Young and brilliant : Dr Ling joined the Federation Military College in January 1958. The college was re-designated as the Royal Military College (RMC) in 1966.
The life story of Tun Dr Ling Liong Sik as told to journalist Foong Pek Yee shortly after his retirement from active politics in 2003.
Dr Ling was the fourth generation of the Ling family, with a history dated back to Sitiawan, Perak in then Malaya in 1903.
A medical doctor by training, he went on to become the longest serving Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA) president and the longest serving Transport Minister (1986-2003) in Malaysian history.
By Foong Pek Yee
foongpekyee@gmail.com
Sept 18, 2026
It was January 1958 when I joined the Federation Military College which was re-designated as the Royal Military College (RMC) in 1966.
I joined as a Fifth Form student.
The college then was located in Port Dickson in Negri Sembilan, and relocated to Sungei Besi, Kuala Lumpur in 1961,
While I passed the IQ test to gain admission, the interviewer asked if I really wanted to join because I was only 14 and going straight to Form Five.
I was confident but soon found the environment was very different from that in Taiping.
There were many students in the college, and the competition to excel was huge.
And I ended up almost last in class for the first month.
I was told to improve or risked being sent back to Form Four.
By the end of the first term, I rose to the 10th placing.
Adaptability grew out of necessity and mother was quite happy with my progress.
I must say that I also inherited her resilience.
RMC sent a report to parents of students every term – on academic and character development – and I was good in all fields.
At RMC, the compulsion to excel was pervasive in the system- encouraging and driving one another to do better and better.
Suddenly there were so many things to do, and I was really kept very occupied.
The college was located at 5th mile Port Dickson in Negri Sembilan.
They got army trucks to send the Christian boys to church in Port Dickson on Sundays.
After church, we had about an hour to walk around the town , and we liked to eat the pork porridge there.
My monthly pocket money from the college was $20 for first year, $30 for second year and $40 for third year.
The amount was very big money compared to the $2 monthly pocket money from mother.
We always looked forward to holidays.
We got $2.40 rationing for every day out of school and this adds to a tidy sum, about $100 per break.
Meanwhile my talents in debating and sports made me stand out in college.
A group of us went round debating.
Talented, smart and confident: Dr Ling did his college proud.
I remember leading a team to debate in ACS (Anglo Chinese School) .
We won and we came out in the newspapers with the heading ” They came, they saw, they conquered”.
Our motto was “Serious in everything we do”.
Chong Beng Kuan , Yogeswara, Arthur Samuel, Ghani Indot and I formed a band comprising two guitarists and singers, and we called ourselves “Playboys”.
We were quite talented and had our practice sessions singing Rock and Roll songs.
High achiever: Dr Ling achieved an Honours award at the Outward Bound School in Lumut in 1959 .
In 1959, I attended the Outward Bound School in Lumut and achieved an Honours award.
I was made to understand that such an achievement was rare and thus no small feat.
And I was made a prefect upon my return from the Outward Bound School.
Days in RMC were also full of fun and laughter.
We joked, tell stories and got along well.
The experience of regimentation and goodness of discipline had a huge influence in my life later.
My time management is excellent.
I am always punctual and continue to plan my whole day’s activities, my full week’s activities for instance.
The college also offered very good leadership training with the motto : “Serve to lead”.
I might be the youngest among the 10 prefects but I got elected as the chief prefect.
I think my interpersonal skills were demonstrated at that stage – the ability to get along well with others, friendly and talented in sports.
It was also in college that I learned to be very independent; how to survive under stress and what to do when I got lost.
I was in an environment where I could learn from healthy competition and good role models.
When exam was over, the army trucks would take us to Seremban in Negri Sembilan to catch the last train home.
We were very happy for the three years in college.
Mother was also very happy with my development.
She used to say: “Have I not send you to college, probably you will not be so disciplined.”
Outward Bound School Report
Course 45, Aug 15, 1959 -Sept 9, 1959
In this course, 15 boys attended and were very praiseworthy in their conduct and bearing in the school. They were specially commended by the warden. So it is very gratifying to note that one boy Ling Liong Sik was awarded with an Honours certificate – one which had not been rewarded for the last two years. Eleven others received their merit badges and the rest passed the course.
Photos: Credit to a publication titled A Tribute to…Tun Dr Ling Liong Sik from his colleagues and friends in the Alumni Association of the King Edward VII College of Medicine and the Faculties of Medicine of the University of Malaya and the University of Singapore.
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