Tan Sri Datuk Seri Panglima Chong Kah Kiat (Chinese: 章家傑; pinyin: Zhāng Jiājié; Jyutping: Zoeng1 Gaa1 Git6; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Tsiong Ka-kia̍t; born 2 June 1948) is a Malaysian politician who served as Minister in the Prime Minister's Department from May 1995 to March 1999, 13th Chief Minister of Sabah from March 2001 to March 2003 and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) from 1991 to 2006.

Chong Kah Kiat
章家傑
Minister in the Prime Minister's Department
In office
4 May 1995 – 13 March 1999
MonarchJa'afar
Prime MinisterMahathir Mohamad
Preceded byBernard Giluk Dompok
ConstituencySenator
13th Chief Minister of Sabah
In office
27 March 2001 – 27 March 2003
GovernorSakaran Dandai
Ahmadshah Abdullah
Preceded byOsu Sukam
Succeeded byMusa Aman
President of the Liberal Democratic Party
In office
1991–2006
Preceded byHiew Min Kong
Succeeded byLiew Vui Keong
Personal details
Born
Chong Kah Kiat

(1948-06-02) 2 June 1948 (age 76)
Kudat, Crown Colony of North Borneo (now Sabah, Malaysia)
Political partySabah People's United Front (BERJAYA)
Liberal Democratic Party (LDP)

History in politics

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Born in Kudat, Chong was a graduate of New Zealand's Victoria University of Wellington, earning a Master of Laws (LL.B.) (First Class) in 1975 and subsequently practising law at the legal firm of Shelley Yap Leong Tseu Chong Chia & Co. (now known as Shelley Yap) in Kota Kinabalu.

He contested and won the Kudat seat on a BERJAYA ticket in the March 1981 state election and was appointed Assistant Minister to the Chief Minister of Sabah the following year. He held the post until April 1985 when he lost the seat to Wong Phin Chung of United Sabah Party (PBS).

In March 1987, he became a member of the Berjaya Supreme Council but later left the party when it became clear that it was losing ground.

Chong and several Chinese leaders founded the LDP in 1989 and was made its pro-tem secretary general. Then in 1991, he became the party's president. He did not contest the 1994 state election but a year later was appointed Senator in the Dewan Negara, and subsequently included in the Cabinet of Malaysia as a Minister in the Prime Minister's Department. He quit the federal ministerial post in March 1999 to contest the state polls. This time, he won back his traditional stronghold of Kudat, and was appointed state minister of Tourism Development, Environment, Science and Technology.[1]

Chong became the 13th Chief Minister of Sabah in 2001 representing the Chinese community in a rotation system mooted by former Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir Mohamad in 1994.

When Musa Aman took over the helm of the state government in 2003, Chong was appointed Deputy Chief Minister as well as the person in charge of the tourism, culture, and environment portfolio. It was then the rotation system was scrapped and from then onwards, the Chief Minister post was held by the United Malays National Organisation.

In April 2007, Chong resigned from the Deputy Chief Minister post under Musa Aman's cabinet, citing matters of principle.[2][3]

Election results

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Sabah State Legislative Assembly[4][5][6][7]
Year Constituency Candidate Votes Pct Opponent(s) Votes Pct Ballots cast Majority Turnout
1986 N02 Kudat, P134 Merudu Chong Kah Kiat (BERJAYA) 3,489 44.20% Wong Phin Chung (PBS) 4,380 55.48% 7,973 891 76.94%
Dingle Anthony (IND) 25 0.32%
1990 Chong Kah Kiat (LDP) 4,043 43.25% Wong Phin Chung (PBS) 4,667 49.92% 9.459 624 75.01%
Yong Sze Kiun (BERJAYA) 309 3.31%
Lee Tain Soong (PRS) 127 1.36%
Chong Jan Fah (DAP) 94 1.01%
Gurahman Lolong (IND) 60 0.64%
Wiilie Chong Kui Shen (AKAR) 48 0.51%
1999 N02 Kudat, P146 Merudu Chong Kah Kiat (LDP) 6,935 53.48% Kong Hong Ming (PBS) 5,447 42.00% 13,080 1,488 72.76%
Jimmy Wong Sze Phin (AKAR) 481 3.71%
Yong Sze Kiun (SETIA) 105 0.81%
2004 N02 Tanjong Kapor, P167 Kudat Chong Kah Kiat (LDP) 6,234 49.74% Omar Mohd Aji (IND) 3,241 25.86% 12,865 2,993 69.40%
Kong Hong Ming' (IND) 1,877 14.98%
Wong Phin Chung (IND) 1,035 8.26%
Santong Angkap (BERSEKUTU) 52 0.41%
Alexandra Anthony (keADILan) 50 0.40%
Bensali Ebrahim (PASOK) 44 0.35%
2020 N18 Inanam, P171 Sepanggar Chong Kah Kiat (LDP) 1,606 9.51% Peto Galim (PKR) 8,586 50.92% 16,890 5,638 64.87%
William Majinbon (PBS) 2,948 17.38%
Kenny Chua Teck Ho (IND) 2,346 13.89%
Francis Goh Fah Shun (GAGASAN) 362 2.14%
How Regina Lim (PCS) 291 1.72%
Achmad Noorasyrul Noortaip (IND) 286 1.69%
Terence Tsen Kim Fatt (PKAN) 255 1.51%
Mohd Hardy Abdullah (USNO Baru) 156 0.92%
George Ngui (IND) 54 0.32%

Honours

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Honours of Malaysia

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References and notes

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  1. ^ "A survivor of Sabah politics" Archived 26 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine, Daily Express, 14 April 2007.
  2. ^ "Chong quits Cabinet" Archived 21 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine, Daily Express, 14 April 2007.
  3. ^ "從政卅餘年對國家社會貢獻良多" Archived 29 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine, Overseas Chinese Daily News, 17 April 2007.
  4. ^ "Sabah [Parliament Results]". The Star. Archived from the original on 17 May 2018. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  5. ^ "14th General Election Malaysia (GE14 / PRU14) – Results Overview". election.thestar.com.my.
  6. ^ "N13 Inanam". Malaysiakini. Retrieved 30 May 2020.
  7. ^ "N.18 INANAM". SPR Dashboard. 26 September 2020. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
  8. ^ "Semakan Penerima Darjah Kebesaran, Bintang dan Pingat". Archived from the original on 19 July 2019. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
Preceded by Chief Minister of Sabah
2001–2003
Succeeded by