Ong Ye Kung finds his NS buddy nearly 40 years after they leant on each other to survive BMT
Paired because they shared the same birthday, the two “chill” recruits lost touch after three months together. Their reunion in On The Red Dot brings back memories of hardship, friendship and opportunities they wished they had seized.
When Health Minister Ong Ye Kung was 18 years old in 1987, he dreaded National Service (NS) enlistment. His older brother had shared negative experiences, which made Ong believe NS would be very tough. However, Ong was an athlete and could perform most exercises, despite a slight medical condition of eczema that made showering uncomfortable.
He did not enjoy the swearing and his memory of BMT was a mix of hardship and enjoyable moments such as cleaning his rifle. Ong and his BMT buddy, Eric Sim, shared the same birthday and were paired together based on their birthdays. They slept in the same bunks, with Ong on top and Sim below. The two were not overachievers and were content to play their part as team members.
After three months of BMT, they lost touch and it was a long-awaited reunion for them in On The Red Dot's series, Finding.
Written by urgent.news from CNA - Singapore's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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