News

By Nurfaizah Aqilah(IIUM Today)

The PGA Camp conducted at Sungai Gabai, Ulu Langat in Selangor from 28 October until 2 November recently was filled with so much pleasant memories – happiness, sadness and gratefulness.

One of IIUM’s uniform bodies, the Police Undergraduate Voluntary Corps (SUKSIS), had managed to carry out their third camp called PGA Camp there with excellence.

The participants were the trainees of SUKSIS IIUM and also students of IIUM. The total number of participants was 53 trainees from Squad 2018 (23 male and 30 female) with two coaches from SUKSIS IIUM.

PGA Camp or General Operation Force Camp was a camp where the trainees of SUKSIS had to spend six days five nights in the jungle and having a few training or test sessions by the PGA trainers (15 trainers altogether) who were the real forest police.

The camp was created to test and strengthen the trainees’ physical, spiritual and mental endurance. Besides, it was compulsory for the trainees to join to make them ready to become the next generation who can protect and defence our country in the future.

Six days in the jungle without any external connection, surely it’s difficult and uncomfortable for the trainees along with unpleasant weather conditions where the heavy rain and thunder every night, cold, used wet clothes, sleeping in a flooded tent, and spending days without bright sunlight. They faced a lot more challenges in the humid jungle.

Besides all the difficulty they faced, the activities were also challenging their capabilities physically and mentally to make sure all the trainees were more durable and instilling the unity as one team. This is the main reason the trainees were sent to the jungle together as a team. The activities that they did there were:-

1. Physical training for fitness
2. Wire of general motion (Kawad Gerakan Am)
3. Theory and practical classroom reading compass and map
4. Survival night as a team without trainers
5. Tracking-skills, hiking and wire-based.

All the activities were basically playing in the mud, in the river, and also on the hills. The activities were created to make sure the trainees could survive in the jungle, become more disciplined, have a strong sense of identity, a good sense of leadership, also to achieve the main goals of the camp which is to have unity spirits and love towards each other.

A closing ceremony was held on the last day in the jungle and was attended by a guest of honour from IIUM who was SUPP Prof. Dr. Akmal Khuzairy bin Abdul Rahman (Deputy Commander of KOR SUKSIS IIUM), SUPP Shahrizam bin Shari (Deputy Government Servant of 4^th Battalion, PGA Semenyih), DSP Prof. Noor Azlan bin Mohd Noor (Adjuctant of KOR SUKSIS IIUM), Inspector Ahmad Jumaat bin Abdul Karim (Training Officer of KOR SUKSIS IIUM), and all the coaches of KOR SUKSIS IIUM.

SUPP Prof. Dr. Akmal Khuzairy bin Abdul Rahman in his speech said, “Congratulations to all of you. You have done this camp with excellence even with bad weather conditions, some of you are sick and maybe this is your first time having an outside camp, but you managed to finish it with patient, strong will and unity.”

Before he ended his speech, Dr. Akmal Khuzairy added, “I hope this camp activity will make bonding with your team getting stronger, know each other very well, and give you unforgettable memories in your life.”

Nurul Hadirah Ridwana binti Mohd Hisam, one of the participants, who was also the assistant head of the squad, said in her feedback, “I felt that trust and respect are important in a relationship, group or work especially as a squad. Thanks to this camp, we are able to improve in our relationship and teamwork.” ***