By Ryan Chan
Singapore’s Golden Jubilee celebration this year told a story of the nation’s past, present and future, with six chapters – Beginnings, Progress, Strength, Unity, Identity and Onwards – marking the country’s diverse cultures and characteristics that make us uniquely Singaporean.
Present at the celebration were Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Labour MPs (Members of Parliament) NTUC Secretary-General Chan Chun Sing, Deputy Secretary-General Heng Chee How, Assistant Secretaries-General Ang Hin Kee, Patrick Tay, Yeo Guat Kwang and Zainal Sapari.
NTUC Marching Contingent
Kicking off the parade was the much anticipated marching contingents and flypast.
The NTUC marching contingent fronted the line of non-military contingents this year, with Contingent Commander Toh Hock Poh leading our troops as they marched past the dignitaries.
NTUC’s 50-strong contingent this year were from 22 unions, the biggest number of unions’ participation to date.
Majulah Singapura
With a theme of ‘Majulah Singapura’, the parade performers kept the crowd of 26,000 thoroughly entertained with dance items, one of which featured 850 performers coming together to form a mass display of the word ‘Progress’ in the four official languages as it described how Singaporeans continue to progress towards success and move onwards together in unity.
Other segments of the show featured celebrity artistes like Stefanie Sun, Corinne May, JJ Lin and Kit Chan performing iconic theme songs from years past.
To finish off with a bang, fireworks from the Padang and seven surrounding buildings painted the sky in colourful lights of red, green and yellow. As the crowd cheered at the magnificent display, one message we can perhaps take away is that we can look, together as one, towards a brighter future for all.
Source: NTUC This Week
