SINGAPORE – Dr Cheng Tong Fatt, a pioneering civil servant and diplomat who served Singapore in a range of portfolios that included food security, urban development and broadcasting, died on Nov 4. He was 96.

Dr Cheng suffered a stroke on Oct 9 and was hospitalised at the National University Hospital. He was transferred to Assisi Hospice about a week ago, where he died peacefully. He leaves behind his daughter, son, daughter-in-law and two grandchildren. His wife, Dr Peggy Cheng, died in 2020.

Dr Cheng spent 47 years in the civil service, starting in 1957 as a veterinary officer with the Primary Production Department (PPD) and finally retiring in 2004 as ambassador-at-large with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

His career spanned vital roles, including serving as Singapore’s

first

A veterinarian by training, Dr Cheng obtained his bachelor’s degree in veterinary medicine and surgery from Glasgow University in 1957. He was the director of PPD from 1962 to 1970.

He was transferred to the Ministry of National Development in 1971 and became its permanent secretary from 1972 to 1979. He was also permanent secretary for Culture from 1979 to 1985.

He also served as the Urban Redevelopment Authority’s acting chairman and later chairman from 1978 to ...