I want to make solutions to improve the service of soldiers regardless of their military rank or position. I will focus on the rules and “fools” that have been in operation in our army for decades, e.g. judging soldiers," says Paweł Mateńczuk “Naval”. A erstwhile GROM soldier became a typical of the Defence Minister for military service conditions.
Armed Poland: A fewer weeks ago, you became a national defence minister for military service. What will the erstwhile GROM military unit operator do in the MON?
Paweł Mateńczuk “Naval”: This is simply a immense challenge for me, especially since so far there has been no typical of the Minister for Terms of Service in Poland. My aim is to improve the situation of the Polish Army soldier in respective aspects. I besides want to change the image of a soldier in the eyes of society, but besides in the eyes of the uniforms themselves. My intention is to treat the military as an expert, as individual who is expected to work 25 years of his life in a given industry.
At least 25 years...
That's it. Let us look at the civilian market: if we have a specialist in any field, then a man, working according to his education and competence, can change companies, but at the same time proceed to work in his industry. This is impossible for a soldier. Military ties to an army contract and we presume it will service until retirement. In addition, we anticipate a soldier to not work as much as he served. This means that he should be full active in his duties, feel his vocation and feel that he is carrying out a certain mission. In short, he should be willing to work and execute duties. But that's not all. The uniform is to be ready to sacrifice in defence of the homeland., we anticipate him to train and take part in hard activities whether in the country or abroad. And this involves the hazard of failure of wellness or life.
And here's the occupation for the attorney. I want to support the soldiers so that they don't get burned out and know that the state is behind them. I'll effort to bridge the factors and situations that make After a fewer years, soldiers quit their service. At the minute and the current legal state (I will say that the law is applied in many respects as in peace, but we in the border region are faced with actions that appear to be open-ended armed conflict) this is simply a major challenge. In many morale soldiers, we have fallen virtually to zero, and unfortunately, from this level we gotta work on cognitive resilience.
What's on your precedence list?
I want to work out solutions to improve the regular service of soldiers. I will focus especially on the regulations and matters called "fools" by me, which have been in the army since the People's Polish Army. Unfortunately, we have quite a few regulations that are not adapted to changes in Poland. I'm reasoning of a generational, mental, or technological change. You can't compare a conscript from 30 years ago with a man who present decides to service in the army. You can't anticipate soldiers to be programmed machines, doing mindlessly orders, present we have a different social consciousness than thirty, 50 or a 100 years ago.
What “fools” are you talking about?
I can't name everything due to the fact that our conversation would last forever. 1 of them is judging soldiers. In my opinion, this strategy has no realisation. If individual hits the mark on the range, doesn't that mean they're gonna shoot their opponent at 5 or three? The same goes for tactics. Can you know the tactics on 5 or three? There should be zero-one thinking: individual scores or does not score, knows or cannot. I'm guessing there's gonna be voices that'll lower the training in the army. But this is not about lowering standards, but alternatively about stopping fooling ourselves.
Another issue is to change the yearly assessment of soldiers. Why can only commanders justice their subordinates? Why don't we turn it around, just as it is in business, so that both the subordinates have the right to justice their superiors. If the Private is an expert in a given field, he should besides have the right to express his opinion, including the superiors and the strategy in which he serves.
It's a bit like the maxim I heard years ago about peculiar troops: not the quantity, but the quality, not the equipment, but the people...
That's right. I want a soldier to take the central place in the Polish Army. I want the soldiers to see themselves that way and treat themselves as a key component of the army. However, judging by the letters I get from the military, I have quite a few work to do. I'll give you an example of the soldiers who defender our east border. Every day they face hostile migrantsAnd at the same time, they inactive gotta remember about... constantly honoring their superiors. Isn't that ridiculous?! possibly individual will think I'm in charge of the small things, but I've noticed a fewer twelve people. I would add that in many wars it never gave its honour to the commanders, due to the fact that then the snipers knew who they were to "hunt". The military itself must realize that there are more crucial things in combat than a drill.
Some would call these plans "concrete crumbling".
'Cause it's kind of like that. any behaviors and mechanisms do not conform to present times and conditions. The another thing is that many of the problems that soldiers study to me, no one's bent on. But I'm gonna do it. And I assure you, any soldier of any rank has the right to talk and to be heard.
Will you be more afraid with the morale of soldiers or more about logistics?
First of all, on morale. I want the soldiers not to be discouraged, weary and powerless. And this happens, among others, due to irrational regulations in regulations, and this frequently leads to the decision to resign from further service.
What image of the army is painted in society and among soldiers erstwhile we hear The police are arresting soldiers for their actions? I was experiencing a akin situation on a mission in Afghanistan erstwhile soldiers were detained in connection with Nangar Khel. I think the emotions that were accompanied by the soldiers were akin to what was happening today.
I would like to point out that regardless of the result of the prosecution's proceedings, due to the fact that we don't know the details, I think the way to halt soldiers as shots at the border was – in my opinion – inappropriate.
How countering military departures?
First of all, we gotta start by creating professional career path for soldiers of each corps. This will aid the soldiers to have a future and to make in the ministry. In the U.S. Army, which we set as a model in Poland so often, the soldier knows what he will do in five, 10 or 15 years. In the Polish Army it is simply a large unknown.
Many soldiers to the service besides discourage the discretion of superiors in sending them to various courses and trainings. And I think that should change too. I callback that 80 percent of my colleagues selection for peculiar troops I was on sick leave. It couldn't have been otherwise due to the fact that their commanders refused leave. They wanted to make it hard for good soldiers to leave the unit. present it's a small better, but there's inactive something to change in regulations. I know cases where very good soldiers are hampered by improvement and promotion, while they are promoted and directed towards additional courses and training for those who are uncomfortable and want to get free of them. It gives emergence to frustration.
The Polish army has changed. Soldiers make better money, have at their disposal very good equipment and weapons.
Yes, a lot has indeed changed, but there are inactive areas to be addressed. We invested in equipment.And we forgot to invest in people. erstwhile I trained managers and business people, I found that for any good wages mean little than good work atmosphere and the anticipation of individual development. This should be a lesson to the army. In order not to lose professionals, we should take care of morale and the conditions of service.
I wonder to what degree your ideas will be implemented.
Of course, I can't do anything myself. As a typical of the minister, I can only find the problem, diagnose it, and then present it to the minister. The head of the Defence Ministry will then talk to the HR General Staff to improve the situation.
Nor will I act alone. I will lead the office that will be created by erstwhile professional soldiers and soldiers in active service. I am building a squad of experts from various types of armed forces and types of troops, representatives of different corps. We will take care of the business problems of men and women, privates, enlisted officers and officers, twenty- and fifty-year-olds. Because, like I said, everyone matters to us.
How can you contact the office today?
So far, soldiers scope me privately, e.g. through social media accounts. But that's about to change. Within a period an email address will be created to which soldiers will be able to anonymously signal problems and ideas for better service. For now I encourage readers to study their problems through the Armed Poland, for example in the form of comments under this article.
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Paweł Mateńczuk “Naval”, erstwhile GROM military unit operator, mission associate in Lebanon, Iraq and Afghanistan. Trainer, author of many books and articles.
