# Tan Chye Cheng > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Tan_Chye_Cheng > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Tan_Chye_Cheng.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tan_Chye_Cheng > Source revision: 1341787226 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) In this [Chinese name](/source/Chinese_name), the [family name](/source/Chinese_surname) is *Tan*. Singaporean politician (1911–1991) Tan Chye Cheng 陳才清 Tan in 1951 Member of the Legislative Council for Municipal South-West Constituency In office 1 April 1948 – 16 February 1951 Serving with Nazir Ahmad Mallal Governor Franklin Gimson Preceded by Constituency established Succeeded by Constituency abolished Majority 1948: 4,125 (42.29%) Member of the Legislative Council for Tanglin Constituency In office 17 April 1951 – 5 February 1955 Governor Franklin Gimson John Nicoll Preceded by Constituency established Succeeded by John Ede Majority 1951: 1,416 (80.14%) Personal details Born 1911 Singapore, Straits Settlements Died 6 March 1991 (age 80) Singapore Party Progressive Party Children Margaret Leng Tan (daughter) **Tan Chye Cheng** ([traditional Chinese](/source/Traditional_Chinese_characters): 陳才清; [simplified Chinese](/source/Simplified_Chinese_characters): 陈才清; [pinyin](/source/Pinyin): *Chén Cái Qīng*; 1911 – 6 March 1991), also known as **C. C. Tan**, was a Singaporean lawyer and politician. ## Biography Born in Singapore, Tan was the only child of Tan Guan Chua, a member of the Chinese Advisory Board and the [Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce](/source/Singapore_Chinese_Chamber_of_Commerce_and_Industry) committee.[1][2] He was educated at the [St. Joseph's Institution](/source/St._Joseph's_Institution%2C_Singapore) school, leaving in 1928. He won a scholarship to attend [St Joseph's Academy](/source/St_Joseph's_Academy%2C_Blackheath) in [London](/source/London), where he became friends with [Ong Hock Thye](/source/Ong_Hock_Thye).[2] Tan was admitted to the [Middle Temple](/source/Middle_Temple) in 1928, passing his final exam in 1931. He had to wait until turning 21 in 1932 before being called to the [Bar](/source/Bar_(law)). He returned to Singapore and was called to the Bar in 1933. He initially worked at Aubrey Davies & Company, later moving to Rodyk & Davidson, where he remained until the start of [World War II](/source/World_War_II).[2] In 1939 Tan married Joyce Lim Chin Lien in Singapore. They moved to [India](/source/India) during World War II, returning to the island after the end of the war.[2] His daughter, [Margaret Leng Tan](/source/Margaret_Leng_Tan), became a musician.[3] After returning from India, Tan became involved in politics. He was appointed to the Advisory Council in 1946, serving until the following year,[1] when he was amongst the founders of the [Progressive Party](/source/Progressive_Party_(Singapore)) in August 1947 and, despite not being a good public speaker,[2] became its first president. In the first [general elections](/source/1948_Singaporean_general_election) in 1948, Tan was elected in the Municipal South-West constituency with 42% of the vote, beating Nazir Ahmad Mallal by 69 votes.[4] The elections saw the PP win three of the six elected seats. In the [1951 elections](/source/1951_Singaporean_general_election) Tan ran in the [Tanglin constituency](/source/Tanglin_Single_Member_Constituency), receiving 80% of the vote against his [Labour Party](/source/Labour_Party_(Singapore)) rival, with the PP winning six of the nine elected seats. In 1954 he was part of the nine-man panel led by [George William Rendel](/source/George_William_Rendel) that reviewed the territory's constitution,[2] leading to the promulgation of a new one. However, Tan lost his seat in the [1955 elections](/source/1955_Singaporean_general_election); he ran in the [Cairnhill constituency](/source/Cairnhill_Single_Member_Constituency) against [Labour Front](/source/Labour_Front) leader [David Marshall](/source/David_Marshall_(Singaporean_politician)), with Marshall receiving 48% of the vote to Tan's 36%.[5] The PP won only four of the 25 seats, with the Labour Front winning 10. As a result, Marshall became the island's first [Chief Minister](/source/Chief_Minister_of_Singapore). Tan had been one of the founders of the Tan, Rajah & Cheah law firm in 1947,[1] and later became president of the Bar Committee and first president of the [Law Society](/source/Law_Society_of_Singapore).[6] He served as president of the [Singapore Olympic Sports Council](/source/Singapore_National_Olympic_Council) from 1951 until 1962, and as chairman of *[The Straits Times](/source/The_Straits_Times)* press between 1974 and 1982.[7][8] He died of heart failure at age 80 on 6 March 1991.[9] ## Legacy In 2003 the Law Society created the C.C. Tan award, which is awarded to a member exemplifying the virtues of "honesty, fair play and personal integrity".[6] ## References 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-BSG_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-BSG_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-BSG_1-2) [Portrait of Mr. C.C. Tan, Member of Singapore Legislative Council](http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/printheritage/image.aspx?id=1af29250-3fc0-486d-9d88-64cd8859ddb7) BooksSG 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-LeG_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-LeG_2-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-LeG_2-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-LeG_2-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-LeG_2-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-LeG_2-5) Leo Suryadinata (2012) *[Southeast Asian Personalities of Chinese Descent: A Biographical Dictionary, Volume I & II](https://books.google.com/books?id=v9QEBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA1065)*, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, p1065 1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** ["Margaret Leng Tan"](https://www.swhf.sg/profiles/margaret-leng-tan/). *Singapore Women's Hall of Fame*. Retrieved 27 May 2022. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** [Legislative Council General Election 1948: Municipal South-West](https://sg-elections.com/general-election/1948/municipal-southwest.html) Singapore Elections 1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** [Legislative Assembly General Election 1955: Cairnhill](https://sg-elections.com/general-election/1955/cairnhill.html) Singapore Elections 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:0_6-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:0_6-1) Auto, Hermes (10 November 2017). ["Law Society confers lifetime achievement award on 'friend of the underdog' | The Straits Times"](https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/law-society-confers-lifetime-achievement-award-on-friend-of-the-underdog). *www.straitstimes.com*. Retrieved 27 May 2022. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-HDS_7-0)** Justin Corfield (2010) *Historical Dictionary of Singapore*, Scarecrow Press, p260 1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** ["Portrait of Mr. C.C. Tan, Member of Singapore Legislative Council - BookSG - National Library Board, Singapore"](https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/printheritage/image.aspx?id=1af29250-3fc0-486d-9d88-64cd8859ddb7). *eresources.nlb.gov.sg*. Retrieved 27 May 2022. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** "Lawyer C.C. Tan dies of heart failure". *[The Straits Times](/source/The_Straits_Times)*. 7 March 1991. p. 23. --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Tan Chye Cheng](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tan_Chye_Cheng) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tan_Chye_Cheng?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.