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Many of us fondly remember this beloved mascot from our schooling days. Singa the Courtesy Lion was first introduced to the general public in 1982 as mascot for our National Courtesy Campaign (NCC), launched in 1979 to "create a pleasant social environment, with Singaporeans considerate to each other and thoughtful of each other’s needs.”
It was love at first sight. Fans immediately flooded the NCC hotline, including children asking to speak to Singa. All that love paved the way for more mascots to appear in other national campaigns over the years.
In 2001, the Singapore Kindness Movement (SKM) took over the NCC and Singa represented the movement. Singa’s smiley icon gave way to the heart icon to symbolise kindness from the heart. But a decade later, in 2013, Singa announced his resignation via the SKM website, writing: "I quit. I need a long break, and you could probably use a break from me too. No one likes being nagged at, even if it's about being kind and gracious.”
Fortunately, he made a comeback in 2014 as Singa the Kindness Lion, bearing a yellow gerbera — the symbol of appreciation — on his shirt in place of the heart. To this day, Singa spends time in schools imparting values of graciousness and compassion to our primary school children and preschoolers.
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