PLKN aka program latihan khidmat negara. well, in my time we didn't have this thing yet, so i don't have any experience about this. all my family members also, did not have to attend this programme, except for the youngest one in the family, koe. yes, koe is the PLKN candidate, scheduled to report on 1st January 2012 at Kem Indera Pahlawan, Maran, Pahang. n this bring a lot of headache to him n my family also. hahaha...y so?
koe has not always been in the best condition of health, since he was in 2 or 3 years back. his body cannot endure a tough physical test, as something is bothering with his antibody. (doctor has describe the 'something', but i forgot already). as we all know, PLKN is a military-looked alike programme. there will be a lot of kawad, running, climbing, handling with M16 (personally i found this as quite interesting). and i believe koe himself is eager to gain a new experience, he did mention this to me. but me myself dont think his body can allow that. just imagine, playing futsal with me n bros....he then have a fever for 2 weeks! pity him, as he is a good footballer, n he love sports so much.
but well, not much actually we can do. our doctor is trying hard to get him an excuse, or at least delay it. but it solely depend on the camp commander. just wait and see...Allah will give the solution, and His solution will surely be the best.
ok, let put the story about koe aside. what is PLKN? PLKN is a compulsory 3-month programme for the chosen students that have completed their school at the age of 17 or above. the chosen one will be stationed at various camp all over the country. during the 3-month period, there will be a short break for the students to get back to their home. from what i heard, the usage of handphones is only allowed in weekend. this means the trainees are completely isolated form the outer world.
This PLKN is intended for the construction of personality aims to build and strengthen the spirit of patriotism among the young, ethnic unity and national integration, and also to develop positive character through the values.
The trainees will undergo 4 training module, 1) physical 2) nationalism 3) character building 4) community service. from my research, i found that depending on the camp, the atmosphere is quite good. actually this PLKN thing is a good idea from the government, but i think the implementation is still far from perfection. the government should at first have to ease the worries of the parents regarding to the safety of their child here. there's a lot of news that trainees are bullied by their comrade, or by the trainer. also there's a lot of social problem, even sexual intercourse happened among the trainees. of course the parents will get worried.
and also, since not all the students will be chosen to attend this PLKN, i believe may be the government should form a special committee, just to find out the right candidate for this programme. the right candidates here for me are the students with social problems, and have difficulty to adapt with the society. the risky students (yes we have a lot here) should attend this, and i believe 3 month in training will change them to be a better person.
if i have the right to suggest, w i would like to suggest that they should implement more Islamic module to the training. from what i heard n read, the trainees have to get up early in the morning (at 5) and straight away go the field to kawad. then at 6.30 they will perform solat subuh. is it better if we start the day by remembering Allah? if the morning kawad session is replaced by reciting al-quran, i think it will be great. for a female trainee who conduct a muslimah dress code (u know what i mean), i dont think the physical module suit them well. as the government, u have to protect their faith, and allow them to practice their religion freely.
we have to be firm of what we want our younger generation to be. do we want they to be strong physically, or do we want they to perform their religion well? i opt the second option.
