By Chet Singh.

TUN DR LIM CHONG EU is one of the greatest sons of Penang. He is a legend, a politician par excellence, but more importantly – a leader who had the vision, boldness and drive to make things happen. He dared to dream of a great future for the state of Penang and its people.

He became Chief Minister of Penang on May 12, 1969 and immediately was confronted by the tragedy of May 13. The way and manner he mobilised the administrative machinery, especially the police force to contain the situation and preserve the peace and security in the state, was indeed remarkable for a two-day-old government. To me in the government service, it was an eye opener and indicative of what to expect with him as Chief Minister.

A few of you will recall that in the late 1960s Penang’s economy and business environment was in the doldrums and the president of the International Chamber of Commerce predicted Penang would end up as a “Fishing Village”. Tun Dr Lim thus faced tremendous challenges and he took all this in his stride. He was at the forefront of activities – understanding the administration, planning and implementing what needed to be done. His priority was to create jobs as the unemployment rate at 16% was extremely high. To do this, he gave priority to developing the industrial sector and promoted exported-oriented manufacturing. This required pioneering the establishment of the Free Trade Zone. Penang was in the process of losing its Free Port status and to the Customs Department the establishment of Free Trade Zones was a back door to perpetuate the Free Port regime. Fortunately, Tun Dr Lim’s standing and stature enabled this concept to be pushed through.

During his tenure as Chief Minister, the Free Trade Zones were very successful and became models for others. However, what was overlooked was that it was visionary leadership and commitment that ensured the success. Tun Dr Lim was one such person who possessed those traits. To add to this, he also had the stamina to work very hard and the charisma to motivate and inspire all those working with him to reach heights and levels of performance they may not have thought possible.

He was always looking out for ideas and knowledge and as such was ever ready to have discussions with those who were experts, knowledgeable and had the experience. He held the view that there was no shame in asking and that one should believe in the goodwill of people. He knew that the support of the people was essential and critical for success. As such, all efforts were made to show the people the rightness of the mission to make Penang a leading state in terms of socio-economic development and how this in turn would not only improve their livelihood but also their quality of life.

At a time when good governance was not a term used freely, Tun Dr Lim had laid out the need for morality in work; honesty and openness to minimise corruption. He also advised that one should not be inhibited by limits for growth as there will always be opportunities for new initiatives for growth.

As a Chief Minister and chairman of the Penang Development Corporation (PDC), he will always be remembered for transforming Penang from its dependence on entrepot business and agriculture to a state that was the choice of investors in manufacturing. When he left office, Penang was a centre for electronics, textiles and tourism. He ensured the state’s economy was not only diversified but deepened – a strong platform for the next generations to build upon. In hindsight, his was a difficult act to follow.

One can go on talking about the economic transformation, but one must remember that Tun Dr Lim had also been described as a scholar, politician, statesman, sportsman and humanist, all rolled into one. Having worked with him and known him as a friend, I found him to be a true Penangite who had a great love for the state, and great admiration for the people of the state for their hard work and their ability to adapt to meet the requirements for technology.

He was proud to be a Malaysian. He was always looking for ways to ensure people live, work and die together as Malaysians within the framework of the Constitution. He would always tell us that “when we drew up and promulgated the Constitution that binds our Nation together, we had carefully taken into focus the fundamental rights of every individual and at the same time recognised the diversity of the ethnic, linguistic and religious roots of the people who make up the Malaysian nation”.

His “Malaysianess” was reflected in all that he did. In the formation of Gerakan, to refl ect this, the slogan adopted was “Satu Hati” (One Heart) – two words that evoke oneness most emotively. In the state’s administration, it was inclusiveness for the benefit of all the citizens; of course those that needed extra attention would receive it as a matter of course. He was, however, very alive to the fact that certain sectors of our people were still clinging to attitudes that were centrifugally inimical to national identity. As such, he advocated the promotion and strengthening of harmony, goodwill and understanding among the people.

