I refer to the Malaysiakini article National Service - the suffering continues.

If only more MPs spoke up in Parliament. The government has claimed that the NS programme is a success because even those who have not been shortlisted are clamouring to join.

If that is really true, then why deprive these eager youths a chance to attend the programme? And if it was really popular, there would be no need to force anyone to join, right?

It would be quite difficult to persuade the present government to emphathise with the suffering of not only the youths who have been chosen but also their parents, many of whom agonise over the safety of their offspring.

Every death is a personal tragedy - not merely a statistic. If the NS programme really fulfilled its objectives, there might be some justification. But does it?

I would think that if the NS programme were withdrawn there would also be suffering - by cronies who would be deprived of lucrative contracts which run into billions of ringgit. Are we promoting loyalty to country or loyalty to cronies?

Or are the military personnel so bored (after all, the country has not engaged in any active combat for years) that they need to run the NS programme?

Indeed, if we really want to promote patriotism and racial harmony among our youths, it would be better to do it in our schools.

Let our young people foster friendship over the years through inter-school extra-curricular programmes. In fact, participation in such activities should be compulsory - not participation in the NS programme (which exempts a huge section of those who are eligible anyway).

Besides, what service does a participant contribute to the nation when he joins the NS (National Service) programme?