Speech by Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen at the National Day Parade 2014 Appreciation Function

Good evening everyone.

Tonight is a very simple occasion to say thank you. And it's a thank you because everything went well. Not quite. There will always be minor hiccups but let me tell you that the feeling all of us get, myself included Organising chairman is himself more relieved than anyone in NDP because he knows what can go wrong, so I think this year's NDP was a resounding success and if you think about it, the NDP has become for Singaporeans, a signature event. Just imagine National Day without NDP, not possible right? Something drastic would have happened and I would say that after 49 years of nation building, Singaporeans look forward to celebrating National Day. It is not as if all countries celebrate National Day in a bigger way than we do. So then the NDP is a signature event for all Singaporeans. Many Singaporeans overseas celebrate it, they send back clips, they specially meet among themselves, so it brings together Singaporeans here and overseas, all races and religions. Each year, we use the time to affirm what we believe, and because we have younger Singaporeans who were born, breed in a Singapore which is very different from our founding days, we use it to highlight what we achieved together, our humble beginnings, celebrate our everyday heroes, to dedicate ourselves to a better future and a brighter future for Singapore.

So whether you are at the parade, watching it at home or from overseas, I think it will be fair to say that during the particular scene where the Chinooks bring the flag, accompanied by the Apache helicopters, Singaporeans feel a sense of pride looking at our flag across the sky. When it is time to say the national pledge or sing the national anthem, there is a resonance that Singaporeans feel. We are very different from what we were 49 years ago at our founding and we use this time to affirm the values and convictions, with which our pioneers founded this nation. We want those values and convictions to anchor us as we strive towards a better Singapore. Now I am saying all this and recognising that next year's NDP Organising Chairman will say " wah jia lat" really. Yu Han is already done with his job. Next year's NDP, NDP 2015, already we are saying "you should do this you should do that." The pressures are mounting. Just imagine if you are the organising chairman next year, it is a tough call. But every year, I will tell you, it gets harder because we succeed. And it's hard because within a two-hour show, you have to get Singaporeans from all walks of life, to feel that it is a day worth celebrating, to come together to affirm these convictions, to come together as one and have the emotional high. We have different shows during National Day - we have the NE show, remember the NE rehearsal; that is good because kids will scream at anything. I had the luxury to decide when I stand in for the President but the Speaker gets the hardest time because she gets NDP Preview and you adults, you are so crack a joke you don't laugh. So Speaker gets a hard time and we can see the difference between a Primary 5 group and NDP Preview. For one, the decibels come down during the NDP Preview. People are very, very stiff. But by all accounts, and I will tell you that before any NDP show there is always a question mark. Will it work? Will everything go according to plan, to timings and so on. But by all accounts, NDP 2014 succeeded in all these goals that I talked about.

And I think, as I reflect, there were many reasons why NDP 2014 succeeded in both small and big ways. Well one reason was of course our Red Lion Shirley finally got to jump. How many of you remember what happened last year? It was aborted. So you, you were watching at home or watching at the floating platform, you look and wait for helicopters. My commanders were watching clouds and seeing whether the clouds obscure... You think it is okay that they can just jump out of the helicopter and just go through the clouds. But if they go through the clouds they might land straight somewhere else like on top of your house if they don't see where they are jumping into. So we have to have visibility. This year there were clouds, there were moments we thought we would cancel it, but we felt that it was good enough and we could see and the 'go' signal was given, so Shirley finally got to jump and you can imagine and as you saw, she received loud cheers as she landed. I think people were cheering beyond what Shirley had accomplished. They were really cheering for what women in Singapore can and have achieved. There was also another first, we had friends from MINDS. These are special kids and the fact that they could march to the beat, drum to the beat, and be disciplined week after week was an amazing fact. This is the first time we included them. They didn't break ranks; they trained very hard and people liked the idea because it showed how groups at society's fringe need to be brought into mainstream, not only because it enriches our society as a whole, but because those at the fringes should be at the centre of society as well.

NDP 2014 catered to varying tastes - there was a military tattoo and the big brass ensembles. I especially liked the twirling martinets and for those of you who watched the show, many people thought Big Island was a new song. I thought it was a new song. But it is actually a song that Dick composed 20 years ago, just that it was remixed and with a bigger beat but it worked.

Above all, NDP 2014 succeeded because of your passion and commitment. When I visited the participants at the rehearsals, I remember it was during Ramadan, the whole month of Ramadan. And both young and old people were fully energised. Our Muslim colleagues were fasting but without any hint of flagging spirits. I know that at each NDP, including this year's, some of you encountered family difficulties because it was across a four to five month period and there were life events that occurred. I have Mr Zamri Sani, who is from the Swiber contingent, and his two sons, Haffeq and Shazmeer. They cheered one another on as they went through the rehearsals, through the fasting. We have Mr Khairullizam bin Omar from MINDS. He played the Taiko drums despite the fact that he is diabetic and he has to battle it every day. We have Mdm Tamilselvi Rita. She is a student from ITE College West and she was our oldest crowd motivator. She's 49. Mr Alan Soh from PAYM*. He is hearing impaired, but he executed the parade drills to perfection. And 14 year-old Zheng Si En, who always wanted to go on NDP finally got her chance. Examples like this.

People liked the mood, the music and the drama. Dick Lee, Sydney Tan and Boo Jun Feng did their magic whether it was through song, dance or videos. They helped us believe that Singapore can indeed be bigger than we are. We had many rehearsals and we came together to look at the show and critically asked if it would work. After one of the rehearsals, the organising committee and the show directors wanted that segment to be one which people would spontaneously sing. I thought that it was a tall order because to get Singaporeans to sing spontaneously may be a difficult job. I knew on the actual day that NDP 2014 was a success because not only were people singing, they were waving their lights synchronously and some even stood up to dance. So that was a moment I thought, well, this year we succeeded.

This year's NDP succeeded because it connected with Singaporeans emotionally. Singaporeans re-lived our past, felt more alive that day, and found renewed hope for tomorrow.

There was an outpouring of national expression after the show. Over 40,000 photos and videos were posted on Instagram and people said why they felt this small island called Singapore is home. There was a record number of 84,000 likes on our NDP Facebook page. I think one particular person Mr Isaac Jon Feng posted it and summed it up for all of us and he said, "This year's celebration hit all the right notes. It is all about people, how everyone is valuable and has a part to contribute. This is home truly!"I want to thank you, each of you for all your hard work and sacrifice and your sponsorship, whether you are participants, volunteers, partners or organising committee. I know it is very hard work, 16 weeks and more of weekends. Every week giving it up. And I know that for many, they want to come back. They tell me their personal reward is knowing that they had a part in touching the hearts of many Singaporeans and giving Singapore a wonderful 49 th birthday present. And that's your reward too.

So tonight's dinner is a simple gesture to say a big thank you. I know all of you worked very hard. I would also like to thank all our corporate and individual sponsors for your generous support towards NDP and I look forward to all your continued support towards the parade in the years ahead. The NDP would not have been possible without your energy, without your passion and commitment, so thank you very much.*People's Association Youth Movement