OBITUARY ON THE LATE DR YEOH GHIM SENG AND THE LATE DR TAY ENG SOON

The Leader of the House (Mr Wong Kan Seng): Mr Speaker, Sir, we are sojourners on this earth. No day is promised to any of us. For so long as we are on this earth, we try to make the best use of our time, in the best way that we could. Many of us would use that time for ourselves, for our families. That is to be expected. Some would simply waste it, but then that is their own look out, as it is their life. But there are some who not only make full use of their time and life for themselves and their families, they also give much of their time to others. They give to others more than they receive. Dr Yeoh Ghim Seng, our former Speaker, and Dr Tay Eng Soon, our former colleague, were two such rare individuals.

Dr Yeoh Ghim Seng passed away on 3rd June this year, after a period of illness. Dr Yeoh was elected as MP for Joo Chiat in 1966, during the turbulent years of early independent Singapore. He had remained as a Member for Joo Chiat constituency until the

1988 General Elections. He retired after serving nearly 22 years for the nation.

Within less than two years of being elected as an MP for Joo Chiat, Dr Yeoh was elected as Deputy Speaker in July 1968, and then as Speaker in January 1970, an appointment he held until January 1989. As our longest serving Speaker from 1970 to 1989, he guided Singapore through one of its most constructive phases of development.

For those of us who were in this House when Dr Yeoh Ghim Seng was the Speaker, we fondly remember him as a Speaker who exercised his responsibility with fairness and firmness. He brought decorum, dignity and esteem to the office of Speaker. He had always been indulgent and patient with the Members.

Dr Yeoh was not only well-known for his distinguished contribution to Singapore as a Parliamentarian and Speaker but was also renowned for his excellent surgical skills in the medical fraternity in Singapore and in the region. He was the first Singaporean to be appointed Professor of Surgery at the then University of Malaya in 1955. Because of his contribution to medicine in Singapore, a Yeoh Ghim Seng Professorship in Surgery was instituted in his name by his former students and well-wishers.

Dr Yeoh had not only won the respect of this House but also that of all Singaporeans. We send our deepest condolence to the family of the late Dr Yeoh.

As for Dr Tay Eng Soon, his death came as a shock to me when I heard of it at Parliament Annexe on 5th August this year. Some of our MPs who were with me at the time were equally shocked and saddened by the news.

Dr Tay was first elected to Parliament in 1980 in the constituency of River Valley. With the changes in the constituency boundaries, Dr Tay was supposed to contest in Tanglin in the 1988 General Elections. However, the call of duty demanded a last minute switch for him to lead the PAP team to contest in the Eunos GRC. Like any of our PAP's loyal and dedicated members, he stoutly took on the task. He knew that it was a tough fight but he took it in his stride. Dr Tay and his team won the 1988 General Elections in Eunos. They continued to toil the ground and improved the percentage of votes in 1991.

Dr Tay made significant contributions in education, in particular, technical education. But Dr Tay's contribution was not just confined to education only. He held a number of other posts. He found time to serve in the PAP Community Foundation and the National Kidney Foundation. With his departure from this world, he left many vacancies to be filled.

Dr Tay's dedication to his work, constituency and family is known to all of us. Even when Dr Tay was in hospital, his mind was still on his work. Colleagues who had visited him in the hospital would testify to the fact that Dr Tay would discuss affairs of state with them despite the pain that he was suffering. Even when he was in hospital just before his death, he was preparing his National Day speech for his constituency's National Day Dinner which he had hoped to attend. But, alas, he could not keep that appointment because his illness overcame him. We send our deepest condolence to Dr Tay's bereaved family.

On behalf of the Members, I would like to place on record the appreciation of this House for the significant contributions of both Dr Yeoh Ghim Seng and Dr Tay Eng Soon. We mourn their loss.

Mr Speaker: As a mark of respect to the late Dr Yeoh Ghim Seng and the late Dr Tay Eng Soon, I propose that the House observe a two-minute silence.

The House rose and paid respect.