Jack Neo's Pa Pa Zao draws huge crowd for 100th walk

Around 1,000 people turned up at Bedok Reservoir Park for the 100th walk organised by Lao Peng You Pa Pa Zao, or PPZ, on Sunday morning (May 5).

The walking group was founded by Singaporean filmmaker Jack Neo, who has directed local films such as I Not Stupid (2002) and his latest comedy Money No Enough 3.

It is a volunteer initiative which encourages people from all walks of life to come together to exercise and stay healthy.

Mr Peter Teo, 55, has joined the weekly morning walks since its first session in June 2022 where 58 people turned up after Neo shared on his Facebook Live that he would be going for a walk at Bukit Timah Hill and invited his followers to join him.

The real estate agent has since become a team leader and said that because he explores routes in Singapore through his love of cycling, he was given the task of designing routes for PPZ by Neo.

“I like to meet more people and am happy so many of them like the routes I plan for the walks,” he told TNP.

The fact that the number of participants has multiplied tells him that they are “doing it right”.

“More people are gathering together to pursue a healthier lifestyle,” he said.

“The old folks, especially, have the opportunity to make more friends and not be so lonely.”

The heat on Sunday morning did not stop the walking enthusiasts from having a good time. At times, Neo and local celebrity Terence Cao would rally the participants into rounds of singalongs and chants.

“Any sweat?” asked Neo. “No sweat!” the crowd would shout back.

For civil servant Mr Justin Neo, the entertainment provided by the director and accompanying artists is a main draw.

The 57-year-old started walking with PPZ in January last year.

“I volunteered to be a team leader when the opportunity was given to me as I have a passion for taking charge of a team of people and looking after their well-being,” he said.

“We team leaders are responsible for the administration and well-being of the team members, including disseminating walk information and instructions, collecting PPZ T-shirts, submitting attendance, and ensuring the safety of the members during every walk.”

Mr Neo shared that he is happy to wake up early even when he has to travel more than an hour by MRT to get to some of the walk locations.

“The chance to reconnect with team members from my team and other teams is precious to me and is complemented by the singalong sessions and photo-taking opportunities with famous local artists.”

He added that PPZ is different from other walking groups and shared that Neo regularly conducts knowledge sharing in the areas of phone photography, artificial intelligence, safety and emergency medical response and scam prevention.

Although most participants were middle-aged, there were also youths and primary school-aged students in attendance.

For 29-year-old freelance part-timer Jolene Soh, it took a while to get used to the slower pace after being used to power sports.

However, she grew to enjoy waking up early in the morning to exercise together with her parents.

“What I love most about PPZ is hanging out and exercising together with my family to keep healthy and the singing sessions,” she said.

The walk on Sunday ended at Expo Hall 5 with live performances and a lucky draw.

Neo shared with TNP that new and exciting activities are in the works.

“We are moving into phase two and are looking at organising a family day,” he said.

“As we have more elderly with us, we would love to encourage them to ask their children and grandchildren along to join the walk.

“It would be a meaningful Sunday morning to bond together as a family.”