EVER READY TO PROTECT THE NATION
Besides defending nation’s sovereignty, MAF also assists govt agencies in times of crisis
THE Roman strategist and General Publius Flavius Vegetius Renatus once said, “Si vis pacem, para bellum”, which loosely translates to “If you want peace, prepare for war”. The current situation in Malaysia is reminiscent of a warlike condition; the enemy is unseen, and the effect on society, and the security of the nation, hang in the balance with the threat of civil unrest and pandemonium looming, if mishandled.
Recently, comments were made on social media questioning if there was a need for the Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) to be involved in Movement Control Order-related tasks. This article aims to set the record straight pertaining to the role of the MAF in the current pandemic and it intends to explain in detail the MAF’s role in assisting the Royal Malaysia Police and the Health Ministry, leveraging on its diverse set of expertise, capability and capacity.
However, a caveat of confidentiality applies when discussing the MAF’s actual capacity and capability for obvious reasons. The MAF comprises a myriad of expertise meant to be self-sustaining in times of war. It has to be able to conduct its operations at a moment’s notice using its own manpower and equipment, under every conceivable scenario. The MAF, in fact, has the components of almost all federal ministries within its own organisation, fanned out among the units of its three services and the many corps or regiments within the army itself.
These include a fully capable and functional Medical Corps, Intelligence Corps, Engineering Corps (with an embedded chemical, biological, radioactive and nuclear explosives capability) and many others, apart from its airborne and seaborne force. It has the ability to quickly reach every corner of the country under its own control and authority, and does not have to rely on any federal ministry to provide this support. The MAF did not acquire these capabilities by chance.
This evolution is the result of experience gained since independence through operations conducted and extensive collaborations with friendly military forces over the decades. The MAF continuously strives to keep itself abreast with the demands of current scenarios and threat environments. While the optimal and desired level of capability has yet to be achieved, the MAF maximises whatever expertise it has to attain the desired results to ensure that the trust given to it by the people is always preserved.
When the Chief of Defence Force (CDF) General Tan Sri Affendi Buang declared to the media that the MAF was ready to assist the police in enforcing the MCO, as well as support the Health Ministry through its Medical Corps, many naysayers missed the key phrase in his statement — “to assist and support”. The MAF’s primary role has always been, and will always be, to defend the sovereignty and integrity of national borders and its interests through the effective use of its resources, a role it continues to play, regardless of the circumstances prevailing within the nation.
However, many a time, the MAF has been called in to assist and augment other government agencies in curtailing or managing internal crises as they arise. One clear example was the Sungai Kim Kim chemical contamination incident in March last year. While the Environment and Water Ministry assumed primary responsibility for the crisis, the MAF’s Chemical, Biological, Radioactive and Nuclear Explosives (CBRNe) element from 12 Rejimen Askar Jurutera DiRaja (RAJD) and Medical Corps were expeditiously deployed to assist in containing the area, conducting necessary clean-up operations and providing medical care to those in the vicinity, as needed.
The reason for this is simple: when the MAF deploys its troops for a particular task, it deploys lock, stock and barrel its entire capability — the whole nine yards. Every relevant capability is brought to the afflicted area to assist in completing the task. The MAF has, at its disposal, every equipment necessary to handle these situations, including hightech detection equipment and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). There is also no need to hire transportation as the MAF has its own array of heavy loaders and movers either by land, sea or air.
It functions as one entity with a single chain of command, easing the decision-making process and avoiding bureaucratic hurdles because the orders come directly from the CDF. Even so, the MAF will always remain within its own set of responsibilities and will not override the jurisdiction of another process owner.
During the Sungai Kim Kim pollution episode, the MAF never took the lead as it was under the purview of another ministry. The MAF went in, did the job it was assigned, and left when it was no longer needed.