President Halimah Yacob presided over her last National Day Parade as Singapore's head of state as she nears the end of her term on Sep. 13, 2023.

The 68-year-old announced in May 2023 that she would not be standing for re-election during this year's president election.

Following the 2023 NDP, she spoke about the highlights and memorable times of the past six parades she presided over, adding that she felt a sense of pride and satisfaction that she was with Singaporeans for her last NDP on Aug. 9, 2023.

'Whenever you come for NDP, you feel so inspired'

When asked for her thoughts during the drive-past as she waved to Singaporeans at the Padang, President Halimah shared with the media that she felt a lot of emotions during the ride, and it was very nostalgic and wonderful.

"NDP always touches something inside all of us. It wasn't just me but everyone in Singapore, especially the audience," she said.

"Whenever you come to NDP, you feel so inspired because there are so many Singaporeans together, celebrating a really truly, momentous day, which is our National Day."

"So, it's been truly wonderful, and I never lost that sense. Not just because of the six years that I [was] the presiding officer but all NDPs that I see evoke the same feelings."

Favourite moments from NDP 2023

President Halimah also shared what she felt was special for her about this NDP, saying that it was the first full-scale parade after Covid-19 since 2019.

She pointed out that the Padang, the location of this year's NDP, was also significant.

Previous iterations of the parade were held at the Marina Bay Floating Platform.

She added that for this year's NDP, she liked the interpretation of the six pillars of Total Defence in the forms of the floats, as they came across in a "very relatable manner", given that the items on the floats were things that were used daily and in the past.

"And I really respect all 11,000 people who participated, the volunteers, also the personnel officials and so on."

"I liked the theme for this year's [parade] also, "Onwards as One". Because that reminds us, you know, we're a small country with lots of challenges and difficulties — but we should not be mired by those constraints, those difficulties."

"We should always look forward. So long as we stay together, and we strongly put our faith in a shared future, we can progress. And that's so wonderful."

'Terrible sense of sadness, but at the same time, a sense of inspiration'

After presiding over NDPs for six years, President Halimah admitted that as she departed one last time, there were emotions one could not control.

She said: "The terrible sense of sadness, but at the same time, a sense of inspiration. When I look around me, and see the crowd of people standing together, celebrating as one, remembering that this is an important moment, regardless of who we are, what we are, or what we believe in. We celebrate together as this is our country."

President Halimah added that she never felt alone during the NDPs.

She added: "I never felt alone. I never felt like I'm looking at the parade alone... It was truly a sense of togetherness that people feel that they want to belong."

In her Facebook post on Aug. 9, President Halimah shared how every parade held special memories for her as she witnessed the "collective spirit of Singaporeans coming together for our nation and the can-do spirit which defines us".

"I thank you for your support over the past six years," she concluded.

Top photos via Halimah Yacob/Facebook