Wong Ah Fook (1837-1918)

On 11.4.2014, the Johor government announced its intention to turn a 150-year-old mansion at Jalan Lumba Kuda in Johor Bahru into a heritage and cultural museum. On 30.4.2014 the mansion, located on a 2.5-acre private land valued at RM30 million, was demolished by its current owners on the grounds that it was "structurally unsafe". As the mansion was not gazetted as a heritage building, nothing could be legally done to stop the demolition except to penalize the owners for not having a permit to develop, renovate or demolish under the Local Government (Planning and Development) Act 1963.

Wong Ah Fook (c. 1900) (Source: National Museum of Singapore)

Wong Ah Fook's mansion at Jalan Lumba Kuda (Source: The Star Newspaper)

Watercolor painting of Wong Ah Fook's mansion by Taib Aur (Source: ppunlimited.blogspot.com)

Demolition process conducted on the account of it being structurally unsafe. (Source: The Star Newspaper)

Entire building reduced to debris. (Source: The Star Newspaper)

Wong Ah Fook, who once lived at the said mansion, was a well known businessman and philanthropist with business interests in Singapore as well as Johor. A classic rags-to-riches example of many successful Chinese immigrants, Wong came to Singapore in 1854 as an indentured labourer to a carpenter. After working for a year at nominal wages, Wong was free but continued to work with his employer and was given a share of the business after a few years.

He established himself in the constructions business and then ventured into agriculture, revenue farming, gambling, banking and land development. His hard work and enterprising spirit paid off, making him a successful, influential businessman who developed close links with the Johor Sultanate. He was appointed as the government contractor for the construction of many iconic buildings which includes Istana Bukit Zaharah & Balai Zaharah in 1858, Istana Besar Johor in 1866, and the Johor Bahru Prison in 1883. 

Aerial view of Istana Besar Johor taken by G.E. Livlock on 15.5.1924

Around 1885, Wong became a close friend of Fatimah Binti Abdullah (a.k.a. Wong Ah Gew), the third wife of Maharaja Abu Bakar (later Sultan Abu Bakar) probably on the account their common surname and their same dialect group. Wong was also the main contractor for Istana Tyersall in Singapore which he completed in 1892.

Photograph of Istana Tyersall taken by Dr. J. Baum & R. Baum on 21.11.1929.

In 1892, Wong was granted a 99-year lease for 10 lots of land by Sultan Abu Bakar on the east bank of Sungai Segget as a reward for his services. Named Kampung Wong Ah Fook, the main road in the kampung was named Jalan Wong Ah Fook, while three other smaller roads, namely Jalan Siu Nam, Jalan Siu Koon, and Jalan Siu Chin, were named after Wong's three eldest sons. The area became a prominent Cantonese-dominant area and is now the city centre of Johor Bahru, with all the four roads still existing today.  In 1904, Sultan Ibrahim I honoured Wong with pingat Setia Mahkota Johor (SMJ - Companion) in recognition of his services to the State.  

In Singapore, he was known as one of the original founders of the Kwong Wai Siew Chinese Hospital (now Kwong Wai Shiu Hospital). He was also appointed as a Justice of the Peace for the British Colonial Government.

Kwong Wai Siew Chinese Hospital c. 1920s (Ministry of Health, Singapore)

Wong's most ambitious undertaking and probably his proudest achievement was opening up the first Chinese bank in Singapore known as Kwong Yik Bank (literally means “Cantonese profiting bank”). The bank started its operation at 26 Kling Street in 1903. (Note: This bank is not to be confused with the 1913 Kwong Yik (Selangor) Banking Corporation which merged to form RHB Bank Berhad in 1997).

Kwong Yik Banking Company's office at Kling Street, Singapore, c. 1906 (Source: 20th Century Impressions of British Malaya, 1908)

Nevertheless, despite a paid-up capital of $850,000, the banking venture led to Wong's greatest disaster and brought him close to grief as it subsequently collapsed in November 1913 due to financial difficulties, resulting in a bank run. As a result, the British Colonial Government amended the Companies Bill in 1915 in order to safeguard the interests of depositors by restricting advances from banks to their directors and officers.

In August 1918, when severe Spanish Flu epidemic hit Singapore, Wong contracted influenza which developed into pneumonia, to which he succumbed. On 2.9.1918, Wong died at the age of 82 at his residence in Kampong Java Road, Singapore. He was buried at Peck San Theng Cantonese Cemetery. 

Sources:

1) National Library Board, Singapore.

2) National Museum of Singapore.

3) Trustees of Wong Ah Fook's Estate

4) https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wong_Ah_Fook

5) 20th Century Impressions of British Malaya: Its History, People, Commerce, Industries, and Resources" Arnold Wright, H. A. Cartwright, Lloyd's Greater Britain Publishing Co. Ltd., 1908.