Flood-affected NS trainees on CNY break can return to camps later - National Service (NS) trainees who want to go home for the Chinese New Year...

Flood-affected NS trainees on CNY break can return to camps later

BALIK PULAU: National Service (NS) trainees who want to go home for the Chinese New Year holiday and are unable to return to camp on time because of the floods can report at a later date.

NS Training Department director-general Datuk Abdul Hadi Awang Kechil also advised trainees in the flood-affected areas to inform their camp management should they need any assistance to return to their respective camps.

"If the trainees are at flood relief centres and the situation is critical, they are allowed to return to camp at a later date," he told reporters after presenting Chinese New Year gifts to 456 NS trainees at the PLKN camp in Seri Mutiara here Tuesday.

Abdul Hadi said there were about 11,000 NS trainees at 30 camps in the five flood-hit states of Johor, Pahang, Malacca, Negri Sembilan and Sabah.

"So far, the flood has only cut off road links from the south to a camp in Tangkak, Muar, but there is an alternative route if parents want to go there to pick up their children," he added.

He said the NS trainees were given leave from Tuesday until Feb 6 to return home for the Chinese New Year holiday.

"The leave is given to allow the Chinese trainees to celebrate the occasion with family members, but the camp is not closed and those who do not want to go home can stay at the camp.

"There will be food, but no training," he added.

He said trainees would have to fork out their own expenses to return home for the Chinese New Year celebration as the camp only arranged for their transportation. - Bernama