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Enigmas: Tay Seow Huah, My Father: Singapore's Pioneer Spy Chief
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July 9, 2025
The title fits the book.
Enigma, which in a sense was what Tay Seow Huah was to his son, the author. Having passed away from heart attack at the age of 47, Simon Tay was only 19 when that happened. So he never really got to know his father as much as he would have liked to.
Enigma too, because of what Tay did when he was head of the Security and Intelligence Division at the Ministry of Defense. Hence the subtitle of him being Singapore’s Pioneer Spy Chief. What he did in those years was a bit of a mystery and continues to be so since the records have never and will unlikely ever be declassified by the Singapore Government.
Enigma too, especially in his relations with his family, particularly with his wife whom I gathered never really managed to penetrate the veil that he threw up.
I did enjoy the book, as it was also part history of Malaya and Singapore from the 1930s till 1980 when he passed away. I knew about the many incidents and personalities that figured in the book, but never in great detail. The first chapter about the Laju Incident was a terrific introduction that not only introduced Tay Seow Huah, but also provided more information about what actually happened. Likewise too, the following chapters on his growing up years, where the colonial era, the Occupation and most significantly, the Malayan Emergency all of which shaped Tay to be who he eventually turned out to be.
I thought Simon Tay did an admirable job in writing about his father in a way that was balanced, neither being overly critical nor being overly adulatory. He presented the man - his father - as best as he could, good and bad points, and never sugar coated the realities of his relationships, particular with his mother and Tay’s wife, Cecilia.
I found the last chapter Coda somewhat bold, as Simon Tay departed from the biography to provide a kind of fantastical segue into an imaginary conversation with his deceased father. Covering the topics of the US and China in the first, Singapore and the myriad of changes in the second, and finally on his relationships with their family, it was a poignant read that is filled with pathos, particularly the last conversation.
I think it was probably a difficult task mentally and emotionally for the author to have written this book, given all that transpired. But I am glad that he did. It certainly shined a light on one of our important pioneer civil servants, a glimpse into how it was like for the public service of that generation, and of a Singapore that seems to be from a distant past, even thought only 45 years have passed. A fine read and and important record.
Enigma, which in a sense was what Tay Seow Huah was to his son, the author. Having passed away from heart attack at the age of 47, Simon Tay was only 19 when that happened. So he never really got to know his father as much as he would have liked to.
Enigma too, because of what Tay did when he was head of the Security and Intelligence Division at the Ministry of Defense. Hence the subtitle of him being Singapore’s Pioneer Spy Chief. What he did in those years was a bit of a mystery and continues to be so since the records have never and will unlikely ever be declassified by the Singapore Government.
Enigma too, especially in his relations with his family, particularly with his wife whom I gathered never really managed to penetrate the veil that he threw up.
I did enjoy the book, as it was also part history of Malaya and Singapore from the 1930s till 1980 when he passed away. I knew about the many incidents and personalities that figured in the book, but never in great detail. The first chapter about the Laju Incident was a terrific introduction that not only introduced Tay Seow Huah, but also provided more information about what actually happened. Likewise too, the following chapters on his growing up years, where the colonial era, the Occupation and most significantly, the Malayan Emergency all of which shaped Tay to be who he eventually turned out to be.
I thought Simon Tay did an admirable job in writing about his father in a way that was balanced, neither being overly critical nor being overly adulatory. He presented the man - his father - as best as he could, good and bad points, and never sugar coated the realities of his relationships, particular with his mother and Tay’s wife, Cecilia.
I found the last chapter Coda somewhat bold, as Simon Tay departed from the biography to provide a kind of fantastical segue into an imaginary conversation with his deceased father. Covering the topics of the US and China in the first, Singapore and the myriad of changes in the second, and finally on his relationships with their family, it was a poignant read that is filled with pathos, particularly the last conversation.
I think it was probably a difficult task mentally and emotionally for the author to have written this book, given all that transpired. But I am glad that he did. It certainly shined a light on one of our important pioneer civil servants, a glimpse into how it was like for the public service of that generation, and of a Singapore that seems to be from a distant past, even thought only 45 years have passed. A fine read and and important record.
Displaying 1 of 1 review