KUCHING, Oct 10 — Celebrity chef Datuk Redzuawan Ismail, better known as Chef Wan, has revealed that prominent Kuching pioneer and merchant Ong Tiang Swee was his great-grandfather.

He made the revelation during a visit to the Chinese History Museum here while in the state capital to attend several official events.

Sharing his discovery on Instagram, Chef Wan posted a video of his museum tour alongside Sarawak Women of Tomorrow (SWOT) chairwoman Datuk Zunaidah Idris, tracing his maternal roots to the prominent historical figure.

“Bayangkan (Just imagine), this is my great-grandfather, Ong Tiang Swee. These are all the pioneers and community leaders,” he said while showing the museum’s displays on early Chinese migration from provinces such as Guangdong and Fujian.

Elaborating on his lineage, Chef Wan explained that Ong Tiang Swee was his maternal grandmother’s father.

“So from my late mother’s side, we did come from an aristocratic and rich family. He even had a road in Kuching named after him, and when he passed away, they gave him a state funeral,” he said, adding that the late merchant died in Kuching in 1950.

During the visit, members of the younger generations of the Ong family met Chef Wan and brought along vintage photograph albums documenting Ong Tiang Swee and the extended family.

Chef Wan also reflected on his family’s history during World War II, noting the hardships faced during the Japanese occupation.

“Tulah, macam time Perang Jepun, dia orang habis kena tawan, kena ambil segala harta benda (That’s it, like during the Japanese war, they were all captured, and all their properties and belongings were seized),” he recalled in the video.

He explained that his great-grandmother and grandmother were sent to Singapore during the invasion, where he was subsequently born in 1958.

Remarking “what a small world,” the culinary maestro expressed gratitude for the preservation of his family’s history at the museum before joining members of the Ong family for lunch. — The Borneo Post