‘Unsung heroes’ celebrated in MSE’s first music video for national day, features its own ‘family band’

MSE releases first music video in celebration of National Day

With the nation’s 59th birthday fast approaching, Singaporeans across the country have gone above and beyond to make this year’s celebration one to remember.

On 1 Aug, the Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment (MSE) released its first music video on Youtube to mark Singapore’s last birthday in its 50s, as well as honour its colleagues.

“This special music video celebrates the dedicated officers who work tirelessly behind the scenes to keep our water, food, and environment clean and safe for everyone,” the caption read. 

The music video features officers from MSE, PUB, the National Environmental Agency (NEA) and the Singapore Food Agency (SFA).

An MSE spokesman told MS News that the video was created to pay tribute to their colleagues and the important work they do.

Sometimes the officers can work late into the night, through weekends and even public holidays. “And often too, their work may go unnoticed,” he said, describing them as “unsung heroes”.

But what keeps them going, what keeps them motivated, is a common purpose and mission to create a clean, green, and resilient shared Singapore with a clean environment, safe food, and clean water.

The people featured in the video, he noted, “represent our larger MSE family and all that we do every day for Singapore”.

MSE music video showed officers at various jobs

Play the video and you’d instantly be struck by the emotions it stirs.

Scenes of various officers in the organisation hard at work are interspersed with a soulful tune — MSE’s rendition of Singapore’s 2001 National Day song ‘Where I Belong’, first sung by local songbird Tanya Chua.

The video first introduces Firdaus Idros, a PUB officer who retrieves water samples for testing.

As a “proud guardian of our reservoirs”, Firdaus collects the water samples for treatment before it gets transformed into safe drinking water.

SFA’s Dr Sheena Wee also conducts elaborate pesticide tests on consumables.

“She ensures the food we eat is safe,” the text read.

The video also introduced Pia Tan, a NEA officer who works closely with hawkers and cleaners to ensure a “clean and inviting” environment for all diners.

Officers feel fulfilled at jobs

Despite some evidently tough jobs such as clearing choked sewers of wet wipes and grease, PUB officer Vinayagam Latchminan noted that he feels “fulfilled” after getting the job done.

SFA officer Teo Man Yin uses her expertise to strengthen Singapore’s food supply to ensure the country has “healthier fish to eat”.

NEA officer Samuel Low also hopes that Singapore will continue its efforts to keep public spaces litter-free.

Last but definitely not least, NEA officer Dahlan Samubari prepares the nation whether “rain or shine” with his work in the weather sector.

To end the montage, all of the MSE officers go on to reveal the reasons why their job was “rewarding” to them.

Debut of MSE family band

To top off the heartwarming video, MSE debuted its family band, which was performing its rendition of “Where I Belong”.

The band consists of several MSE officers performing the hit song with various instruments such as guitars, a drum set, and a keyboard.

Made up of six individuals from MSE, NEA, PUB and SFA, the band was formed out of a common passion and love for music, and cover a variety of professional roles, said an MSE spokesman.

The members come together on a volunteer basis to rehearse and perform at internal events, added the spokesman. This would be their first showing in a wider public setting.

They are Lincoln Ang, 32, on the bass guitar; Noel Gabriel, 34, on the electric guitar; Enid Chen Yingru, 33, on keyboards; Mohamad Sofian Kemat, 51, and Hee Wei Qian, 29, on vocals; and Teo Man Yin, 37, on drums.

Incidentally, Teo was also one of the individuals featured in the music video.

The band can be seen in the video performing enthusiastically, drawing in crowds of Singaporeans who can be seen patriotically singing and dancing along to the performance.

The video, which was conceptualised at the beginning of the year and took four days to film, ended by wishing all Singaporeans a happy National Day.

“Thank you for what you do, and happy birthday, Singapore,” the caption read.

Also read: Defence display & immersive experiences: What you can expect at the National Day Parade 2024

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Featured image adapted from Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment on Youtube.