Auxiliary Police Officers Going Beyond The Call of Duty

A quiet Sunday morning on 14 November 2021 was disrupted by a deafening crash. A car had overturned near some bollards outside the Parliament House. Without hesitation, Staff Sergeant (APF) Mohammad Bin Jamaludin, an Auxiliary Police Officer (APO) from Certis CISCO Security Pte Ltd who was on duty at the nearby Supreme Court sprang into action. He was the first to arrive at the scene of the road traffic accident. He noticed that a driver was stuck in his car while a passenger was pinned under it!

“My instinct was to immediately rescue the trapped driver,” Staff Sergeant (APF) Mohammad recalled.

Three other APOs from Certis, Sergeant (APF) Toh Jia Hong Jackson, Sergeant (APF) Kaliyaperumal Paramasivam and Corporal (APF) Low Zhi Hao, also stepped forward to help.

^{More than a dozen people stepping forward to lift the car. [Credit: The Straits Times]}

“I was the second person to arrive at the scene and there were already several members of public trying to lift the overturned vehicle to free the trapped casualties. A few others were attending to the other casualties. I was informed that someone had already called for an ambulance. After assessing the situation, I directed the traffic flow at the junction. I focused on keeping the vehicular traffic away from the accident scene, as much as possible, so as to aid the ambulance’s access,” said Corporal (APF) Hanis Bin Harun, another APO who was also on duty at the Supreme Court at the time of the incident.

Sergeant (APF) Jackson, who was on duty at the Parliament House that day, freed a casualty who was pinned under the overturned car with the combined efforts of other members of public. Sergeant (APF) Kaliyaperumal and Corporal (APF) Low, together with Corporal (APF) Hanis next conducted checks to ensure that there were no further casualties. Thereafter, they managed a large crowd of onlookers. The casualties were subsequently conveyed to hospital by SCDF ambulances.

About a week after the incident, the five APOs were each awarded the SCDF Community Lifesaver Award (CLA) for their swift and courageous acts, with instinct borne from years of service on the job.

^{[From left to right] CPL (APF) Low Zhi Hao, CPL (APF) Hanis Bin Harun, COL Shaiful Herman Bin Shali, Commander, 1st SCDF Division HQ, SGT (APF) Kaliyaperumal Paramasivam, SSGT (APF) Mohammad Bin Jamaludin, SGT (APF) Toh Jia Hong Jackson.}

“The award came as a surprise as I was not expecting any recognition or commendation because I did what I had to do,” Staff Sergeant (APF) Mohammad said. “In fact, my family did not even know about this accident until the award ceremony was reported in the news!”

“As an APO, it is our duty to not just maintain the security of a premises but to also ensure public safety. When such a crisis arose, there was really no time to be anxious but to respond quickly and assist those in danger to the best of our ability,” said Sergeant (APF) Jackson, who also mentioned how touched he was to witness so many members of public stepping forward to lend their helping hands.

Sergeant (APF) Jackson further remarked, “Usually there would be many people just standing around to take videos or photographs of an accident scene, but not this time. Some of the passers-by who came forward to help even attended to the casualties all the way until the arrival of the SCDF ambulances and paramedics.”

When asked about their key motivation in responding to the accident, CPL (APF) Hanis replied, “I feel that being able to positively contribute to the community is what kept me going.”

“In fact, I do not have to be in this blue uniform to help others. We are equipped with basic first aid skills and we know how to use the Automated External Defibrillator (AED). So, as responsible citizens, lending a helping hand should go beyond our call of duty as Auxiliary Police Officers,” Corporal (APF) Hanis added.