Former People's Action Party (PAP) MP Ong Ah Heng died on Monday (May 5), aged 84.The four-term Nee Soon Central MP served the constituency between 1997 and 2011 before retiring from politics. Dubbed «Kopitiam (coffeeshop) MP», Ong earned the nickname because of his ease of mixing with ordinary workers.He was the executive secretary of the National Transport Workers' Union between 1981 and 2006, and later rose to become NTUC's assistant secretary-general. In a 1996 interview, Ong attributed his grassroots approach to his past: «I owe a lot to the meritocratic system. There are very few countries where you could start as a construction worker and end up with a master's degree. »It is right that I repay society by involving myself in community work with the labour movement and in grassroots organisations." He later became a non-executive independent director at ComfortDelGro before retiring from the board in 2020. Ong's wake is being held at Block 204 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3, and his funeral ceremony will take place there at 1pm on Sunday (May 10). Read more