Remembering Dr Lim Chong Eu, a pragmatic visionary

 

Dr Lim Chong Eu, one of Malaysia’s political giants, was born on May 28, 1919 and I thought of writing about him on his birth anniversary.

Young Malaysians need to know about the architect of modern Penang’s development and the pragmatic visionary who realised the importance of foreign direct investment and the establishment of special industrial zones to drive the industrialisation process.

During 40 years of politics, Chong Eu braved the odds, falling and rising up again and again. He insisted on equality for all Malaysians and fought against any amendment to the Federal Constitution, saying it was sacrosanct.

He also insisted that Chinese education be maintained.

First, a little background about the man. Chong Eu was born at Arraton Road, Penang, attended Hutchings Primary School and subsequently entered Penang Free School.

In 1938, the brilliant student went to England under a Queen Victoria II Scholarship and graduated from Gray’s Inn with a law degree. In 1944, he graduated from the University of Edinburgh with a degree in medicine.

After spending some time in China as a medical officer, he returned to Malaya and in 1950 served as medical officer with the Malayan Airforce Auxiliary Wing with the rank of captain.

Chong Eu would not have entered politics if not for a derisive remark from a British administrator. He once told Penang journalists that in 1950 the unnamed Englishman asked him: “Do you think you Malayans can govern? I said yes, and that was how I got into politics.”

The following year, at the age of 32, he was appointed a member of the Penang Straits Settlements Council (akin to today’s state legislative assembly) by the British administration.

The same year he formed the Penang Radical Party. He stood for election in the George Town municipal elections of December 1953 but lost.

The following year, at the invitation of MCA president Tan Cheng Lock, he joined the Chinese party.

He contested and won a seat in the Penang Straits Settlements Council representing the Kelawai constituency in Malaya’s first general election in 1955. He was elected the Alliance party whip and appointed a member of the Federal Legislative Assembly.

Not many know that Chong Eu was among those who fought for Malaya’s independence and that he insisted that Malayans must decide their own fate.

It was Chong Eu who moved a motion at the last sitting of the Straits Settlements Council on July 17, 1957, welcoming the establishment of the Federation of Malaya and ratifying the Penang State Constitution and flag.

With that, Penang became a part of independent Malaya.

Not many also know that he was the first choice for chief minister after Merdeka. As early as May 1957, newspapers were predicting that Chong Eu would be the chief minister of Penang. First prime minister Tunku Abdul Rahman pressed him to accept the post but he turned it down and proposed Wong Pow Nee instead.

Chong Eu obviously wanted to play a bigger role in national politics.

The following year, at the age of 38, he stood for the MCA presidency and toppled party founder Cheng Lock. But soon two camps developed – one led by him and the other by Cheng Lock’s son Tan Siew Sin.

Chong Eu, unlike Siew Sin and those in the latter’s camp, was not in Tunku’s Cabinet and his relationship with the Umno president worsened, especially after his demand that the MCA be given 40 seats to contest in the 1959 general election and that a guarantee on Chinese education be included in the Alliance manifesto.

When all his men were left out of the list of candidates in the general election, he quit the party and left for England.

Upon his return, he formed the United Democratic Party and became its secretary-general in 1963. In the 1964 general election he stood for and won the Tanjung parliamentary seat and the Kota state seat. He held these two seats for years.

Then in 1968, together with personalities such as Prof Syed Hussein Alatas, Prof Wang Gang Wu, Tan Chee Koon, V Veerappen and V David, Chong Eu launched Gerakan Rakyat Malaysia.

Gerakan won 16 of 24 Penang seats in the 1969 general election and Chong Eu was appointed chief minister, a post he occupied for 21 years until 1990 when he lost his seat in the general election and decided to call it a day at age 71.

In 1972, he took Gerakan into the Alliance (which in 1973 became the Barisan Nasional). Chong Eu’s reasoning was that for Penang to thrive, it needed federal support, or, at the very least, non-interference.

In the eighties, when I was a journalist in the Penang bureau of the New Straits Times, I would, almost always, cover his functions and press conferences.

I found him to be a tough politician; even authoritarian at times. People, including government officials, were apprehensive about talking to him, for he was a hard taskmaster and would not suffer fools.

Chong Eu had a facial twitch and I felt that it twitched more when he was dissatisfied with something or someone.

Some subordinates and politicians told me he could be nasty. Once, Chong Eu made an important aide – who later went on to hold a senior government post – cry because he was unhappy with him.

Chong Eu was an astute politician who knew how to use the media. He would hold a weekly press conference on Fridays where he would update Penangites about government programmes and his thoughts on various issues.

Also, he would frequently go on working visits, initially once a week but later twice a month, accompanied by the press.

Government officials dreaded these site visits because he would ask many questions and would expect satisfactory answers. He was not averse to giving an earful to anyone who was delinquent in his work.

One incident is etched in my mind. Chong Eu was visiting the agricultural exposition site under construction in Seberang Jaya when we came to the compartmentalised stalls complex where farmers were to sell their produce.

After a short briefing by his officials, he asked: “The stalls are small. With so little space, where do you expect them to keep their personal things or to store any stuff? Won’t some of the farmers be coming from distant villages?”

There was an almost interminable pause, with the officials fidgeting. Finally, one said, rather sheepishly, that they had not thought about it.

Maintaining the same, staid expression, he said: “You’re supposed to think. You can’t expect farmers to bring just enough produce or lug around their personal and other stuff every time they come here.”

One officer said they would discuss and come up with a solution soon.

Chong Eu looked at him, then up at the ceiling of the stalls with triangular roof tops and said: “You have some space between the ceiling and the roof of the stall. Why did you close it up completely? Make a sliding panel so that they can store stuff in that space.”

I smiled because it took a medical doctor to see what the planners and technical staff could not and to also offer a solution on the spot. It was another example of a man who could think on his feet.

After Penang lost its free port status in 1969 due to federal politics and policies, its economy slumped and there was much unemployment. Chong Eu went on an industrialisation drive, setting up free industrial zones and going abroad to attract foreign direct investment.

In doing so, he set the pace for the rest of the country. And today, the manufacturing industry is a major contributor to the country’s economy.

Feeling that federal agencies might be slow or might disrupt his plans – Gerakan was then in the opposition at federal level – he established the Penang Development Corporation (PDC) to spearhead his vision of developing the state.

He faced much opposition, as few could understand his vision. His plan to build the Penang Bridge was criticised, as was his effort to turn the Bayan Lepas airport into an international airport.

His urban renewal programme centred around a high-story building (Komtar) to house the chief minister’s office and government departments also came under fire.

But he went ahead. And today, people are happy with these and other developments such as the townships of Bayan Baru on the island and Seberang Jaya on the mainland.

If Penang is developed today, if it is a modern, thriving state, it is largely due to the foundations laid by Chong Eu. And in this he was helped by a team of dedicated implementers such as Chet Singh, who headed the PDC, and the vocal people of Penang.

Chong Eu, who died on Nov 24, 2010, would have been 105 years old today. - FMT

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.