Speech by SMS Lee Yi Shyan at the Good Neighbour Award Ceremony and Exhibition

May 23, 2015

I’m really happy to join you this afternoon for this ceremony to recognise the very nice people in our neighbourhood.

Good Neighbourliness 

Two weeks ago, we read about a two year old toddler being stranded in the laundry service deck of an HDB flat, and how some foreign workers nearby came to the rescue. A week ago, we also read about several commuters helping a woman to free herself from the gap space at Boon Keng MRT station. Such acts of kindness have something in common – that the most needed help came from some strangers who happened to be nearest to us at the point of the incident. 

How we extend help to each other in times of need sets a tone for this society. Are we prepared to extend and receive help? Are we considerate of each other’s needs? Can we do more to create a supportive and friendly environment for a happier neighbourhood? Can we be a good neighbour, looking out for each other?

Good Neighbour Award Recipients - Extraordinary amongst the Ordinary 

You do not have to do extraordinary acts to be a good neighbour. In fact, sometimes, it is the ordinary things that impact people in the most extraordinary ways. So this good Neighbour Award recipient, as we have seen, Ms Cheria Tan is a good example. She likes people. She befriended her neighbours when she first moved into her HDB flat. Today, she and her neighbours are close friends. They regularly meet to do common things such as sharing baking tips and celebrating each other’s birthdays. Cheria and her neighbours would also take turns to open up their homes for weekly gatherings and potluck sessions. 

Another recipient, Mr Rugiman, is known for his gracious disposition and his big-heartedness. For over 15 years, Mr and Mrs Rugiman took care of their neighbour’s family. And the neighbour is a widower suffering from poor health, and his children needed special attention. Mr Rugiman took it upon himself to attend to their daily household needs, like cooking meals and helping to bathe the children. He also accompanies his neighbour for medical appointments and visits him when he is hospitalised. What a self-less couple! 

Into its fifth run this year, we have extended the Good Neighbours Award to youths in the post-secondary institutions such as those in ITE, Junior Colleges, and Polytechnics, and Universities. This recognises young adults who are great role models for their peers and the younger generation. Age is no barrier when it comes to being a good neighbour. 

Ms Lee Hui Shan, a student recipient, was only 10 when she started to help to take care of her neighbour’s children. She did so whenever her neighbour had to attend to appointments or run errands. She is like an elder sister, or in Chinese “大姐姐”, to her neighbour’s six children, six children, and she is just like their family. Till today, though she is busy with her own school work, Hui Shan still helps her ‘little siblings’, so to speak, with their school work. She also buys them special gifts to celebrate their birthdays. 

Cheria, Mr Rugiman, Hui Shan and the rest of our Good Neighbour Award recipients are regular folks we see in our neighbourhood. However, these everyday heroes have made extraordinary contributions to their community. By putting their own needs aside to help others, they make a big difference to the lives of others. So, I hope their stories will inspire more people to do the same.

Good Neighbours Video Competition 

Besides nominating your neighbour for the Good Neighbour Award, there are many other ways to share stories of neighbourliness. Introduced last year, the Good Neighbours Video Competition gives tech-savvy participants an opportunity to creatively express “What a good neighbour means to them” through video submissions. The response to this new initiative has been very encouraging, and I know many HDB colleagues had a tough time selecting the winning entries. 

So, I would like to congratulate Ms Lee Jia Qian and her team, for garnering the top prize with their video – Lives We Walk. Their video shows how a teenager took the initiative to go around her neighbourhood making friends. Accompanied by a catchy jingle, it demonstrates the true kampung spirit, and what it means to be a good neighbour. 

Both the Good Neighbour Award and the Video Competition are avenues for residents to express appreciation for their neighbours. It is also part of a larger movement to celebrate neighbourliness, along with other initiatives such as the #MyPowerNeighbour campaign by MCCY. We hope that with these platforms across the various agencies, more residents can come forward to share their heart-warming stories and inspire more acts of neighbourliness.

Conclusion 

So in closing, let me congratulate all the recipients of this year’s Good Neighbour Award, as well as the winners of the Video Competition. Good neighbourliness is the key to gracious and harmonious living. It cannot be taken for granted. Nor should it be expected from others, without putting in efforts ourselves. It has to start with each of us. Be the first to take the first step. Get to know your neighbour, make friends and help where you can. Be the one to first offer help when needed. 

So, thank you and here’s wishing all of you a great weekend ahead. Thank you.