SIBU, Feb 11: To Datin Sri Pauline Leong, the late Datuk Andrew Wong was a kind-hearted person who was ready to lend a helping hand whenever his students needed help.
As his mother, Leong said both she and her husband, Dato Sri Wong Soon Koh, were sad that Andrew’s life was cut short.
During a press conference held at their residence here today, she could not finish her statements several times.
“My son was a very kindhearted person. He always helped the poor and needy. (He was) always ready to help but very often he was, maybe, misunderstood.
“When he was the principal of KLT (Kolej Laila Taib) before it was free, he always paid for the tuition fees of his students. He helped them a lot, but there was no publicity.”
Apart from being considerate of the needs of his students, Andrew was also “a good son”.
“I must say that he was a very good son. He was very filial, and he loved us very much.
“He was always thinking of me because he knew I have these dizzy spells, and he would ask me to be careful. He always bought presents for us.”
She said whenever Andrew was leaving or coming back to the house, he would always greet Liong, except yesterday because he knew she was sick.
According to Leong, Andrew passed away at about 11pm last night.
She said at dinner time, she called out him for dinner, but he did not come down from his room.
“Then his friends came and said Andrew asked them to come over to the house to celebrate Chinese New Year. So (I thought), he must still be in the house or playing with the dogs.
“At first, I went to his bedroom, but the dressing room was not lit up. He did not switch on the light. Then when I switched on the light, I saw him. He was unconscious on the floor.
“So, I immediately called the doctors at Rajang Medical Centre and KPJ. They came and tried to resuscitate him for at least one-and-a-half to two hours. At 11pm, they said ….” (she sobbed and could not continue).
Leong said she had no idea as to the cause of her son’s death but disclosed that Andrew did have high blood pressure and was under medication.
The former teacher of Methodist Secondary School urged all not to speculate on the cause of Andrew’s death but wait for the result of the autopsy.
“We are sad because his death was too sudden. Yesterday, we were so happy, taking pictures and celebrating and suddenly….”
Long appealed to all to give the family privacy to deal with the passing of their beloved son.
Andrew, 43, who passed away last night had helped the Sarawak government to set up Sarawak Maritime College, University College of Technology Sarawak and the development of KLT.
He devoted 15 years of his life to education since his return from Australia in 1998 at the age of 21 before being appointed deputy chairman of Sibu Municipal Council and henceforth slowly ventured into politics. — DayakDaily
