On Saturday 4 February 2023, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visited Eastwood Plaza for the Lunar New Year celebrations. Parties in attendance included NSW Opposition and Labor leader, Chris Minns, the Federal Member for Bennelong, Jerome Laxale and NSW Labor candidate for Ryde, Lyndal Howison.
Lunch was organised for the PM, MP’s and the local community leaders including DAPA President Vincent Yu. Following the lunch, a press conference was held in Eastwood Plaza where the PM and MP’s gave speehes.
A Lion dance was performed near the Eastwood Plaza, outside DAPA’s office.
As part of the dance, the Prime Minister was presented with the traditional lettuce that was hanging outside DAPA’s office door. This tradition stems from the Chinese and Cantonese language where the word for leafy green vegetables sounds similar to the word for becoming wealthy. According to popular belief, when the lion eats the lettuce and spits it back out at the business owners and audience, it symbolizes blessing them with wealth and prosperity in the new year. The PM joined the rest of the celebrations with community members and local leaders.
