National Loyalty Week is held

Following the proclamation of Singapore as a self-governing state on 3 June 1959, the National Loyalty Week was held between 3 and 10 December 1959 to instill among its citizens a sense of loyalty to the new state.^[1] Celebrations for loyalty week commenced with the installation of Yusof bin Ishak as the first Malayan-born Yang di-Pertuan Negara (Head of State) on 3 December.^[2] The week also marked the introduction of key symbols of national solidarity, spirit, and loyalty to Singapore. These included the new national anthem, the state flag and the coat of arms.^[3]

Soon after the government formed by the People’s Action Party took office in June 1959, then Deputy Prime Minister Toh Chin Chye was tasked to lead a high level government committee to establish Singapore’s state symbols. The bill for the adoption of the national anthem, state flag and state arms was introduced by then Minister for Culture S. Rajaratnam in the Legislative Assembly and approved on 11 November 1959.^[4]

Toh selected Majulah Singapura (“Onward Singapore”) as Singapore’s national anthem. The song, which was written and composed by Zubir Said in 1958, was originally commissioned as an official song by the City Council before the body was dissolved in 1959. Toh then chose the already popular song and requested that the composer make minor amendments before it was submitted to the Legislative Assembly for approval as the national anthem.^[5]

The red-and-white state flag features a crescent moon and five stars. The colour red stands for the universal brotherhood and equality of man, while the colour white signifies purity and virtue. Combined, the two colours signify brotherhood and equality through purity and virtue. The crescent moon signifies an eternally young state. The five stars represent the five ideals on which the state of Singapore was founded – democracy, peace, progress, justice and equality.^[6]

The national coat of arms or state crest consists of a shield emblazoned with five white stars and a white crescent moon on a red background. Below the shield is a banner inscribed with Singapore's motto “Majulah Singapura”.^[7] The shield is flanked by a lion on the left and a tiger on the right. The lion represents Singapore as the lion city while the tiger symbolises the close economic and political ties between Singapore and Malaya.^[8]

References
1. Joyous week begins. (1959, December 3). The Straits Times, p. 1. Retrieved from NewspaperSG;
2.The Straits Times, 3 Dec 1959, p. 1; Ministry of Culture. (1959, December 3). Text of Radio Singapore talk by the Prime Minister, Mr Lee Kuan Yew, on Thursday night, December 3, 1959. Retrieved November 26, 2013, from National Library of Singapore website: http://archivesonline.nas.sg/
3. Singapore: Journey into nationhood (p. 44). (1998). Singapore: National Heritage Board, Landmark Books. Call no.: RSING 959.57 SIN-[HIS].
4. No conflict, clear-cut symbol of unity. (1981, August 9). The Straits Times, p. 13; Singapore gets its ‘symbols of self-respect’. (1959, November 12). The Straits Times, p. 11. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.  
5. National anthem originally for City Council. (1990, March 9). The Straits Times, p. 28. Retreived from NewspaperSG.
6. Singapore. (1959). State Arms and Flag and National Anthem of Singapore. Singapore: Printed at the Govt. Print. Off. Call no.: RCLOS 929.8 SIN -[RFL].
7. National Library Board. (1998). National coat of arms (State crest) written by Zaubidah Mohamed. Retrieved November 26, 2013, from Singapore Infopedia.
8.The Straits Times, 9 Aug 1981, p. 13.