Travelling exhibition celebrates National Day Parades
Travelling photo exhibition celebrates Singapore's National Day Parades
The National Heritage Board (NHB) has put together 102 imagesfor a travelling exhibition to remember and celebrate the first 50 years of Singapore's independence.
The photos, which were taken from sources including Singapore Press Holdings and the National Archives of Singapore, trace the evolution of Singapore's National Day Parades (NDP).
Titled 50 Years of National Day Parades, the photo exhibition will be on display from now until Aug 9 at various venues.
Assistant Chief Executive of Policy and Community at NHB Alvin Tan said: "This exhibition shows how NDP is more than just a parade, for it is a reflection of the Singapore story and our shared aspirations as a nation."
The exhibition includes a documentary that features the participants of the first NDP.
One of them is Lieutenant Colonel (Retired) Swee Boon Chai, 70, who led the pioneer contingent at last year's Golden Jubilee celebrations.
His NDP journey started in 1966, the year of Singapore's first NDP.
Then a 20-year-old recruit in the Singapore Armed Forces, he was surprised when he was asked to march in the parade.
In full combat gear, which he says is rare for parades, they marched into the Padang with their AR15 rifles.
"It was the first time the AR15 was shown in public and we felt so honoured that we could showcase to the nation that the Armed Forces are ready.
"When we looked back at snapshots of us marching, we realised we performed quite well, even though (we only had) six weeks of training," LTC (Ret) Swee told The New Paper.
People had mistakenly thought the contingent was made up of commandos or Gurkhas.
PIONEER CONTINGENT
He said: "It was quite funny, but I guess being mistaken as a commando was a good thing... It showed we were doing a good job."
It was a greater surprise when he was asked to coordinate the pioneer contingent for the Golden Jubilee celebration last year.
The pioneer contingent was meant to be made up of men who had taken part in previous parades.
They were to march in the uniforms they had worn in the 1960s and 1970s.
He recalled how the initial response was not promising.
He said: "I panicked, but after the news got around, it was beyond control - everyone wanted to be part of it."
In the end, the contingent was formed in five weeks, and there was even a reserve group of 30 men. He also had to reject some as there were too many people.
Marching past City Hall was a significant moment for LTC (Ret) Swee.
He said: "The applause was thunderous, it was marvellous.
"When I watched the footage on YouTube, I saw all the Cabinet ministers stand up and cheer for us. Even Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam got very excited and waved vigorously at us.
"It was so satisfying... I felt that all my efforts had finally paid off."
He said he hoped people visiting the exhibition will look at the faces in the photos and appreciate the participants' hard work, "because it's not an easy job".
The exhibition will travel from Kallang Wave Mall to the Bedok Public Library on June 20.
It will then move to Velocity@Novena mall and One Raffles Place.
NHB hopes the exhibition will grow and it is inviting members of the public to share their NDP memorabilia.
Interested parties can email NHB_Feedback@nhb.gov.sg with information and images of their memorabilia.
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