, Kem Ria, 93677 Kuching, Tel: 082 612300 ext 3411/3403
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