Datuk Wira Poh Ah Tiam Machap Recreational Park

Datuk Wira Poh Ah Tiam (; April 1, 1952 – March 15, 2007) was a

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...

, businessman and community leader of

Chinese descent Overseas Chinese () refers to people of Chinese birth or ethnicity who reside outside Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan. As of 2011, there were over 40.3 million overseas Chinese. Terminology () or ''Hoan-kheh'' () in Hokkien, ref ...

. Poh was born in Kampung Belimbing, near

Durian Tunggal Durian Tunggal is a mukim and town in Alor Gajah District, Malacca, Malaysia, which is situated within the parliamentary constituency of Hang Tuah Jaya. Education * Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka (Main campus) * Skill-Tech Institute * SMK D ...

, Malacca. He and his family moved to nearby

Machap Baru Machap Baru, with an estimated population of 16,000, is a small town in Alor Gajah District, Malacca, Malaysia. Local restaurants, which serve exotic game, such as wild boar, deer, monitor lizards and snakes are often monitored by the Malaysian W ...

, where Poh in later years contributed significantly to the small town's development. After working as a

teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...

and later venturing into business, Poh stood as a state assembly candidate for

Pulau Sebang Pulau Sebang is a mukim and town in Alor Gajah District, Malacca, Malaysia, which borders Tampin town of Tampin District, Negeri Sembilan. Infrastructures * Aleyah Kuala Ina Mosque * Mydin Pulau Sebang * SMK Sultan Mansor Shah Transportati ...

in the 1986 General Elections and won, beginning his political career. He was the Malacca state

Malaysian Chinese Association The Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA; zh, 马来西亚华人公会; ; ta, மலேசிய சீனர் சங்கம், initially known as the Malayan Chinese Association) is a uni-racial political party in Malaysia that seeks to ...

(MCA) and the Malacca State Housing and Local Government Committee Chairman, as well as the Malacca state assemblyman for Pulau Sebang (1986-1995), Bukit Sedanan (1995-2004) and

Machap :''This is not to be confused of Machap Baru of Melaka.'' Machap is a mukim in Kluang District, Johor, Malaysia. It is known for its pottery factories and though it has some pottery shops, there are not as many as in Ayer Hitam. Geography The ...

(2004-2007). During his tenure, the Machap Baru town saw extensive development, with new

housing Housing, or more generally, living spaces, refers to the construction and assigned usage of houses or buildings individually or collectively, for the purpose of shelter. Housing ensures that members of society have a place to live, whether i ...

and public facilities constructed. Poh died on 15 March 2007 at the Pantai Hospital Malacca due to

renal failure Kidney failure, also known as end-stage kidney disease, is a medical condition in which the kidneys can no longer adequately filter waste products from the blood, functioning at less than 15% of normal levels. Kidney failure is classified as eit ...

arising from

lymphatic cancer Lymphoma is a group of blood and lymph tumors that develop from lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell). In current usage the name usually refers to just the cancerous versions rather than all such tumours. Signs and symptoms may include enlar ...

, triggered a by-election in Machap on 12 April 2007, which elects Lai Meng Chong of

Barisan Nasional The National Front ( ms, Barisan Nasional; abbrev: BN) is a political coalition of Malaysia that was founded in 1973 as a coalition of centre-right and right-wing political parties. It is also the third largest political coalition with 30 ...

as its assemblyman. Following his death, a highway and a recreational park in

were built and named after him to commemorate his contribution to the state.

Election results

References

1952 births 2007 deaths Malaysian politicians of Chinese descent Malaysian Chinese Association politicians Members of the Malacca State Legislative Assembly {{Malaysia-politician-stub