Longest-serving civil servant passes away
GEORGE TOWN: For many years, he was the man to approach if one wanted to have a meeting with the Penang chief minister.
And when there was something that needed doing at the chief minister’s office and nobody knew how to go about it, he was the man to ask.
He was also so steadfast in his duties that on any given day it would be a surprise if he did not answer his phone.
The mild-mannered, soft-spoken Ong See Fook was private secretary to three of Penang’s chief ministers. He had dedicated 61 years of his life as a civil servant.
The longest-serving civil servant in Malaysia breathed his last at the age of 83 on Wednesday. He succumbed to prostate cancer.
He went on medical leave last month when the doctors ordered him to take bed rest.
Ong’s wife, Lim Chooi Bee, 80, said his cancer was diagnosed in late July during a health check.
“My son and I decided not to let him know the diagnosis so that he could spend the last moments of his life doing what he wanted.
“His cancer was discovered too late. He was hospitalised for the last time on Monday. He did not suffer much before he passed away,” Chooi Bee said at the wake in Gelugor yesterday.
She said her husband started his civil service in 1956 in the then Penang Municipal Council during the tenure of Penang’s first chief minister Tan Sri Wong Pow Nee.
She said he was recruited to work as a personal aide to Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu and continued serving in the chief minister’s office under Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon, followed by Lim Guan Eng.
Ong contemplated retiring many times but he could never resist renewing his contract every time, she said.
“He was a quiet man and kept his work life separate. He had so much passion for his work. Even when The Star approached him for an interview about his career last year, he said he would only do it after he retired and not before, out of professionalism,” she said.
Also sad at Ong’s passing was Dr Koh, who described him as one of the most dedicated persons he had ever worked with.
“He was extremely hardworking, meticulous and sworn to confidentiality.
“By the time I left the chief minister’s office in 2008, Ong was already 74 years old.
“He was, by then, the longest serving person in any government office in the country,” he said
He added that he knew Ong for more than 35 years.
Guan Eng, who was also at the wake, said his office kept wanting Ong to stay on because of his excellent service.
“He was working right to the end, until the final month when he was not well,” he said.
Ong’s wake is at the family home at No. 24, Cangkat Minden Jalan 12, Gelugor.
The cortege will leave for the Batu Gantong Crematorium at 2pm today.