It was recently reported that the budget of RM500 million for the National Service programe is now not adequate. But to date, no numbers have been published on how this RM500 million amount has been derived.

Since taxpayers' monies are not inexhaustible, perhaps someone in charge can come up with better numbers than the following, which I have estimated to be a workable budget for the scheme [see table below].

We have been told not to speculate so much on a scheme that has encountered numerous problems from the word go. Yet, all we get are poor excuses for serious incidents of misbehaviour, crime and victimisation that have taken place at NS camps, all in the cause of nation-building.

To those implementing this NS scheme, you are 12 years too late as our teenagers at 18 are already too old to be taught to respect themselves, let alone respect others. As a parent of four children aged from 16 to 26, I doubt that if you have not taught them anything about values since childhood, how can you expect to teach them anything in three months?

Perhaps the NS should be modified so that parents and children who create problems in our society such as gangsterism and bullying are placed in camps together to learn how to function properly as a family.

This should also apply to those who abandon their families and create single-parent families. This way, parents can also ensure that their children are not subject to the whims of unscreened trainers.

But back to the financing for NS.

According to my calculations, the overall budget for NS should not exceed RM507.9 million per year, and this includes loan repayment of RM120 million for the construction of 40 camps, each costing RM10 million. As not all the camps were constructed, the overall budget should be closer to RM400 million.

Details of breakdown based on 85,000 trainees plus 2,125 trainers (ratio of 40/1) equals 87,125.