Ambo Sooloh

Haji Ambo Sooloh
Sooloh, c. 1934
Born	Sooloh bin Omar Ali 1891 Singapore
Died	1963 (aged 72) Singapore
Resting place	Jalan Kubor Cemetery
Occupation	Businessman
Spouse	2
Children	10

Ambo Sooloh[a] (1891–1963) was a Singaporean businessman and philanthropist. Born in Singapore to a wealthy mercantile family, Sooloh was one of the founders of the Malay-language newspaper Utusan Melayu. He also served as the chairman of the Singapore Malay Union (Kesatuan Melayu Singapura) from 1934 to 1937.

Early life

Sooloh's father, Omar Ali, owned black pepper and gambier plantations in Borneo and Sumatra.[3] In 1880, he emigrated from his hometown of Pontianak to Singapore and soon became the de facto leader of Bugis-Malay businessmen in the region. Sooloh, his youngest son, was born in Singapore in 1891. Omar Ali died in 1921, leaving Sooloh to take charge of the property and trading empire that he had established in Singapore.[4]

Career

In 1927, Sooloh was appointed as a Justice of the Peace.[4] In 1934, on behalf of the entire Malay community in Singapore, he presented the governor of the Straits Settlements, Sir Shenton Thomas, with a letter affirming "their loyalty to the country and the British Government."[4] The same year, Sooloh was chosen to succeed the recently deceased Mohamed Eunos bin Abdullah as both chairman of the Singapore Malay Union (Kesatuan Melayu Singapiura) and Malay representative in the Legislative Council.[5] Under Sooloh's leadership from 1934 to 1937,[6] the Malay Union worked closely with the government and only offered "mild criticism" of their Malay-related policies.[7] Sooloh was succeeded by Daud bin Mohamed Shah.[8]

In January 1938,[9] twenty Malay Union members—including future President of Singapore Yusof Ishak—began discussing the idea of a Malay-language newspaper fully owned and managed by native Malayan Malays, as opposed to Muslims of Arab or Indian descent.[10] Such an endeavour had only been attempted once (by another Malay Union member) and it was met with little success due to a lack of funds.[8] To ensure that their proposed newspaper would not suffer a similar fate, Yusof Ishak and others were tasked with selling shares to raise enough capital for the newly-registered Utusan Melayu Press Limited. Although they failed to cover much ground, Sooloh and Malay Union chairman Daud were able to raise S$8,500 to keep the union's newspaper dreams alive.[8]

The newspaper's board of directors consisted of Daud as its president and Sooloh, Abdul Hamid bin Mohamed, Ismail bin Mohamed Taib, Abdul Ghani bin Omar, Abdul Jalil bin Harun, and Yusof Ishak as its members.[11] On 29 May 1939,[12] Utusan Melayu's first issue was published.[4]

In December 1943, Sooloh became one of the first members of the Malay Welfare Association (MWA). He was also a trustee of Sultan Mosque,[13] as well as a patron of both the Darul Taklam football club and the Malay Soccer Association (Persatuan Bolasepak Melayu).[4]

Later years and legacy

Sooloh died in 1963, aged 72.[4] He was buried near his father at Singapore's oldest Muslim cemetery in Jalan Kubor (behind Masjid Malabar).[4][14] Two years after Sooloh's death, the three-storey house that Sooloh, his two wives, six daughters, and four sons had lived in was torn down.[4] A lane in a former Malay settlement (present-day Kaki Bukit) was once named after Sooloh.[4]

Notes

1. Also spelt as Ambok Sooloh[1] or Embok Suloh.[2]

References

Citations

1. Ng 2017, p. 188.
2. National Heritage Board 2012, p. 55.
3. Roff 2009, p. 78.
4. Musa Kasbi 1988, p. 4.
5. Rahim 2010, p. 63.
6. Nik Ahmad 1963, p. 62.
7. Turnbull 2009, pp. 155–156.
8. Nik Ahmad 1963, p. 64.
9. Nik Ahmad 1963, p. 63.
10. Sulaiman 1988, p. 6.
11. Nik Ahmad 1963, pp. 64–65.
12. Nik Ahmad 1963, p. 65.
13. The Straits Times 1948, p. 8.
14. Zaccheus 2014.

Works cited

• "Kampong Glam Heritage Trail" (PDF). National Heritage Board. October 2012.
• "Sultan Mosque repairs". The Straits Times. 22 June 1948. p. 8.
• Musa Kasbi (26 January 1988). "Ambo Sooloh helped set up Utusan Melayu". The Straits Times. p. 4.
• Ng, Yew Peng (2017). What's In The Name? How The Streets And Villages In Singapore Got Their Names. World Scientific. ISBN 9789813221475.
• Nik Ahmad (1963). "The Malay Press". Journal of the Malayan Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society. 36 (1): 37–78. JSTOR 41505523.
• Rahim, Lily Zubaidah (2010). "Daring to Challenge the Status Quo: The Lateral Vision and Meandering Political Journey of Left Malay Nationalists from Singapura". In Rick Hosking (ed.). Reading the Malay World. Wakefield Press. ISBN 9781862548947.
• Roff, William R. (2009). Studies on Islam and Society in Southeast Asia. NUS Press. ISBN 978-9971694890.
• Sulaiman, Jeman (7 November 1988). "The rise of Malay newspapers". The Straits Times. p. 6.
• Turnbull, C.M. (2009). A History of Modern Singapore, 1819–2005. NUS Press. ISBN 978-9971694302.
• Zaccheus, Melody (5 September 2014). "Uncovering secrets of 19th century Singapore".