Thus, when we look back at the life of Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu, we see nothing but selfl ess devotion to duty for the betterment of our people. His efforts in Penang had an impact on the rest of the country. Some of our people are now calling him the “Father of Industrialisation” but knowing him, he would not readily accept this accolade as he was very modest. He would in turn attribute the success to the efforts of the people – the high human capital potential available in Penang. What he would however admit to would be that he was very good at throwing out ideas but that only some were implementable and that he left it to his team of officers to do this. He believed in team effort and a multidisciplinary approach to do things. This meant nearly everyone in the organisation was involved in the planning, implementation, coordination and evaluation of projects and programmes. It was his way of teaching those who worked with him to have unity in purpose and interact with each other as one. This brought about comradeship and mixing with each other as Malaysians.

All those who worked with him worked very hard because he himself worked very hard. He did not spare himself; he in fact pushed himself to the limit. What many are not aware of is that during this period, Tun Dr Lim had acute spondylosis and he was quite often in pain. But this did not stop him. There was no lett ing up and all he did was to “unclick” his back and continue with what was being done. In spite of pain, he remained focused. With such a leader, the followers themselves rose beyond what they each perceived as their ability or competence. As I look back, this was a remarkable phenomenon that provided Penang with a cutting edge in the planning and implementation of projects and programmes. 

The decade of the 1970s demanded such leadership and Tun Dr Lim was there to answer the call of duty. He knew Penang needed appropriate institutional support, so he established the PDC. He knew that local government needed to be strengthened and its human and financial resources to be optimally used, so he boldly merged the various local councils and the City Council to form two Local Authority Councils – one for the Island and one for the Mainland.

With the advent of information technology, he realised that the stability of nationhood will be tested by the flexibility of global networking. So, he often asked whether we could accommodate these highly flexible and all-invasive factors of the Information Age and globalised cyberspace networking as we continued to develop our Malaysian identity. He was positive and very confident that we could, so long as we followed the tenets of the Rukun Negara and respected the Constitution.

In his era of politics, he was for the system of government through consensus. Consensus to him was a way to strengthen the coexistence of multi-ethnic partisan organisations. As he looked back, he attributed Malaysia’s social economic success to the flexible and widely accommodating principles that have recognised the legitimacy of multi-ethnic minorities as we evolved into a stronger and more cohesive national Malaysian community.

Tun Dr Lim, while appearing to be a workaholic, had time for recreation and relaxation. Once the pains of spondylosis eased, he went back to golf. Being a competitive person, he set himself targets of beating a score of 100, then 90 and finally 85. The day he played below 85, he had an extra beer. He enjoyed good wine, whisky, cigars, a good steak and chapattis and curry.

Lest it be overlooked, he was a family man. Toh Puan Goh Sing-Ying (S.Y.) was a pillar of strength for him. She understood his needs and requirements and was his confidante in most matters. She was at his side through thick and thin. They also made a formidable pair as Contract Bridge players, winning many tournaments. Their children, Chien Aun, Pao Lin, Pao Yen and Chien Chen missed out on his time but understood the time demands on their father. They made the best of the time that was available. However, after retirement, he had time for his grandchildren.

Tun Dr Lim will always be remembered as the man who moved and positioned his state, Penang, as a centre for manufacturing. As Chief Minister, he created a platform for the next generation of political leaders to steer the state as best they could. After he left office, he never once interfered with or commented on what was happening. Having done what he had to do, he just moved on with his life and entered the business and corporate world.

Now, he is moving on, as some would say, to the Heavenly abode.

While one is sad about his demise, considering the full life that he had lived and led, one can also say that it is justifiable to celebrate his life. Be as it may, I take this opportunity to salute you, Chief, and bid you farewell. Personally, it was a privilege and honour to have worked with you and had you as a dear friend.

** Republished with permission. This article first appeared in the January 2011 issue of the Penang Economic Monthly. Chet Singh was the first general manager of the PDC.

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