Seniors from across Clementi and Jurong gathered at the Merdeka Generation Roadshow, held at the open area beside Blk 448 Clementi Market and Food Centre on 30 November. Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Senior Minister and Coordinating Minister for Social Policies, and Member of Parliament for Jurong GRC; Ms Grace Fu, Minister for Culture, Community and Youth, and Member of Parliament for Yuhua SMC; Mr Desmond Lee, Minister for Social and Family Development and Second Minister for National Development, and Member of Parliament for Jurong GRC; Dr Tan Wu Meng, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs and Trade and Industry, and Member of Parliament for Jurong GRC; Madam Rahayu Mahzam, Member of Parliament for Jurong GRC; and Mr Murali Pillai, Member of Parliament for Bukit Batok SMC, joined in the fun event as the Merdeka Generation seniors enjoyed a programme of stage games and celebrity appearances by Pornsak Prajakwit and Mastura Ahmad. Many attendees won limited edition prizes for their participation.
The programme was one of a series of events organised across Singapore as part of the Merdeka Generation Roadshow. Dr Tan expressed happiness at being able to participate in this fun and informative occasion, which saw some seniors coming all the way from Ang Mo Kio. He also thanked the organisers in a Facebook post: “Many agencies came forward to help reach out to seniors as well as passersby of all ages. A big thank you to our many organisers and friends from REACHSingapore, Silver Generation Office, Agency for Integrated Care, Health Promotion Board, SportSG, ActiveSG, Ministry of Communications and Information, Smart Nation Singapore, Infocomm Media Development Authority, People’s Association, RSVP, and the Jurong & Friends of Clementi community, whose collective efforts and heart helped make this roadshow possible!”
Mr Lee and Ms Fu also thanked the organisers on behalf of Ministry of Social and Family Development, and Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth respectively for putting together a successful roadshow that was well attended.
One of the booths by Taman Jurong Active Ageing Committee featured softbots and smart planters with a view to getting more senior citizens to embrace a digital lifestyle, which will make their lives more convenient. The committee that leads many such digital initiatives as part of its larger active ageing programme presented its Digital Making roadmap. The volunteers also shared that many senior attendees had acquired self-taught computer skills, which was commendable.
Sharing his thoughts, Mr Lee said that through the event, seniors got a better understanding of the Merdeka package, and were also able to have their queries and concerns addressed. “REACH also set up a listening post to gather feedback by our seniors and members of the public. Health Promotion Board, SportSG, RSVP and People’s Association took the opportunity to reach out to share about various programmes and activities, such as sports, lifelong learning, health checks, volunteering and so on. A big thank you to all the organisers and volunteers for this meaningful outreach,” he shared in a post on his official Facebook page.