Ong Pang Boon ( zh, c=王邦文, p=Wáng Bāngwén; born 28 March 1929) is a Singaporean retired politician who served as
Minister for Home Affairs
An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergenc ...
between 1959 and 1963 and again for a short period of time in 1970,
Minister for Education between 1963 and 1970,
Minister for Labour between 1971 and 1981, and
Minister for the Environment between 1981 and 1985.
Early life and education
Born in
Kuala Lumpur
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, Ong attended the
Methodist Boys' School in Kuala Lumpur before enrolling into the
University of Malaya
The University of Malaya ( ms, Universiti Malaya, UM; abbreviated as UM or informally the Malayan University) is a public research university located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It is the oldest and highest ranking Malaysian institution of highe ...
at Singapore campus (now the
National University of Singapore
The National University of Singapore (NUS) is a national public research university in Singapore. Founded in 1905 as the Straits Settlements and Federated Malay States Government Medical School, NUS is the oldest autonomous university in the c ...
), where he studied
geography
Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and ...
.
Political career
In 1955, Ong's foray into politics began as a polling agent for
Lee Kuan Yew
Lee Kuan Yew (16 September 1923 – 23 March 2015), born Harry Lee Kuan Yew, often referred to by his initials LKY, was a Singaporean lawyer and statesman who served as Prime Minister of Singapore between 1959 and 1990, and Secretary-General o ...
in the
1955 legislative assembly election.
In 1956, Lee Kuan Yew wrote to Ong and offered him a job as party organising secretary for the PAP.
He stood for election in the 21 December 1957 for the fully elected
City Council of Singapore The City Council of Singapore was the administrative council of the City of Singapore responsible for the provision of water, electricity, gas, roads and bridges and street lighting.
It was dissolved in 1959 when Singapore attained self-governanc ...
as a candidate for the
Tanjong Pagar
Tanjong Pagar ( alternatively spelled ''Tanjung Pagar'') is a historic district located within the Central Business District in Singapore, straddling the Outram Planning Area and the Downtown Core under the Urban Redevelopment Authority's urb ...
ward and was successfully returned and became the first and only ever Deputy Mayor. He held the post until he resigned in April 1959 to contest the
Legislative Assembly election as the PAP's candidate for
Telok Ayer
Telok Ayer Street is a street located in Singapore's Chinatown within the Outram district, linking Church Street to Cecil Street. Telok Ayer MRT station is located at the junction of Cross Street and this road.
Etymology
Telok Ayer Street w ...
. This was to be the first Legislative Assembly in which all seats were elected. He won the seat, which he retained till his retirement in 1984. He was subsequently appointed as
Minister for Home Affairs
An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergenc ...
in the first self-government
Cabinet
Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to:
Furniture
* Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers
* Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets
* Filing ...
and played a key role to eradicating
yellow culture and crime in Singapore society. His cabinet appointment also made him part of the
Internal Security Council which sanctioned
Operation Coldstore
Operation Coldstore was the code name for a covert security operation executed in Singapore on 2 February 1963 which led to the arrest of 113 people, who were detained without trial pursuant to the Preservation of Public Service Security Ordinan ...
in 1963.
From 1963 to 1970, Ong took on the highly sensitive
Education ministerial portfolio at a time when
Chinese language
Chinese (, especially when referring to written Chinese) is a group of languages spoken natively by the ethnic Han Chinese majority and many minority ethnic groups in Greater China. About 1.3 billion people (or approximately 16% of the wor ...
culture and education issues were highly politicized. By increasing the teaching of English in Chinese schools and vice versa, he was instrumental in laying the foundation for the
bilingual policy for which Singapore is famous.
In 1970, Ong became the
Labour Minister Minister of Labour (in British English) or Labor (in American English) is typically a cabinet-level position with portfolio responsibility for setting national labour standards, labour dispute mechanisms, employment, workforce participation, traini ...
.
In 1980, he took over as the Environment Minister.
In 1984, he stepped down from the Cabinet to make way for younger leaders. However, he displayed some unhappiness at the pace and manner by which he was sidelined from the political scene. He retired from politics in 1988 when his constituency of Telok Ayer was eliminated in the
22 December 1984 general election. Lee recognised Ong's displeasure in a public letter of appreciation:
: “... I agree with you. You also had misgivings (about some newcomers), as had the late Dr
Toh Chin Chye
Toh Chin Chye ( zh, s=杜进才, p=Dù Jìncái; 10 December 1921 – 3 February 2012) was a Singaporean politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore between 1959 and 1968. Toh is widely recognised as one of the founding fa ...
, over the speed of self-renewal and the effect it was having on the morale of the old guard MPs.”
Ong is considered as one of the 'Old Guard' - the first generation of leaders of independent Singapore. He is the sole remaining living member, after
Jek Yeun Thong
Jek Yeun Thong ( zh, s=易润堂, p=Yì Rùntáng; 29 July 1930 – 3 June 2018) was a Singaporean politician who served as Minister for Science and Technology between 1976 and 1977, Minister for Culture between 1968 and 1977 and Minister fo ...
's passing in June 2018.
Philanthropic work
Ong continued to serve the society through his involvement in the community. Ong, who previously served as the vice-chairman of
Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan
Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan (SHHK) (), or the Singapore Hokkien Association in English, is a cultural and educational foundation. It was established in 1840 to promote education, social welfare and the preservation of the Chinese language and cultu ...
in the 2000s, is
currently serving in the Board of Governors of the association.
References
Bibliography
* Lam, Peng Er and Tan, Kevin (Ed.) (2000). ''Lee's lieutenants : Singapore's old guard''. Singapore: Allen & Unwin.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ong, Pang Boon
Members of the Parliament of Singapore
Members of the Dewan Rakyat
Members of the Legislative Assembly of Singapore
People's Action Party politicians
Singaporean people of Hokkien descent
Malaysian emigrants to Singapore
People who lost Malaysian citizenship
Naturalised citizens of Singapore
University of Malaya alumni
1929 births
Living people
Recipients of the Darjah Utama Nila Utama
Environment ministers of Singapore
Ministers for Education of Singapore
Ministers for Home Affairs of Singapore
Ministers for Labour of Singapore
Badminton executives and administrators