Rumours and accusations about the circumstances surrounding the death of full-time National Serviceman and Guardsman-in-training Dave Lee are still circulating WhatsApp and Facebook.

These have triggered statements of concern and calls for formal investigation issued by Lee's aunts:

The Singapore Armed Forces did not respond to these accusations, claims of misconduct or negligence -- until now.

Ministerial statement

In a ministerial statement in Parliament on Thursday afternoon, May 17, Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen made a few points regarding the ongoing investigation.

This was done in a bid to address concerns on the part of the public that his ministry has not been transparent or forthcoming with their findings of the facts of what happened.

Here's what he said in summary:

1. SAF has not had any death from heat stroke since 2009, although heat injuries do happen, and everyone knows what to do

Minister Ng said the SAF has incorporated clinical practice guidelines such as:

• mandatory water parades before, during and after training activities

• pre-training temperature taking — soldiers with temperatures above 37.5°C are not allowed to train

• rest periods at appropriate intervals to allow soldiers to cool down when recorded ambient temperatures exceed certain levels during training

He said commanders and soldiers are reminded to always be on the lookout for signs of heat injury during training.

On-site cooling measures are always taken in the event of heat injury — removing a soldier's clothes and applying ice or water to his body.

Ng added that SAF medical centres even have custom-built evaporative body cooling units for this purpose, and above all, all soldiers — NSFs, NSmen, commanders and regulars alike — know from their own experience that these practices are consistently carried out.

2. Investigation processes are independent of the SAF

Ng stressed that after every training-related death, independent and impartial investigative processes will determine the key facts, arrive at appropriate conclusions and the SAF will then take corrective measures that can include punishment where necessary.

Ng said prosecutions of SAF servicemen in criminal courts are based on independent police investigations, and when the Attorney-General's Chambers decide there are sufficient grounds for prosecution.

He added this happened in the case of the 2003 drowning of Guards sniper trainee Hu Enhuai, where two years later, the officers involved in his death were sentenced to prison of between six and 12 months.

In the case of the 2012 death of 20-year-old Tan Mou Sheng, when the officer who appointed a serviceman who did not have a licence to drive a jeep that overturned during an exercise and killed Tan, was jailed for six months.

The SAF, Ng said, fully accepts the judicial process, deeming them necessary to achieve and maintain a zero-fatality training safety system.

3. COI and police will fully investigate accusations made against Dave Lee's commanders

In his statement, Ng also acknowledged that accusations were made against the late Lee's commanders — the WhatsApp message that was posted to Facebook and shared by Lee's aunts in calling for the truth to be made clear being one of them.

He said these accusations will be fully investigated by the Committee of Inquiry as well as the police, to properly establish the facts, and if there has been wrongdoing, the SAF will get to the bottom of it and it will be dealt with accordingly.

Ng said he was unable to share further information on the ongoing investigation as it has yet to be completed.

After the police complete their investigation to the satisfaction of the state coroner, the latter will take it up in an inquiry in the manner that the late Dominique Sarron Lee's was as well, back in 2012.

4. COI findings will be made public by external review panel

A little-known but new initiative on the part of the SAF is the formation of a panel of nine independent safety experts and professionals known as the External Review Panel on SAF Safety (ERPSS) back in 2013, following the release of the COI investigation's findings into Lee's death.

The ERPSS is tasked with studying the SAF's safety systems and protocol through visits to their camps and operational facilities to understand fully how things are done and highlight areas for improvement, but Ng says it will now also, in the event of investigations into the death of national servicemen, lend one of its members to the COIs looking into training-related deaths.

The Panel will also examine the COI's findings and make public the relevant information from them.

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A second one was formed since July last year, and it is this panel that will be looking at the findings from the COI convened to investigate Dave Lee's death.

Ng said in his speech that it will provide a written report on the COI's findings, which will be made public.

Top photos via YouTube screenshot, Facebook file