Ms Pang Cheng Lian was Singapore’s Non-Resident Ambassador to Italy in 1997 and concurrently in 1998 to Switzerland till 2004.
She has played an active role in promoting Chinese culture and traditions, and edited the book “50 Years of the Chinese Community in Singapore.”
In this article, she remembers the life of Mr Tang See Chim, pioneering PAP MP for Chua Chu Kang, who passed away on 15th Aug 2026 at the age of 94.
By Pang Cheng Lian
Today we lost another PAP veteran of the Pioneer Generation.
Tang See Chim left us as quietly as he had lived his 94 years. Though he had led an active life in politics, in the legal and social communities as well as the boards of many companies, See Chim was not one to broadcast his personal achievements.
Long before I met the man, See Chim had been described to me as an “Anglicised Chinaman”. Born in Kong Mun (江门) in Guangdong, China, he studied law in London. He returned to Singapore with a clipped English accent and a special fondness for “English breakfast tea”. However, I discovered that below his Anglophile veneer See Chim was a man steeped in Chinese culture and literature.
He was well versed in the 300 Tang poems (唐 诗 三 百 首), and was prone to recite them, in Cantonese! A member of, and a regular attendee of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, See Chim was equally enthusiastic about Chinese performing arts, especially Cantonese opera. In short, he was the proverbial WOG (Westernised Oriental Gentleman.)
If I have to use a Chinese word to describe the man, I would choose 忠 a Chinese adjective for loyalty. See Chim was loyal to his country, his party, his relatives and his friends.
A Pioneer Generation member of the PAP, he was elected as Member of Parliament for the Choa Chu Kang constituency in 1966, shortly after his return from London. (He had been roped into the democratic socialist cause by Dr Goh Keng Swee during his student days in the UK). He served the constituency for 22 years.
In the course of his public service he was Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Finance (1968-70), Minister of State in the Ministry of Finance (1970-72) and Deputy Speaker of Parliament (1972-81).
Recalling his early days as MP over dinner a few years ago, See Chim noted that Choa Chu Kang was then a rural constituency. Pig farming and fish and prawn breeding were the main businesses in the area. Because the sprawling constituency had 15 community centres his evenings were virtually all spent on grassroots work.
Appreciation from grateful constituents was mainly expressed in the form of fresh fish and eggs.
His legal expertise was put to good use by the PAP and other civic organisations. He helped draft the constitution of the Party’s philanthropic arm, the PAP Foundation, as well as the M&AA’s of the Dover Park Hospice and the Centre for Active Recreation for Elders (CARE).
CARE was started by his good friend and old comrade-in-arms, Ong Pang Boon. See Chim was its staunch supporter, serving as its Legal Adviser and generous donor at all its fund-raising activities.
I met See Chim in the Eighties, after he had stepped down as Member of Parliament. As we both worked in the Raffles Place vicinity, lunches were easily arranged. Our meals led to several happy holidays with his wife Chor Hiap and mutual friends.
Throughout our five decades of friendship, I never once heard See Chim criticize his party. He was steadfast in his pride of the PAP for building up Singapore’s growth and development.
When the first PAP Chairman Dr Toh Chin Chye stepped down from public office, See Chim continued to treat the old leader with utmost respect. During our meals together, Dr Toh was wont to scold his fellow diners (including See Chim). See Chim always kept his peace at the unwarranted rebukes.
He was also very loyal to his relatives and friends. Once, while we were on a Mediterranean cruise, he was informed of the demise of his brother-in-law Goh Kee Song. See Chim promptly asked me to help him book his flight home. He and his wife would forego the sights of Barcelona to bid farewell to his brother-in-law.
My admiration for the man went up several notches in 1994 when he donated the Tang Peng Yeu Professorship of Accountancy and Finance in NUS.
See Chim’s parents had died while he was still young, and his accountant uncle, Tang Peng Yeu had been his pillar of support right up to his studies in London. It was his way of giving thanks to his benefactor.
饮 水 思 原 , always remember the source of the water you drink, was See Chim’s life-long philosophy.
