Speech by President Halimah Yacob at The Straits Times Singaporean of the Year Award Ceremony 2022

Mr Wong Wei Kong, Editor-in-Chief, English, Malay, Tamil Media Division, SPH Media

Mr Edmund Koh, President, UBS Asia Pacific

Ladies and Gentlemen

Good afternoon.

Last year’s Straits Times’ Singaporean of the Year 2021 award ceremony was a hybrid format with limitations on physical attendance due to the pandemic.

I am heartened that today, as we gather to celebrate the Singaporean of the Year 2022, we are back to a full house in-person event. The progress we have made in the last three years to get to normalcy saw some challenging moments. But we persisted, endured, and sacrificed. All for the good of our loved ones, community, and country.

The Straits Times Singaporean of the Year Award, now in its eighth year, recognises the positive impact made by Singaporeans in the past year and celebrates their passion and ceaseless toil. The finalists demonstrate the strength of the human spirit to overcome all odds through faith, courage and conviction.

I am glad to see some of our past finalists in the crowd, whose stories continue to inspire us. The nominees this year are a varied lot, but they are united by the impact they have made on society. Some, even while battling their own health issues, have chosen to help and support others afflicted with the same conditions.

Alison Lim and Anjang Rosli looked past their own struggles with early-onset dementia to change perceptions of what people with dementia can do. They personally supported dementia patients and their caregivers while spearheading community initiatives to destigmatise the condition. Moonlake Lee started an organisation to reach out to those affected by attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, and create a safe space for them, after both she and her eldest daughter were diagnosed with it.

Others – such as Khairiah Hanim Mazlan and Anson Ng – have gone above and beyond the call of duty, to spread empathy and compassion in the community. Khairiah, a private hire driver, takes the initiative to engage her passengers in conversation, using valuable skills gained from her time as a prisons officer. She successfully dissuaded a passenger out of committing suicide. Anson leads a ground-up movement that provides daily necessities to the needy, in addition to helping to pay for the funerals of strangers and fulfilling the last wishes of elderly on their deathbeds.

Then there are those who have done good far beyond our borders. When the Russia-Ukraine war broke out, Charanjit Singh Walia and Priveen Suraj Santakumar found themselves connected in Poland helping those affected by the war. Priveen, a former nurse, flew there to render medical assistance to the injured and found himself cooking for refugees alongside fellow Singaporean Charanjit, a long-time resident of Poland who has been providing free meals to the needy since 2017.

Other nominees have inspired us by attaining excellence in their respective fields to put Singapore on the world stage. Biochemist Associate Professor Too Heng-Phon has worked tirelessly for over two decades to inspire others to build up Singapore’s capabilities as a scientific powerhouse. He and his former PhD students lead companies that have seen breakthroughs in areas as varied as cancer treatment and diagnosis, to sustainable food production.

On the court, our national athletes have inspired us with their return to form, overcoming the hurdles of injuries and age. Shuttler couple Terry Hee and Jessica Tan brought glory to Singapore at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England, bringing home the gold for the mixed doubles event despite being pit against English favourites on home ground, and spending some time out of action. Feng Tianwei moved us in Birmingham as well, overcoming health issues and an opponent 10 years younger, to bring home three Commonwealth golds for table tennis.

Congratulations to all the finalists. You are all inspirations to the wider community, encouraging us to start our own journey towards doing more to help and motivate those around us.

I would also like to thank the team at The Straits Times, for making an annual affair of telling stories of the outstanding individuals among us.  

Looking ahead, the global fight against the pandemic must continue; Singapore and the world will also have to deal with rising global tensions and difficult macroeconomic conditions. These Singapore stories of grit, goodwill and glory will remind us to stand together, and inspire us to move forward as one united people. Let us lift our heads, let us celebrate the light in each of us; and in turn, let us all be the light in our society.

Judges, I am sure picking just one winner out of these many worthy nominees was quite a task. Thank you for making that difficult decision. I look forward to the unveiling of The Straits Times Singaporean of the Year 2022. Thank you.