Liow Tiong Lai

Tan Sri Dato' Sri Liow Tiong Lai (; born 13 October 1961) is a Malaysian politician who served as Minister of Transport, Minister of Health, Deputy Minister of Youth and Sports in the Barisan Nasional (BN) administration under former Prime Ministers Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and Najib Razak as well as former Minister Azalina Othman Said from February 2006 to May 2018. He also served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bentong from November 1999 to May 2018. In addition, he served as 10th President of the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA), a component party of the ruling BN coalition, from December 2013 to November 2018. Background Born in Jasin, Malacca in 1961, Liow had ambitions of being a doctor but graduated with a Bachelor of Science (Nutrition) from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) instead. He later obtained his MBA from the University of Malaya. He is married to Puan Sri Lee Sun Loo and has three children. He is a strong advocate of healthy eating, especially eating organic food. Political career Liow officially joined the Malaysian Chinese Association in 1981. Soon after graduating from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia in 1986, he joined MCA as a research assistant with a monthly salary of RM700. He became press secretary and later political secretary to MCA deputy president Lim Ah Lek from 1989 to 1999. After two decades of steady rise in the party, he was elected as MCA Youth Chief in 2005 and was elected as a vice-president in 2008.