The Bedok Police Division Youth Carnival was held on 3 December 2022 at Heartbeat @ Bedok. The event was graced by Mr Heng Swee Keat, Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) and Coordinating Minister for Economic Policies, and Member of Parliament for East Coast GRC.
This is the fourth edition of the carnival, led by Bedok Police Division in partnership with nine other agencies. In line with the theme for this year’s carnival: “Be Awesome, Being Youth”, or BABY for short, the event aimed to inspire youths to explore their strengths and enable them to reach their fullest potential.
More than 3,000 people attended the event, with many youths signing up for various programmes with our community partners. Such programmes include volunteering programmes that allow youths to serve the community in their various capacities, as well as programmes providing support to youths in need. The carnival also featured a terror attack simulation exercise by the Emergency Response Team, weapon displays, and educational talks from partners such as the Fei Yue Crest, National Crime Prevention Council and Health Promotion Board.
Figure 1: DPM Heng Swee Keat trying out the HKMP5, with the assistance of SSSGT Qi Sheng, alongside Commander Bedok Police Division, Assistant Commissioner of Police (AC) Justin Wong and Commanding Officer Marine Parade Neighbourhood Police Centre, Deputy Superintendent of Police Poh Yu Quan.
Figure 2: DPM Heng Swee Keat at the photobooth with student volunteers from CHIJ Katong Convent.
Launch of “A Better Shot”
In 2021, Bedok Police Division worked with Grassroots Leaders from Tampines GRC and YYD Education Centre to pilot an initiative known as “A Better Shot” (A.B.S), which aims to uplift primary school students from underprivileged families within Tampines GRC. The programme, sponsored by donors, offered the students free tuition classes at Tampines East Neighbourhood Police Post.
5 The classes and activities allowed students to interact and learn from Police officers, who became their mentors. Since the launch of the pilot initiative, 44 students had taken part in the programme. One of the participants, an 11-year-old girl named Marisa, said, “Through this programme, I have made significant improvement in my Mathematics subject in school, under the guidance of tutors from YYD Education Centre. I also enjoyed attending the classes and made many friends from other schools”.
6 At the Youth Carnival 2022, DPM Heng Swee Keat officially launched A.B.S to reach out to more youths within Bedok Division. With the increased outreach, YYD Education Centre and Bedok Police Division will now be able to offer assistance and support to more students in the east.
Figure 3: Launch of A.B.S
From left to right: AC Justin Wong, Sponsor Mr Tan, DPM Heng Swee Keat and Director of YYD Education Centre.
Gryphon Youth Outreach Programme Competition
Another initiative by Bedok Police Division was the Gryphon Youth Outreach Programme (GYOP) Competition. The competition aims to raise awareness on common youth crime typologies, while encouraging schools to engage their students in crime prevention initiatives and activities.
Figure 4: Champion - Victoria School / The Elysians
Figure 5: 1st Runner Up - Dunman High School / Team Protectus
Figure 6: 2nd Runner Up - Changkat Changi Secondary School / Changkat Crimebusters (3Cs)
As part of the GYOP, held for the first time, an anti-crime video competition was organised for students from various schools in the east. Each school was given the opportunity to showcase their production and communications skills, by creating a public education video on the different crime trends, as well as provide crime prevention advice. In total, more than 30 videos were submitted, and the top entrants of the competition were presented with their prizes during the event.
Commander of Bedok Police Division, Assistant Commissioner of Police Justin Wong said, “The Youth Carnival is the cornerstone of Bedok Police Division’s youth outreach initiatives. By being aware of the dangers of crime, our youths are better able to achieve their fullest potential. Bedok Police Division will continue to work together with the youths in our community to keep them safe from crime. The carnival may be a one-day event, but I am certain that the lessons learnt will have a lasting and positive impact on our youths’’.
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
08 December 2022 @ 7:00 PM