Stephen Kalong Ningkan

Infobox_President
name= Stephen Kalong Ningkan
nationality= Malaysian
order=1st Chief Minister of Sarawak
term_start=1963
term_end=1966
successor=Tawi Sli
birth_place=Betong, Sri Aman, Sarawak, British Colony
Political Party=SNAP
religion=Christian
occupation=Politician

Datuk Stephen Kalong Ningkan created history when he won in the polls and was appointed as the first chief minister of Sarawak on July 22, 1963. As the chief minister of a newly independent state which helped formed Malaysia, Kalong faced many challenges from within the state and from without.

Kalong was born in August 1922 in Betong which was then administered under the Second Division of Simanggang. He was a student of St Augustine’s school. After he completed his education, he became a dresser at a Shell Company hospital in Kuala Belait, Brunei for several years. At the hospital, he was chairman of the Shell Dayak Club. He also became the founder and president of the Sarawak Dayak Association from 1958 to 1960.

He returned to Betong and established the Sarawak National Party (SNAP) in April 1961. Although he initially did not accept Tunku Abdul Rahman’s proposal on the formation of Malaysia, he eventually became a strong supporter of the federation. In the 1962 election, SNAP won many seats, earning him the trust to be chief minister. In addition, Kalong played an important role in forming Perikatan Sarawak. He was its secretary-general.