http://www.ndp.org.sg/myndpjourney.php
Posted by BG Tan Chuan-Jin on 24th April, 10:30AM <!--
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<!-- @page { margin: 0.79in } P { margin-bottom:
0.08in } --> Until I was 17, NDPs were a little vague to me.
Sure, like the other teenagers, I recalled the rolling tanks and
marching bands and contingents – all which I caught on TV… probably
between mouthfuls of dinner
In fact, like my classmates, we were probably just glad not to
have been called to march at the parade. If not for the Taiwanese
exchange students my JC1 class had to host, I may not even have
been there to watch the whole event.
But there I was in the sweltering heat of the National Stadium,
belting out those stirring 80s National Day songs like “Stand Up
for Singapore” (which I still have a soft spot for today). The mood
was electrifying. And as the fireworks lit up the night sky and we
recited the pledge, I figure that must have been what patriotism
felt like. And I believe that’s what many of my friends felt that
day too. It is what we would call a ‘hair-stand moment’!
But never would I have imagined then that one day, I’d have the
honour organising an NDP, trying to inspire that same pride we
felt, in a new generation of Singaporeans.
So where was this patriotic zeal coming from?
For me, it was not the marching bands and showcase of military
hardware. Rather, it was how all 60,000 plus of us in the stadium
came together to sing our hearts out. And you know what? Those
embarrassing songs may not have been too deep and impressive
dissected, but with the simple words, they made everyone in the
stadium become one people. And we had great fun doing it too!
We
synched as One.
As I soon realised, NDP was a huge complex operation
that needed to be effectively and efficiently run. I understood the
reasons, all of which I believed in and respected. But somehow, if
given a choice, I thought I would rather chiong sua with
my guys.
I probably didn’t quite understand fully why so many people
seemed so excited about sacrificing precious weekends for those
endless rehearsals. Don’t get me wrong. I love my country
deeply and am proud of our National Day. I understand the
importance of the responsibility intellectually, but I guess I just
did not quite associate emotionally with the whole process of
organising NDP itself.
And then
a few things happened that changed my perspective
completely.
On New Year’s Day 2005, I stood at ground zero, surveying the
devastation that the Tsunami had wrecked on the town of Meulaboh,
Aceh in Indonesia. I had been tasked to lead our Humanitarian
Assistance Support Group to help in the disaster and it was the
first time I’d been confronted with such abject loss.
It was surreal. Everything was flattened, the dead entwined with
the collapsed buildings and trees. Bodies scattered about, left
behind by the receding waves. There seemed to be no signs of life
even as the odour of death lingered in the air. I remembered
wondering where do we even start?
But start we did, and we tried to make as much difference as we
could. We managed to help stabilise the situation and after 3
weeks, it was time to make our two-day journey home. I recall
sitting on the upper deck of our LST, RSS Endurance watching the
sunset. There was a quiet sense of sadness, but also of admiration
at the resilience of the human spirit. But most of all, I realised
there and then, how proud I was to be a Singaporean.
It was not simply the outpouring of cash and material support,
or the many volunteers who offered to go over to help. But it was
the manner in which our people rallied round and responded. Our
soldiers, sailors and airmen reached out to help our friends, and
treated the local people with a great deal of respect and
dignity.
There was a lot of heart that went into what the guys did. It
was touching to see them in their No. 4s kicking a football with
the kids at the refugee camp during their rest hour. Or when my
Logistics Officer, LTC Nasir lent a listening ear to a man who was
fishing, not for food, but in the hope of finding something to
remind him of his little girl who was swept away. He had nothing
left and hoped that perhaps he could somehow find a scrap of her
clothes or something to remember her by.
There was a tremendous humanity in our Singaporeans. “Regardless
of race, language or religion”, we acted as one for a fellow being
in need. It is perhaps in times of crisis that one takes a
peek into the heart and soul of a nation.
And I am so proud of what I saw.
And I remember clearly, as I reflected then, it struck me that
the reason we were able to pull off such a large and complex
operation within days was not only because of all the training and
drilling we did in our exercises, it was also because of our being
tasked to organise massive national events like the National Day
Parade. NDPs are real life operations that trained us to plan to
the ‘nth’ degree of detail and to ensure that everything turns out
like clock-work.
And then
Bernard passed away.
COL Bernard Tan collapsed when he was nearing the
end-point of the Singapore Biathlon in 2006. He was only 39 then.
And he was my friend and buddy with whom I grew up together in the
Army. He was my senior at Sandhurst and we studied in London
together. We were Company Commanders in 3 Guards and I had taken
over him as Battalion Commander and then as Brigade Commander. We
were colleagues on the General Staff when he passed away.
Bernard was an outstanding leader who was respected and loved by
his men. And Bernard loved Singapore. He believed in his duties as
a soldier, which was to protect and serve the nation, and he
inspired the people round him to feel the same.
What’s interesting is that Bernard always believed in the
importance of organising NDP. To him, it wasn’t just the challenge
of doing it, but the meaning of it all. In fact, one of his dreams
was to be Chairman NDP EXCO one day – the job I have now.
Why? Just so that he could in his own way, reach out to our
nation and present us all with an opportunity to celebrate what it
meant to be Singapore, and to be Singaporeans. He didn’t see it as
just another event to run. Bernard saw the link in the celebrations
and the rousing of a nation to celebrate the good that we had.
Just to share…Bernard once had a hare-brained idea where we
would set off the Civil Defence sirens and have a magical moment
when the country would come to a halt and recite the pledge
together. He thought it would have been a blast to have the entire
nation affirm our beliefs together, as one, no matter where we were
at the time. We thought he was mad!
But if one thinks about it, our pledge is a symbol of all that
our country stands for. One united people. No matter our colour,
our religious beliefs or language. We say the words...everyday
whilst in school. But do we mean what we say, and say what we
mean?
And so, it all became clear what the task was at hand. As
Commander 3rd Division, Chairman EXCO NDP 09 I share Bernard’s hope
that we can own and reaffirm our vision as a nation. Which will be
why the pledge will form a fundamental part of celebrations this
year. (more of this later…)
But as I’m pulling the NDP ideas together with my team, I’m just
amused at how things pan out in life. How someone like me, who had
been, shall we say, ‘a little’ indifferent towards organising NDPs,
had come to passionately imbibe its significance and purpose so
thoroughly. I guess in large part, my sense of pride in Singapore
and being Singaporean has become very real. And I believe that
regardless of our personal sentiments and perspectives, if we were
to all just take one step back, pause and reflect - there is indeed
much that we all should be proud of.
What a tremendous honour and privilege it is to be part of our
National Day. Together with our friends and partners from both the
public and private sector, we realise that we are not just putting
up a show and parade. To us, it’s not just another NDP, but rather,
a National Day journey for all Singaporeans to come together to
reflect, to own and be part of, and to celebrate all that is good
and great about our country and our people.
And so my journey continues…
