|
ST FILE PHOTO: LIM SIN THAI
|
THE sudden death of MP Ong Chit Chung stunned grassroots leaders, Members of Parliament and former colleagues, as many of them had spent time with him over the weekend.
He had looked well, they said, recounting their encounters with the 59-year-old before his death early yesterday morning.
Last Friday night, Dr Ong was, as usual, at his weekly Meet-The-People session.
The next day, he was all smiles at a dinner that toasted the teachers of the PAP Community Foundation kindergarten in his Bukit Batok ward.
On Sunday afternoon, less than 24 hours before he died, he played a round of golf with some MPs.
One of them, Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts Lee Boon Yang, told The Straits Times: 'Dr Ong was in great spirits. He did not mention any discomfort throughout the 18-hole round. There was no indication that he had any health problem.
'In fact, he played well and hit many excellent long straight drives off the tee-box. We enjoyed ourselves.'
As news of Dr Ong's death spread, grassroots leaders headed for his home off Bukit Timah Road to help his family with the funeral arrangements. Those interviewed recalled his tireless devotion to the residents of Bukit Batok, where he had served since 1988.
Said Mr Peter Yeo, chairman of its Citizens' Consultative Committee: 'He was very popular with the residents. He was very helpful and did things fast. When you ask for his help, he'd do what he could straightaway. He didn't waste time.'
Mr Yeo, 59, who had known Dr Ong for more than 10 years, also said he had appeared fine at last Saturday's community event: 'He even talked about a trip to the United States he was planning for his grassroots leaders this year.'
Dr Ong, a five-term MP, was very diligent about his Meet-The-People sessions, said Mr Chan Wee Lee, a Jurong town council manager in charge of Bukit Batok since 2001.
'He'd make sure he saw all the residents personally. He'd come around 8pm and go home around midnight,' said Mr Chan, 41.
Like the other grassroots leaders, he ticked off a list of projects Dr Ong had implemented for his constituents.
In 2001, he introduced free daily dinners for about 100 needy people.
He started a bursary scheme for about 200 to 300 students from lower-income families who did not qualify for Edusave bursaries. which give $150 to $400 to students with good grades from lower-income homes.
Last year, he had 10 plasma TV sets, each 43-inch wide, installed at senior citizen's corners.
Dr Ong, however, was a man who shunned the limelight when it came to highlighting such achievements, said his grassroots leaders.
In a rare interview with The Straits Times in 1992, a year after he became Parliamentary Secretary (Home Affairs and Labour), he said he did not harbour political ambitions.
'I would never have asked, nor was I promised. It is not in my nature to demand or ask for such things. If it comes, it comes,' he said of his promotion.
He stayed low-key for much of his 20-year career in politics, focusing almost entirely on his constituency work.
In 1993, he left the frontbench and the National University of Singapore, where he was a history professor. He joined the private sector, and among the companies he led were listed food company QAF and pharmaceutical manufacturer Davos Life Science.
Though he is best known by the public as a serious, scholarly MP who made speeches on defence and foreign policy, parliamentary colleagues like Mr Zainul Abidin Rasheed paid tribute to his softer side.
Said Mr Zainul, Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs: 'I loved to personally send him Malay 'lapis' cake and pineapple tarts for Chinese New Year; he sent me flowers every Hari Raya.'
Dr Ong leaves behind his wife Peck Eng and two sons, a lawyer and a bank executive.
The family has asked that instead of wreaths, donations be made by cheque to the PAP Community Foundation Bukit Batok Branch, 'in memory of his service to the residents of Bukit Batok'.
jeremyau@sph.com.sg
chinlian@sph.com.sg
Read also: Is by-election needed by law?
|
