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Bock Tai Hee (莫泰熙, 1944-2023) was one of the best executive directors
that the Malaysian Chinese education movement has ever had. He was CEO of
the Secretariat of Dong Zong (United Chinese School Committees’ Association
of Malaysia) from 1985 to 2005.
“Laomo” (‘Old Bock’ was the affectionate English name I gave him which he
liked!), to his comrades in the movement, called himself the “Gardener of
Malaysian Chinese Education” (华教的园丁) after he had retired from his post
at the Dong Zong (DZ) Secretariat - He started a passionate journey all over
the country as the tireless raconteur recounting “The story of Malaysian
Chinese Education”, planting seeds of mother tongue education in the minds
of students and adults. No other Chinese educationist has embarked on such
an organised mission to cultivate awareness of the history and achievements
of the Malaysian education movement. Fortunately, his stories at the
different venues throughout Malaysia have been filmed and recorded and these
can now be viewed on Youtube.
We have been comrades since 1983 when I joined the Chinese education
movement and he has always been appreciative and supportive of my work,
especially in winning international recognition for the Unified Examination
Certificate and in writing the first history book on the struggles of
Malaysian Chinese Education, ‘A Protean Saga’.
A dedicated and strategic leader
Laomo is without doubt the most dedicated and strategic thinking Chinese
educationist I have ever met. For example, he kept painstaking records of
every meeting, including what each attendee said and even where they each
sat. That is why I look forward to reading Laomo’s soon to be published
memoir which I believe will include some sensational exposes that not many
(including myself) are aware of. After all, he has served in the Secretariat
under the leadership of Lim Fong Seng, Foo Wan Thot, Quek Suan Hiang and Yap
Sin Tian. I believe his observations and analyses of the leadership styles
of these different Dong Jiao Zong leaders provide invaluable insights for
the future of the Malaysian Education Movement.
Laomo nurtured potential young leaders for the movement.
After I left political party life in 1995, the first person to visit me at
home was Laomo, who invited me to rejoin the Chinese Education movement,
this time to organise the application and planning for ‘New Era’ College’,
which was envisioned as the “Son of Merdeka University”. As in 1983, I
thought this was a mission that was both possible to achieve and was also
aligned with my abilities and aspirations, so I said yes.
At the Dong Jiao Zong Education Centre in Kajang, I found that Laomo had
managed to attract a vibrant team of dedicated, talented young graduates who
were committed to the cause. He clearly placed a high value on people,
especially the young potential leaders committed to the Chinese education
movement. He invested resources to train these young leaders. It was a
delight to watch them apply their bright ideas, excellent communication, and
positive attitudes to the movement and to education in general. Thus, these
young leaders were provided with ample opportunities to blossom. The
Secretariat’s monthly mass meetings were truly inspiring as Laomo would give
his colleagues the benefit of his experience and point to the situation at
hand. Under Bock Tai Hee, the secretariat of DZ served as the pulse, the
conscience, and the powerhouse of the whole Chinese education movement.
At the campus in Kajang, while I was the principal of New Era College (NEC),
I worked closely with Laomo who oversaw the construction and furnishing of
the three campus buildings – the DZ building, the NEC building and the
hostel block. He also ensured that the campus had a green and cultural
environment to foster the holistic development of tertiary-level students
and mother tongue education. The design of the Kajang campus is largely a
credit to Laomo’s meticulous care and attention.
A big loss to the Chinese Education Movement
Thus, when the Dong Zong chairman Yap Sin Tian purged Bock Tai Hee from his
post as CEO of the Dong Zong Secretariat in 2005, the loss to the Chinese
education movement was not just the excising of Bock Tai Hee from the Dong
Zong Secretariat, but the departure of more than twenty of the most
competent and committed young activists who had served the movement since
the Eighties and Nineties. They left to protest the blatant destruction of
the democratic traditions and working methods of the movement built up by
the former Dong Zong Chairman Lim Fong Seng since the seventies.
Bock Tai Hee’s enduring mark on Malaysian Chinese Education
As the community bids Laomo goodbye, he has left a legacy and a hard act to
follow. He was certainly one of the best CEOs the DZ secretariat has ever
had; he was one of the most dedicated and strategic thinkers of the
Malaysian Chinese education movement; he trained and nurtured many new and
young leaders for the movement, and he has shown through his “Chinese
education stories”, what it takes to be a constant gardener for the
Malaysian Chinese education movement.
Bock Tai Hee is a beacon that shines a light on the way forward for the
Chinese education movement, a movement which calls for the highest qualities
of character from its leaders, namely, being aware of the struggles the
movement has been through; standing firmly by our principles with courage
and being prepared to sacrifice our freedom for our beliefs; being inclusive
in attracting talents into the movement; empowering the people and
emphasising human development rather than subordination to a chain of
command; being good communicators to inspire others, and most important of
all, having a vision for the movement.
We will surely miss you dearly, Laomo, our constant gardener. Rest assured
the young leaders you have nurtured and inspired through the years will keep
the mother tongue garden vibrant and verdant. Rest now, my old friend –
