TWO days after my father passed on, I decided to write an e-mail
to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. I remember my mother telling me
that my father had served with the Prime Minister in the army.
Even as I composed the e-mail, I felt sillier by the minute.
'Message for Prime Minister Lee', the header read. 'Dear Prime
Minister Lee, I don't know if you remember a ...'
What in the world was I thinking? Nonetheless, I completed the
note and e-mailed it, not expecting a response. Two days later, I
received a call from the Prime Minister's secretary informing me
that Mr Lee had read my e-mail and would like to send a letter to
my family, and could we furnish him with our address.
We had expected a short note written on a card. So we were taken
aback when we received a full-page letter from the Prime Minister
addressed to my mother. It detailed what Mr Lee remembered of my
father, whom he described as 'an old friend'. The letter gave my
mother a welcome respite from her grief and my siblings felt a
renewed sense of pride in dad.
I felt deeply gratified that Mr Lee spared the time to pen a
letter of comfort to an ordinary family like mine, living in a
Housing Board flat, and that he remembered a man who was of humble
background with such detail.
He has shown me that he is a prime minister who governs not only
with his head, but also with his heart.
Yvonne Tang (Ms)
What PM Lee wrote
Dear Mdm Lam,
I was saddened to learn from your daughter, Yvonne, that your
husband, Maj (Ret) Tang Seng Koong, had passed away. Please accept
my sincere condolences.
Seng Koong was my OC in Bravo Company OCS in 1971, when I was an
officer cadet in Safti. I had joined the course late, together with
the other SAF scholars in my batch. Seng Koong took a personal
interest in us, helping us to settle in and get up to speed. He
mentored us, taking some lessons himself, and accompanying us on
field exercises. I have an image in my mind of him walking ahead of
me along a path, in his helmet and skeleton battle order, carrying
a little pack on his back. He cared for the cadets under his
charge. He seldom raised his voice, and never flaunted his
authority over us. But he always demanded high standards of us, as
he did of himself.
Later, Seng Koong became chief of security at MediaCorp. I would
meet him from time to time when I went to the MediaCorp studios at
Caldecott Hill for events or to record TV programmes. We would chat
a little. It was always good to catch up with an old friend, and
see him well.
You must feel Seng Koong's loss keenly. I hope the memory of
your happy times together will comfort and sustain you. Our
thoughts and prayers are with you and your family at this difficult
time.
With deepest sympathies,
Yours sincerely
Lee Hsien Loong
