24-538: Toh Chin Chye DUNU ( Chinese : 杜进才 ; pinyin : Dù Jìncái ; Pe̍h-ōe-jī : Tō͘ Chìn-châi ; 10 December 1921 – 3 February 2012) was a Malaysian-Singaporean politician and academic who served as Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore between 1959 and 1968. Toh is widely recognised as one of the founding fathers of Singapore. He was also one of the founders of the People's Action Party (PAP), which has governed
48-506: A confidential clerk, an ambassador, or a member of the king's council". In the fourteenth century, the title became strongly associated with the keeper of the king's signet . From the Renaissance to the late 19th century, men involved in the daily correspondence and the activities of the powerful assumed the title of secretary. With time, like many titles, the term was applied to more and varied functions, leading to compound titles to specify
72-544: A further two parliamentary terms as a vocal backbencher, during which time he criticised his own party on a regular basis. He retired from Parliament at the 1988 general election . In 1996, a front-page article in Singaporean tabloid The New Paper claimed that Toh had killed a pedestrian in a hit-and-run accident while driving drunk. The actual perpetrator was a different man also called Toh Chin Chye, one of nine people sharing
96-584: A private funeral according to his wishes on 7 February 2012 at the Mandai Crematorium . As a mark of respect for his contributions to Singapore, his coffin was draped in the national flag and borne on a ceremonial gun carriage to the crematorium. State flags at all Government buildings were flown at half-mast on the day of his funeral. Toh was generally considered one of the founding fathers of Singapore that came along with Lee Kuan Yew , Goh Keng Swee and S. Rajaratnam , for helping to lead Singapore during
120-506: Is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority , power , or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived from the Latin word secernere , "to distinguish" or "to set apart", the passive participle ( secretum ) meaning "having been set apart", with the eventual connotation of something private or confidential, as with
144-567: Is an Order conferred by the President of Singapore and was originally intended to be the highest award to be conferred to a foreign dignitary. It was later awarded to mostly citizens of Singapore . As of 1 August 2019, the Order has three different grades: Recipients of the honour are entitled to use the post-nominal letters DUNU . Prior to August 2019, the 3 grades of the Order of Nila Utama were known as: Secretary-General Secretary
168-511: Is the official title of leaders of most Communist political parties . When a Communist party is the ruling party in a Communist-led one-party state , the general secretary is typically the country's de facto leader. Examples include: General secretary is the official title of leaders of most Dravidian political parties , that are politically influential in Tamil Nadu of Southern India . Examples include: Examples include: First secretary
192-411: Is usually the country's de facto leader (though sometimes this leader also holds state-level positions to monopolize power, such as a presidency or premiership in order to constitute de jure leadership of the state), such as China , North Korea , Vietnam , Laos and Cuba . In England, the term secretarius was used "from the beginning of the thirteenth century in the varying meanings of
216-675: The National University of Singapore ) in 1946 with a diploma in science. He went on to further his studies at the University of London and received a PhD in physiology from the National Institute for Medical Research in 1953. Toh began his career as an academic where he was a reader in physiology at the University of Singapore (now the National University of Singapore ) between 1958 and 1964. He served as Vice-Chancellor of
240-479: The Norman language , secretary-general ), first secretary , and executive secretary . In a club or society , the secretary is also considered to be, in most cases, the third person in charge of the organization, after the president/chairman and vice president/vice chairman. In smaller organizations, the secretary typically takes meeting minutes , notifies members of meetings, contacts various persons in relation to
264-525: The English word secret. A secretarius was a person, therefore, overseeing business confidentially, usually for a powerful individual (a king, pope, etc.). The official title of the leader of most communist and socialist political parties is the " General Secretary of the Central Committee " or " First Secretary of the Central Committee ". When a communist party is in power, the general secretary
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#1732895667838288-613: The House between 1959 and 1968, and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Singapore (now the National University of Singapore ) between 1968 and 1975. After Toh had resigned from the Cabinet in 1981, he continued to serve as a Member of Parliament (MP) on the backbenches . Toh attended St George's Institution in Taiping , and Anglo-Chinese School in Ipoh before graduating from Raffles College (now
312-467: The University of Singapore between 1968 and 1975. His stint at the university drew mixed reactions from staff and students. While his role to reorient the university's focus to suit the fledgling nation's needs was applauded, he was perceived as authoritarian, when he clamped down on student demonstrations and political activities. Toh stepped down from the Cabinet and as the party's Chairman in 1981. He served
