SINGAPORE - Ground-up efforts by Singaporeans in the past year - cooking meals for the needy and translating vital Covid-19 updates for others, and more - exemplified Total Defence efforts that will help Singapore overcome and emerge stronger from the pandemic, said Senior Minister of State for Defence Zaqy Mohamad on Monday (Feb 15).
Speaking at the Total Defence Day 2021 commemoration event at the Singapore Discovery Centre, Mr Zaqy highlighted the importance of Singapore's national defence framework of Total Defence.
He said everyone in the country has played a part in containing the outbreak of the virus here and helping others.
"When the spread of the virus was at its peak, Singaporeans banded together in spirit and actions to stay home and comply with safe distancing, to help the nation's effort to flatten the curve," he said.
Mr Zaqy noted that Singaporeans also showed appreciation for front-line workers by cheering for them.
"Throughout the pandemic, it was also very heartening to see many Singaporeans stepping forward as volunteers to lend help to others, especially our young. They cooked meals for vulnerable groups, delivered meals door to door, created face shields, led initiatives to help the homeless and underprivileged, started campaigns to combat fake news, created translation websites, and much more," he added.
Total Defence Day is commemorated annually on Feb 15, to mark the day in 1942 on which Singapore fell to the Japanese. This day, Mr Zaqy said, is "a grim reminder that we were once unable to defend ourselves" and that Singapore can only rely on itself for its sovereignty.
"Total Defence has guided us through difficult times, such as the Sars outbreak in 2003 and the threat of terrorism," added Mr Zaqy.
Introduced in 1984, Total Defence consists of six pillars - military, civil, economic, social, psychological and digital - in which every Singaporean has a part to play.
Digital defence was added as the sixth pillar in 2019, and MP for Marine Parade GRC Seah Kian Peng as recently as this month called for climate defence to be added as the seventh pillar to underscore the importance of tackling the issue.
Total Defence Day is organised annually by the Ministry of Defence, and the theme for this year's campaign, "Together We Keep Singapore Strong", was announced on Monday.
The event, which was also streamed live on Facebook, saw Mr Zaqy and local musician and video creator Annette Lee taking the audience on a virtual tour of Singapore Discovery Centre's Through The Lens Of Time exhibition.
The exhibition highlights key historical events such as the Japanese occupation and various milestones in nation building, as well as future challenges.
Mr Zaqy later hosted an online discussion on Total Defence for a Future Singapore, with 92 youth participants, in which they shared their thoughts on how Total Defence continues to be relevant for Singaporeans, in the face of Covid-19 and other challenges to the country's security and way of life.
They also brainstormed ideas and initiatives to put Total Defence into action in the future.
One area they agreed that more can be done is in enhancing social defence. For example, neighbours can help and support one other more actively during times of need, especially during this pandemic.
The participants also discussed how they could assist in educating the older generations on modern issues such as digital threats and fake news.
University undergraduate Laurene Chung, 21, said she hopes there can be a virtual platform created to let people of different generations interact and learn about national security and public safety as a community, through fun and engaging content tailored to various demographic groups.
"Ultimately, I hope that Singaporeans, young and old, would be able to forge stronger relationships through this multigenerational platform and be more aware of how the different generations think, feel and react to situations like the pandemic, which would in turn prepare them for the future," she said.
