SINGAPORE – Every Chinese New Year, shouting auspicious phrases is a sacred tradition as most believe it is the best way to kickstart the new year and usher in prosperity.
Recently, a very unusual mobile application was released in Singapore, where its sole purpose is to shout Hokkien phrases such as ‘HUAT AH’ (‘To prosper’) and ‘YAM SENG’ (‘Drink to victory’) during the CNY Lohei session.
This comes after the latest COVID-19 Safeguard for Chinese New Year was announced by Singapore’s Minister for Education Lawrence Wong on Friday (Jan 22). The measures included limiting the number of individuals visiting each household, maximum group size for social gatherings, maximum house visits during CNY and so on.
In addition, the authorities also prohibited Singaporeans to say “auspicious greetings” while tossing louhei (a Cantonese-style raw fish salad).
The website’s design is simple and straightforward, with just two buttons to click —— one for “HUAT AH” and another for ” YAM SENG”. What’s more impressive is that the length of the “YAM SENG” phrase depends on how long you hold the button!
According to the website, the developer goes by his stage name DJ Beng, who encourages users that find the app useful to donate to charitable organizations in Singapore.
The app also attracted the attention of Marine Parade GRC MP Tan Chuan Jin, who is also the Speaker of Parliament. On his Facebook post, he jokingly said that Singaporeans can “hold for as long as [they] desire to Yam Seng” without shouting it verbally.
You can visit the website here.
What do you think? Comment below and let us know!
Sources: Facebook/Tan Chuan Jin
Editor: Raymond Chen
Proofreader: Sarah Yeoh
