To clarify the question that everyone is asking:
As a reservist officer, I hold the position of S1 in a NS battalion. Would I follow orders to open fire against fellow Singaporeans? Would I follow orders to assist in overthrowing a democratically elected government? The answer is no. However, I can tell you that many of the people who serve alongside me as reservists would not share this view. They would be too fearful of disobeying orders. They would just look out for their self-interest and try to "cover their ass". They do not even question whether something is right or wrong -- they just assume that if someone in authority gave the order, it must be right.
For instance, I knew of a 3SG who was asked by his RSM to cover up some corrupt dealings. The RSM would issue an order saying that all companies must return their printer toners to his office once they expired, and that if they failed to do so, they would not receive any new toners and would have to find their own way to get by without any ink. There is nothing wrong with this ruling, it is merely what one would call a "one-for-one exchange" policy. In fact, one can justify this by saying that it helps to conserve the environment through recycling, etc.
However, the RSM was collecting these used printer toners and then selling it to his friend who owns a stationery/office supplies company. For each toner, he can collect as much as $30. The 3SG told me that over the course of a year, the RSM collected more than 100 toners, and therefore earned more than $3000 which he pocketed himself. In fact, the RSM even used the money to treat the 3SG to an expensive seafood meal.
The 3SG did not even question the ethics of this. He simply obeyed the RSM's order and even personally assisted to ensure that all company clerks dutifully handed in their used toner cartridges to the RSM. He felt that if he went against this order, he would be punished. In fact, he said that the RSM could give him extra duties or even charge him for insubordination if he didn't comply!!
This is the true state of affairs in the SAF. I was a regular for 4 years. I know how things work on the ground.
Therefore I can tell you that while NOT ALL soldiers/officers would be willing to shoot Singaporeans or participate in a coup, there would definitely be SOME (the majority!!) who would just blindly follow orders. It doesn't matter what their views are (if they even have any).
As for the points raised about logistics of transporting tanks, weapons etc -- that didn't stop the CCP leaders did it?? They managed to mobilise the army to crush the civilian protests in a matter of days. It certainly did not take them a few years to mobilise the troops.
