The hon member would like me to take the House into my confidence, and I will endeavour to do so to the extent that it is possible without breaching current procedures which are before the courts right now.
The morale of the soldiers, I believe, is probably as good as we can have it in the Defence Force. When we got into the Defence Force, as this new administration, we were aware of a simmering unhappiness especially over the conditions of service and the salaries of soldiers. This I committed myself to attending to when I addressed the National Assembly on the occasion of the presentation of my Budget Vote to the National Assembly, and I committed myself to attending to the matter of the Defence Force.
I also committed to the Defence Force that we would create a different environment for the Defence Force that was conducive to the maximum utilisation of personnel and ensuring that we have the kind of discipline that we require of the Defence Force.
We have subsequently established a defence military commission. The commission has concluded its first phase, which is to recommend to us what we can do about the conditions of service in the Defence Force. In the first week of December they handed their recommendations to us, which were given to the President as Commander in Chief. We have since accepted the recommendations and increased the salaries of the soldiers, in some cases almost threefold. By the time our soldiers went on their Christmas holiday, they were probably happier than most Members of Parliament.
We are extremely grateful that the commission could do this, because it made it possible for us to redress a problem that probably had been simmering for years in the Defence Force.
With regard to what has happened to those members who showed the ultimate ill discipline, we have taken the necessary disciplinary steps and the matter is before the courts. Thank you.