PSP fundraiser: Dr Tan Cheng Bock, Francis Yuen to perform in virtual concert

Singapore — Those who would like to see longtime political luminary Dr Tan Cheng Bock sing and dance have the opportunity to do so at the Progress Singapore Party (PSP)  virtual concert on Sunday, Dec 20.

Joining him will be Mr Francis Yuen, the party’s Assistant Secretary-General, and others. PSP says that Dr Tan and Mr Yuen “are putting on their dancing shoes and strumming their guitars with their soulful beats”. (Photos are of practice sessions for the event).

The event’s aim is twofold — to raise funds and to engage the youth.

The event will be broadcast live on Facebook at 7.30 pm on Dec 20. Dr Tan said about the event: “We need to invest in our youth – they are the future of this country and it is good to engage them in the various digital platforms well ahead of the next General Election. My team has put together an interesting line-up of songs for the 20th of December. We will also be raising funds for our party operations for 2021.”

The concert’s event page on Facebook states that people will have the opportunity to choose two songs from among the five pre-selected by Dr Tan. The “winning” songs will be performed at the concert. Voting can be done via PayNow at a minimum of S$10 per vote.

The concert, which was planned over the last three months, includes an array of talents of all ages from the PSP.

Mr Yuen, 70, said: “I’m really impressed to see the young and old folks from the pioneer generation to millennials getting involved in this project. Singapore needs to take a page out of our playbook whereby PSP has shown that the youth can work hand in hand with the older generation. Speaking about getting ready for the digital revolution, we have shown that it is possible to still retain the older guys.”

At the age of 80, Dr Tan has found himself to be an Internet sensation of sorts, with nearly 75,000 Instagram followers and a podcast quickly gaining a large following as well.

In July, right after the General Election, when he uploaded a cover of Glen Campbell’s Try A little kindness, at the request of a follower, the IGTV video was viewed almost 60,000 times.

“Dr Tan has shown that age is just a number and we should never stop learning. PSP leads the way in creating a more compassionate society,” the party said in a statement.

Crowdfunding for the event began on Tuesday (Dec 1), with people requesting and paying for their choice of song to be played at the concert. Those interested in submitting their choices can click here.

PSP launched its TikTok channel on the same day, with a video of Dr Tan dancing. /TISG

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