Opening Remarks By Mr Eric Chua, Parliamentary Secretary For Ministry Of Social And Family Development, And Ministry Of Culture, Community And Youth At Klook Cares: Movies In The Sky Edition

Ms Sarah Wan, General Manager of Klook
Ms K Thanaletchimi, Families for Life Council member
Ladies and Gentlemen

1 Good evening. It’s a great pleasure to join you and your families today for this special “Klook Cares Movies in the Sky” event.

2 We dedicate an entire year to celebrating families because families are important in Singapore. They are the basic building block of what Singapore society is all about. Singapore society has been and will always be about the notion of not leaving anyone behind.

3 We can only do that if everyone plays their part. In this big family that we call Singapore, we all can do something to contribute positively to how Singapore will be in the next five, ten years and when we reach SG75, SG100.

4 If you remember, we celebrated SG50 in 2015 and we also celebrated our bicentennial some years back. That was also a year of celebration, albeit with greater retrospection. We reflected on who we are as a people, and the year of celebrating SG families gives us the chance to do that as well. To look at ourselves; to look at our family units and to reflect.

5 In the Year of Celebrating SG Families, I hope that we can also start having meaningful conversations within our families. As we rush from point to point each day – upon waking up, rushing to get the kids to school and back, to making sure they complete their homework, to preparations for the next day – I want to ask you when was the last time you had a heart-to-heart-talk with your family members? Kids, when was the last time you gave your mum and dad a big hug and told them you loved them? I want to challenge all of you to do this tonight, when you get home after the movie.

6 For the parents in the house, let’s renew our commitment and dedication to our families. I have a pledge up here for SG Families – it reminds us about our commitment to our family, to listen to each other, and to remember to show love and care to one another. It helps us remember who really matters the most at the end of the day.

7 On that note, enjoy the movie and please join me in thanking our partners Klook and MBS, and many other volunteers who have taken the time and effort to make this event possible tonight. Let’s give them a round of applause!