336-603: The University of Singapore while serving as Minister for Science and Technology between 1968 and 1975 concurrently. "Once you are in the front edge of administration, there'll be barbs and arrows. Don't expect roses. I never expected roses." Toh became politically active during his time as a university student in London, when he served as Chairman of the Malayan Forum , an anti-colonial group for students from Malaya and Singapore where they meet regularly for discussions and debates on
360-456: The authority associated with its use, like general secretary or financial secretary . In some countries, such as the United States, the term secretary is used to indicate the holder of a cabinet -level post. There are a number of popular variations of the title used to indicate that the secretary in question has a high degree of authority, such as general secretary (or, following usage in
384-445: The country continuously since independence. Toh was a prominent member of the country's first generation of political leaders after Singapore became independent in 1965. He had served as Deputy Prime Minister between 1959 and 1968, Minister for Science and Technology between 1968 and 1975, and Minister for Health between 1975 and 1981. He had also served as Chairman of the People's Action Party between 1954 and 1981, Leader of
408-552: The future of the Malayan region. Toh was among the founding members of the People's Action Party (PAP) and served as the party's chairman from its formation in 1954 to 1981, however during a short period in 1957, the leftists in the party , who dominated the common membership in 1957, took over the party leadership. The founding members were subsequently restored when many of the leftist leaders were arrested by Chief Minister Lim Yew Hock in his anti-communist crackdown, allowing for
432-503: The name in Singapore. The reporter who filed the story was fired, with two newsroom editors demoted, and the paper paid Toh $ 300,000 in damages. Toh spent his last years away from the public eye. The Straits Times featured Toh twice, in 2005 and 2006 respectively, once on 2 May 2005, where he was seen being assisted by two men and a walking stick as he walked to pay his last respects to former President Wee Kim Wee . In February 2006, Toh
456-499: The nation's formative years. Majulah Singapura was chosen by Toh as the national anthem of Singapore. In 1959, he headed the team that designed the coat of arms and state flag of Singapore. Toh was conferred the Order of Nila Utama (First Class) in 1990. Darjah Utama Nila Utama The Darjah Utama Nila Utama (English: Order of Nila Utama ) is Singapore 's third most prestigious national honour instituted in 1975. It
480-582: The party. Toh contested in Rochor as a PAP candidate during the 1959 general election and won. Following the PAP's victory at the 1959 general election, the members of the party's CEC voted to decide whether Lee, as the party's Secretary-General , or the party's Treasurer, Ong Eng Guan , who served as Mayor of the City Council between 1957 and 1959, should take up the newly created office of Prime Minister . The vote
504-478: The restoration of the original "basement group" of Toh, Lee Kuan Yew and Goh Keng Swee, et al. to the party's Central Executive Committee (CEC). Following this, Toh implemented a cadre system to prevent from the newcomer "ordinary members", including leftist sympathisers, from having undue influence over the membership of the CEC. Toh was also a key member of Lee Kuan Yew's faction in their fight against their rivals within
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#1732895667838528-563: The society, administers the day-to-day activities of the organization, and creates the order of business. The secretary of a non-governmental organization or international non-governmental organization can combine the function with that of vice president/vice chairman. General secretary occurs as the title of a ministerial position of authority found in various organizations, such as trade unions , communist and socialist parties , and international non-governmental organizations . Examples include: General secretary or first secretary
552-580: Was featured in The Straits Times again, paying his last respects to the late former Deputy Prime Minister S. Rajaratnam at his home in Chancery Lane. Toh died in his sleep at his home in Greenview Crescent, Bukit Timah on 3 February 2012 at 9:30am Singapore Standard Time ( UTC+08:00 ). He was 90 years of age. He is survived by his son-in-law and four grandchildren aged 4 to 15. He was given
576-698: Was tied, and Toh, as the party's Chairman, used his casting vote in favour of Lee. Toh was a tenacious fighter in the battle against the Barisan Sosialis , a communist party formed by defunct members from the PAP. He managed to defeat Barisan Chairman Lee Siew Choh by a mere 89 votes in the 1963 general election , his narrowest electoral victory. Toh held several Cabinet portfolios prior and subsequent independence of Singapore, including Deputy Prime Minister between 1959 and 1968, Minister for Science and Technology between 1968 and 1975 and Minister for Health between 1975 and 1981. He also served as Vice-Chancellor of
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