Cadets undergo rigorous training at camp

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STANDING rigid under the hot sun and trying to keep your composure while aiming your pistol for a perfect shot may be tough.

But 17-year-old Halinah Abdullah managed to calm her nerves to win the .38 Pistol Revolver women’s individual category during the 2011 National Level (northern zone) Police Cadet Core Camping event in Kampar.

The SMK Derma lass from Kangar, Perlis was initially nervous meeting cadets from all over her state as well as Kedah, Penang and Perak but did not let it disturb her concentration.

“I applied what I had learned since Form One when I joined the Cadet Police uniform unit in my school.

“I controlled my breathing and made sure I had a good posture and stance,” she said.

With pride: Police cadets marching during the closing ceremony of the Northern Zone National Level Police Cadet Core Camping 2011.

Relating her experience at the camp, Halinah said the cadets shared their experiences, interests and learned teamwork.

Together with 271 other participants, she spent five days and four nights going through obstacle courses, marching, firearms training, and navigational and cultural training.

The participants were later required to compete against each other in teams.

State deputy police chief Senior Asst Comm Datuk Zakaria Yusof, who was present during the closing ceremony, said the programme trained the participants to be more disciplined while helping them understand the importance of teamwork.

“I’m sure they had also learned values, which they could not learn from reading books alone,” he said in his speech.

He added that interest in the core had increased over the years.

“We have about 105,000 members to date as compared to 1,906 members when the core was first established in 1970,” he said.