Chicken curry, evening drives and Kuching’s white cat: Song Swee Guan’s family remembers the man behind the mayor

Datuk Song Swee Guan, a revered Sarawakian statesman, is remembered by his family and community as a dedicated and selfless individual who achieved a harmonious balance between his professional duties and familial responsibilities.

Song held several key positions including Padungan assemblyman, Bandar Kuching MP, DUN Speaker, and Kuching South's inaugural mayor.

Despite his commitments, he remained deeply devoted to caring for his parents and was known for his culinary skills and love for cats.

He passed away peacefully, leaving behind a legacy of service and compassion.

KUCHING, Oct 5 — Sarawakian statesman Datuk Song Swee Guan has been remembered as a selfless and caring man who was able to balance between work and family.

Grieving family members remember the former assemblyman, MP, State Legislative Assembly (DUN) Speaker, and Kuching South’s first mayor as someone who quietly sacrificed so much for others.

According to Song’s niece Kaylene Tan, his dedication to his work and selfless care for his parents kept him single.

“I believe he was a very good son. My grandfather – his father – was bedridden for many years and he would look after him, especially when he was unwell at night. When he needed attention at night, my uncle would go there and help him and look after him.

“I was still very little at that time, but what was amazing was that he was able to balance his service to the community in Kuching as well as his parents effortlessly. And he never brought the work home,” she told The Borneo Post at her uncle’s wake.

Tan said when Song was at home, he was fully focused on the family, his parents, cooking, and having a laugh with them.

“Years later, after my grandfather passed away, my uncle continued caring for my grandmother. He made sure she ate well, that she had company, made sure that she was driven from place to place. So, he was a very good son,” she said.

Reflecting on her uncle’s lesser-known qualities, she revealed that he loved to cook, noting that he cooked delicious chicken curry and kacang ma.

She said Song used to bring her sister, brother, grandmother, and herself for long evening drives around Kuching city.

“He was like a hero. Whenever he stopped at the shops or the wet markets, he said: ‘I don’t want to go out,’ from the car because he would be ‘flooded’ by all these hawkers.

“And that was during his time as the mayor. He was very popular with the people,” she recalled.

She also shared that Song loved cats and theorised on the inspiration behind the famous white cat statue in Padungan.

“You know that white cat statue? At the time when it was launched back then, my grandmother had a white cat.

“I’m not so sure if the white cat statue was inspired by the white cat,” Tan said.

Tan’s mother Song Chai Kim remembered how close she and her older brother were.

“Oh, we had a very happy childhood together, played together, did a lot of things together. We were very close.

“He went overseas to study at a very young age, then I got married and I’ve been staying in Singapore since then.

“Despite the distance, we still managed to maintain a close relationship. We were a very close family,” she said.

Song’s foster son Sim Min Min said they often spent time together over coffee.

“We were close. He was like a father figure to me, and he considered me as a son.

“He was a well-mannered man who loved to help people and he would try to help them however he could,” Sim said.

He added for the past 20 years, Song had been an active hiker until he suffered mobility issues.

Song was appointed a councillor of the Kuching Municipal Council (KMC) in 1981 before becoming its chairman in 1982.

He led the council until 1988 and subsequently became the founding mayor of Kuching South in August that year, following the delineation and establishment of Kuching South.

Song served for four terms as Padungan assemblyman from 1983 to 2001 and as Bandar Kuching MP from 1995 to 2003.

He was also DUN Speaker from 1996 to 2000.

He passed away peacefully on Sunday at 3.30pm at Sarawak General Hospital. — The Borneo Post

* Editor’s note: DUN is an abbreviation in Malay for Dewan Undangan Negeri, or the State Legislative Assembly.

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备受尊敬的砂拉越政治家拿督宋瑞源，被他的家人和社区铭记为一位尽职尽责、无私奉献的人，他在职业职责和家庭责任之间取得了和谐的平衡。

宋先生曾担任多个重要职务，包括巴都干州议员、古晋市国会议员、州议会议长和古晋南市首任市长。

尽管他肩负重任，但他仍然全心全意地照顾父母，并且以精湛的厨艺和对猫的喜爱而闻名。

他安详地离世，留下了奉献和仁爱的精神遗产。

古晋，10月5日讯——砂拉越政治家拿督宋瑞源被人们铭记为一位无私奉献、关爱他人，并能平衡工作与家庭的人。

悲痛的家人回忆起这位前州议员、国会议员、州议会议长和古晋南区首任市长，称他是一位默默为他人做出巨大牺牲的人。

据宋的侄女凯琳·谭说，他对工作的奉献和对父母的无私奉献使他终身未婚。

“我相信他是个非常好的儿子。我的祖父——他的父亲——卧床多年，他会照顾他，尤其是在他晚上身体不舒服的时候。每当祖父晚上需要人照顾时，我的叔叔就会去帮助他、照顾他。”

“那时我还很小，但最让我惊讶的是，他能够轻松地平衡在古晋社区的服务和对父母的责任。而且他从不把工作带回家，”她在叔叔的守灵仪式上告诉《婆罗洲邮报》。

谭说，宋在家的时候，全身心都放在家人、父母身上，忙着做饭，和他们一起说说笑笑。

“多年后，祖父去世后，叔叔继续照顾祖母。他确保她吃得好，有人陪伴，并安排人接送她出行。所以，他是个非常好的儿子，”她说。

回想起叔叔一些不为人知的品质，她透露他喜欢烹饪，并指出他做的鸡肉咖喱和卡昌玛都非常美味。

她说，宋以前经常带着她的妹妹、弟弟、奶奶和她一起在古晋市里进行长时间的夜间兜风。

“他就像个英雄。每当他停在商店或菜市场时，他都会从车里说：‘我不想出去’，因为他会被所有这些小贩‘包围’。

“那是在他担任市长期间。他非常受民众爱戴，”她回忆道。

她还透露宋很喜欢猫，并推测了巴东岸著名的白猫雕像背后的灵感来源。

“你知道那座白猫雕像吗？它落成的时候，我奶奶养了一只白猫。”

“我不太确定这座白猫雕像是否是以白猫为原型创作的，”谭说道。

谭的母亲宋彩金回忆起她和哥哥之间亲密的关系。

“哦，我们一起度过了非常快乐的童年，一起玩耍，一起做了很多事情。我们关系非常亲密。”

“他很小的时候就出国留学，后来我结婚了，之后就一直住在新加坡。”

“尽管相隔遥远，我们仍然保持着密切的关系。我们是一个非常亲密的家庭，”她说。

宋的养子沈敏敏说，他们经常一起喝咖啡。

“我们关系很亲密。他就像我的父亲一样，也把我当成儿子一样看待。”

“他是一位彬彬有礼、乐于助人的人，总是尽其所能地帮助别人，”西姆说道。

他还补充说，在过去的 20 年里，宋一直是一位活跃的徒步旅行者，直到他出现行动不便的问题。

宋先生于 1981 年被任命为古晋市议会 (KMC) 议员，并于 1982 年成为市议会主席。

他领导该委员会直至 1988 年，随后在古晋南区划定和成立后，于同年 8 月成为古晋南区的首任市长。

宋先生曾于 1983 年至 2001 年担任巴都干州议员四届，并于 1995 年至 2003 年担任古晋市国会议员四届。

1996年至2000年，他还担任过敦拉巴坦议会议长。

他于周日下午3点30分在砂拉越中央医院安详辞世。——《婆罗洲邮报》

* 编辑注：DUN 是马来语 Dewan Undangan Negeri（州立法议会）的缩写。

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