Pa Pa Zao celebrated its third anniversary this morning!
Singapore director Jack Neo held a massive health walk at Punggol Coast this morning to celebrate the third anniversary of his “Pa Pa Zao” initiative. For those unaware, Pa Pa Zao is a massive walk initiative by local filmmaker Jack Neo during the pandemic.
The event saw over 3000 people show up, including Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong, and Minister for Law and Second Minister for Home Affairs Edwin Tong.
Both ministers joined the walk, but Edwin Tong stole the spotlight by grabbing the mic to sing the classic song Peng You (“Friend”) with the crowd. He later invited everyone to join him in East Coast for another walk, sing-along and even a barbecue next time.
About 80 local celebrities came down to lend their support too, including Marcus Chin, Aileen Tan, Shaun Chen, Xixi Lim, Macy Chen and Yang Guang Kele. Aileen Tan and Marcus Chin were thrilled to see such a strong turnout. Although Marcus Chin didn’t join the walk due to a recent heart surgery and other work commitments, he still showed up to cheer everyone on.
The Pa Pa Zao team started walking around 9am and covered a 4.5km route in about an hour.
Before the walk began, the ministers joined the crowd in a lively warm-up session, and later waved, smiled and took photos with participants as they walked.
This was Edwin Tong’s second time participating in the Pa Pa Zao event. Speaking to Shin Min Daily News, Edwin Tong said it was his second time joining the event, and he was very encouraged by the huge turnout.
“I think Pa Pa Zao is a fantastic initiative that combines fitness with community spirit. It’s not always easy to exercise alone, but when you have friends, family and neighbours coming together, it gives you more motivation. The more we encourage people to do this, the more it becomes part of everyday life.”
Minister Tong added that he also makes it a point to exercise when he can, not just to stay physically fit, but also to clear his mind. His go-to exercises are cycling and walking. “We all need to plan and be intentional about exercising. Don’t wait till you’re free, because our lives are always busy. We need to carve out time and make it a priority,” he said.
As for Jack Neo, he shared that he’s thrilled to see the event growing bigger every year,
“We’ve been doing this for three years now, and the numbers keep going up. I’m very happy that the government is quietly supporting us too. Besides exercise, we also provide entertainment. I hope that one day Pa Pa Zao can expand to the north, south, east and west. But we don’t have enough manpower yet, so I hope more people can join us. If we can get a few hundred or even a thousand people walking in every region, that would be amazing.”
Malaysia Pa Pa Zao is on the way
Jack Neo also revealed that friends from Malaysia have been inviting him to bring Pa Pa Zao to Johor Bahru. Plans are underway, and the first afternoon walk is expected to happen during the upcoming Mid-Autumn Festival.
Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong, who oversees the Punggol GRC, arrived at the event around 11am and presented appreciation awards to the event organisers. The crowd then serenaded him with a song, which he gamely responded to with a smile.
