National Day Rally

The National Day Rally (Chinese: 国庆群众大会, Malay: Rapat Umum Hari Kebangsaan) is an annual address that the Prime Minister of Singapore makes to the entire nation, on the second Sunday after 9 August, the country's National Day . A yearly event since 1966, the Prime Minister uses this rally to address the nation on its key challenges and its future directions, and can be compared to the State of the Union Address delivered by the President of the United States.

Prior to 2005, the rally was a continuous speech from 8:00pm (SST). From 2005, the Malay and Chinese versions were delivered at 6:45 pm with a break at 7:30 pm while the English version was delivered at 8:00pm.

Opposition MPs were invited to the rally for the first time in 2007.

Also, the rally will be made on the last Sunday of August in 2010 and 2012, to facilitate the Youth Olympic Games and the Ramadan festivities, respectively. It may also be available in HD from 2012.

The rally was delivered at the former National Theatre from 1966 to 1982. With the closure and subsequent demolishing of the National Theatre, the Rally was shifted and held at the Kallang Theatre from 1983 (with a break in 1984 since it moved to the Singapore Convention Centre) and from 1985 to 2000. After 2001, the venue was shifted again to the University Cultural Centre at the National University of Singapore. It was also constituted during the parliament sittings. The 2013 and 2014 edition will be delivered from the ITE Headquarters and College Central.

The 2010 National Day Rally was held on 29 August at the University Cultural Centre, Singapore. Similar to the past rallies, The speech was broadcast live on TV and radio, as well as webcast live on the websites of the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) and REACH. It was also viewable on smartphones and on Channel NewsAsia and xinmsn Mandarin. During the speech, there was active discussion by Singaporeans on Twitter and Facebook.

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