The 8/13 Riot of Singapore has inadvertently opened two school of thoughts for the effectiveness of the local police officers vis-s-vis the Gurkhas Mercenary Force stationed here since the end of WW2.
Our local policemen are all are Singapore citizens, well-versed with the people and are also highly schooled.
The Gurkhas on the other hand are from villages high in the mountains, hence rough and tough, unlettered and small and short in built. many are good sportsmen the SPF officers becos most of the times they are free to pursue these activities unlike the local SPF officers who have long hours to work.
As mentioned earlier,the Gurkhas had been in Singapore since the end of the Second World War when the Sikh Contingent at Pearls Hill Barracks was disbanded.
By and large the majority of the "Gorkhas" (correct name of their village and not race) are from the same village where they were first recruited by the British. After the war they had and still serve the Indian Army, Brunei and Britain. Many of them have no jobs back in Nepal.
Besides the majority Gorkhas, there are also many other Nepalese like them from different villages with surnames like Gurung, Thapa, Bahadur, Tamang, etc....
However, the Gurkhas of today (my past experience) are of no match to the older ones that first came here. The old generation were a truly loyal and devoted lot, whereas the new ones are quite undisciplined and womanisers - Filipinas au-pairs here are their favourites. See them in Geylang Hotel on Sundays. Many taxi drivers tells me about how the Filipinas fleeces them. This is a security-threat for none knows which Filipina maybe a "sparrow".
After the riot, the Gurkhas have been praised highly by our young in-experienced reporters from the Straits Times, whereas the local policemen have not even be cited. Names like crack Gurkha unit, etc, was used for the Gurkhas and not for the local policemen, many of who are prepared to lay down their life for the well-being of all of us.
The Gurkhas on the other hand are armed security guards deployed at homes of VIPs, MAS, prisons etc... The entire compound at Joo Seng Road is reserved for them and their families.
The Straits Times owe an apology to the local policemen for they did the best and to the best of their ability. They handled the situation better.
Lastly, I remember the Gurkhas for their cowardice and blindly following the orders of the late General Dyer at the Jalianwala Bagh Incident in Amritsar (shown in the movie GANDHI), where they murdered thousands of women, children and old men.
I don't call these mountain men professionals. Just a bunch of mercenaries who will immediately take the side of any other person who pays them higher.
That is not the case with our local policemen. So I salute them for the good work done.
Our local policemen are all are Singapore citizens, well-versed with the people and are also highly schooled.
The Gurkhas on the other hand are from villages high in the mountains, hence rough and tough, unlettered and small and short in built. many are good sportsmen the SPF officers becos most of the times they are free to pursue these activities unlike the local SPF officers who have long hours to work.
As mentioned earlier,the Gurkhas had been in Singapore since the end of the Second World War when the Sikh Contingent at Pearls Hill Barracks was disbanded.
By and large the majority of the "Gorkhas" (correct name of their village and not race) are from the same village where they were first recruited by the British. After the war they had and still serve the Indian Army, Brunei and Britain. Many of them have no jobs back in Nepal.
Besides the majority Gorkhas, there are also many other Nepalese like them from different villages with surnames like Gurung, Thapa, Bahadur, Tamang, etc....
However, the Gurkhas of today (my past experience) are of no match to the older ones that first came here. The old generation were a truly loyal and devoted lot, whereas the new ones are quite undisciplined and womanisers - Filipinas au-pairs here are their favourites. See them in Geylang Hotel on Sundays. Many taxi drivers tells me about how the Filipinas fleeces them. This is a security-threat for none knows which Filipina maybe a "sparrow".
After the riot, the Gurkhas have been praised highly by our young in-experienced reporters from the Straits Times, whereas the local policemen have not even be cited. Names like crack Gurkha unit, etc, was used for the Gurkhas and not for the local policemen, many of who are prepared to lay down their life for the well-being of all of us.
The Gurkhas on the other hand are armed security guards deployed at homes of VIPs, MAS, prisons etc... The entire compound at Joo Seng Road is reserved for them and their families.
The Straits Times owe an apology to the local policemen for they did the best and to the best of their ability. They handled the situation better.
Lastly, I remember the Gurkhas for their cowardice and blindly following the orders of the late General Dyer at the Jalianwala Bagh Incident in Amritsar (shown in the movie GANDHI), where they murdered thousands of women, children and old men.
I don't call these mountain men professionals. Just a bunch of mercenaries who will immediately take the side of any other person who pays them higher.
That is not the case with our local policemen. So I salute them for the good work done.
