PATRIOTIC FIRE KEEPS EX-PILOT GOING 36 YEARS ON
Former RMAF brigadier-general now focuses on safeguarding public interest
HE took five bullets, with countless others missing him narrowly, while piloting a helicopter to ferry troops and supplies in a hostile environment at the Malaysian-Thai border.
But to a young captain, preserving the nation’s interests against the threat of communist terrorists overcame his fear of being killed in action by enemy ground fire while flying the Nuri or Sikorsky S-61.
That patriotic fire kept burning for Brigadier-General (Rtd) Datuk Goh Seng Toh to clock 36 years with the Royal Malaysian Air Force.
“There were other occasions when I, just like many other Malaysian soldiers, could have lost my life and become another number.
“But we soldiered on, knowing that our services were needed to preserve the nation’s sovereignty,” said Goh, 72, who is not resting easy. He still serves society.
For one, he is the National House Buyers Association (NHBA) vice-president, looking after the interests of the public in owning properties.
The other is as proprietor of Uncle Lim’s chain of cafes where he provides jobs for locals and foreigners.
Looking back, Goh said he was proud to be part of the many young men who took the challenge to serve the nation at the height of the communist terrorist insurgency, the Emergency and the Confrontation with Indonesia, in the 1960s to the 1980s.
These were the men who risked their lives to keep the nation’s security, peace and sovereignty intact.
“All said and done, I reckon it was the duty of each able-bodied citizen to contribute to safeguard the interests of our nation.
“I am glad to have done so to stand up and be counted, just like thousands of others, including foreign soldiers, to defend our country,” said Goh in an interview in conjunction with the 60th National Day celebration.
Goh graduated as a pilot officer (now second lieutenant) from the RMAF flying school in Alor Star, Kedah, in 1966, where he received his “wings” from then deputy prime minister and defence minister Tun Abdul Razak Hussein (who later became the second prime minister), the father of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
Asked how he got involved with the NHBA and Uncle Lim’s, Goh said rather than contributing cash blindly to charities, he wanted to do so in a more meaningful manner.
“For instance, NHBA provides an avenue for buyers to voice their grievances, from abandoned projects to shoddily constructed homes and joint management issues.
“I am part of a team of volunteers trying to put the industry in a more orderly, professional and fair fashion by providing counselling and legal advice,” he said.
Uncle Lim’s, he added, was an avenue to keep himself active and to provide quality food and beverage services, apart from employment for many.
“Generations like mine have gone through the struggles of earning a decent living.
“I want to pass on my experience and talent to the younger ones so that they can prosper, too.”
Goh operates the cafes at Subang Parade, Ikana Power Centre at Mutiara Damansara, Mydin Mall Subang Jaya and at klia2 in Sepang, offering jobs for nearly 100 people over the last 13 years.
He has put in his succession plan where his son, Kah Lyn, is in the driver’s seat, running the cafe’s operations.
“I describe my role now as that of a minister mentor.
“I am very glad that throughout my career, I have been fortunate to have a perfectly understanding and supportive wife in Datin Lim Boey Hoy.”