Andrew Fong Sip Chee, (; 28 June 1938 – 5 December 1992) was a Singaporean politician. A member of the

People's Action Party The People's Action Party (PAP) is a major Conservatism, conservative political party in Singapore and is the governing contemporary political party represented in the Parliament of Singapore, followed by the opposition Workers' Party of Singap ...

(PAP), Fong served as the Minister of State for Culture from 1981 to 1985, the Member of Parliament (MP) representing Stamford Constituency from 1963 to 1976, and the MP representing

Kampong Chai Chee Constituency Kampong Chai Chee Constituency was a single member constituency within Bedok, Singapore. It was carved from Tampines and Siglap divisions in prior to 1968 general election as the population in Bedok grows. In 1988, the constituency was merged into ...

from 1977 to 1988. Fong also served as the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Culture and to the Ministry of Labour from 1963 to 1971 and 1972, respectively, and the Senior Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Labour from 1972 to 1981.

Early life

Fong was born on 28 June 1938 in the

Straits Settlements The Straits Settlements () were a group of British territories located in Southeast Asia. Originally established in 1826 as part of the territories controlled by the British East India Company, the Straits Settlements came under control of the ...

and attended

Beatty Secondary School Beatty Secondary School is a co-educational government secondary school in Toa Payoh, Singapore. It was established in 1953 along Beatty Road and moved to its current site in Toa Payoh in 1982. It educates deaf students who must use sign language ...

. Before joining politics, Fong served as a housing expert.

Career

He made his political debut at the 1963 general election, contesting for Member of Parliament (MP) representing Stamford Constituency against Teo Hock Guan of

Barisan Sosialis Barisan Sosialis (BS), also known as the Socialist Front, is a defunct left-wing political party in Singapore. It was formed on 29 July 1961 and was officially registered on 13 August 1961 by the leftist faction of the People's Action Party (PA ...

, Lim Chung Min of United People's Party, and Lal Behari Singh of

Singapore Alliance Party The Singapore Alliance Party (abbreviation: SAP), or simply the Singapore Alliance, was a political alliance in Singapore. It was formed on 2 June 1961 with the support of the ruling Alliance Party in Malaya along with the leader of the oppositi ...

. He was elected with 53.27% of the vote. In the 1968 general election, Fong contested for MP of Stamford Constituency again, being elected unopposed. He also headed a 21-member study mission to 4 other Asian countries, Thailand, Cambodia, Hong Kong, and Japan. During the 1972 general election, he contested for MP of Stamford Constituency again, against Chiang Seok Keong of

Workers' Party Workers' Party is a name used by several political parties throughout the world. The name has been used by both organisations on the left and right of the political spectrum. It is currently used by followers of Marxism, Marxism–Leninism, Maoism ...

(WP), where he won with 71.77% of the vote. He was also appointed

Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Labour Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Labour was a junior position within the British government, subordinate to the Minister of Labour. It was established in December 1916, at the same time as the Ministry of Labour. When the Ministry of La ...

and Senior Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Labour. In the 1976 general election, after the dissolution of Stamford Constituency, Fong contested for MP of

against

J. B. Jeyaretnam Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam (; 5 January 1926 – 30 September 2008), better known as J. B. Jeyaretnam or by his initials JBJ, was a Singaporean politician and lawyer who served as secretary-general of the opposition Workers' Party from 1971 to ...

from WP. He won with 59.92% of the vote. In the next general election, he contested for MP of Kampong Chai Chee Constituency again, against Leong Yew Thong of

United Front A united front is an alliance of groups against their common enemies, figuratively evoking unification of previously separate geographic fronts or unification of previously separate armies into a front. The name often refers to a political and/ ...

, where he was elected with 81.22% of the vote. In 1980, he wrote a book titled ''The PAP Story – the Pioneering Years'', about the history of the PAP. At the 1984 general election, Fong contested for MP of Kampong Chai Chee Constituency again, against Seow Khee Leng of

Singapore United Front The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is a political party in Singapore. It was founded by former Workers' Party (WP) Assistant Secretary-General Seow Khee Leng in 1973. History and political development On 16 March 1973, Seow Khee Leng and ...

. He was elected with 57.16% of the vote. He retired from politics in 1988.

Personal life

In 1990, Fong was awarded the

Pingat Jasa Gemilang The Pingat Jasa Gemilang () is a Singaporean national honour and medal instituted in 1962. It may be awarded to any person who has performed "''service of conspicuous merit characterised by resource and devotion to duty, including long service ...

. His son, Arthur Fong, went on to be a banker and politician.

Death

On 5 December 1992, Fong died of lung cancer at the

Singapore General Hospital Singapore General Hospital (SGH) is an academic health science centre and tertiary referral hospital in Singapore. It is located next to the Bukit Merah and Chinatown districts of the Central Region, close to the Outram Community Hospital (O ...

. He was survived by his wife, two sons, two daughters-in-law, and a granddaughter. He had been admitted to the hospital on 12 October, having stayed there till his death.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fong, Sip Chee Year of birth uncertain 20th-century Singaporean politicians 1992 deaths Deaths from lung cancer in Singapore Members of the Parliament of Singapore Recipients of the Pingat Jasa Gemilang People's Action Party politicians 1938 births