Tan Chee Khoon (simplified Chinese: 陈志勤; traditional Chinese: 陳志勤; pinyin: Chén Zhìqín; Cantonese Yale: Chàhn Ji-kàhn; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Tân Chì-khûn; 4 March 1919 – 14 October 1996) was a major figure in Malaysian politics from 1959 to 1978, at one point being nicknamed "Mr. Opposition" for the outspoken views he presented in Parliament.

[2] Tan's first formal education was at the Pudu English Girls' School (despite him being a boy), but he later attended the Victoria Institution (VI).

Even this initially appeared impossible, as he was rejected due to the loss of his eye; however a personal appeal from his headmaster gained him admission to the college.

[2] After graduating from medical school in 1949, Tan spent two years at the Kuala Lumpur General Hospital before later going into private practice.

Tan helped Labour prepare memoranda submitted to the Reid Commission, which drew up the Constitution for Malaya, which achieved independence in 1957.

Labour managed to take advantage of internal discord in the ruling Alliance coalition, and made major gains in the 1959 general election.

[4] He was one of only two Labour MPs alongside party leader Lim Kean Siew who won the Dato Keramat seat.

[2] Tan made no secret of his religion, and freely peppered his Parliamentary speeches with quotations from the Bible, leading the first Malaysian Prime Minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman, to remark how much he sounded like a preacher.

However, the participants deviated from the authorised route, jamming traffic, and entered a predominantly Malay area of Kuala Lumpur, where they shouted racial epithets.

The newly formed National Operations Council (NOC), led by Deputy Prime Minister Tun Abdul Razak, took power.

[14] Health problems also constrained Tan's effectiveness, and he announced his retirement from politics in 1977, although he held his Parliament and Selangor State Assembly seats until their terms expired the next year.

[2] In 1967, Tan was elected President of the Malaysian Medical Association (the first Chinese doctor to hold such office), which he had joined as an honorary member.

[2] Tan was a committed Christian, and attended Wesley Church in Kuala Lumpur, where he served as a member of its Official Board from 1953 onwards.

Tan died on 14 October 1996, and his funeral was held at Wesley Church, next to Methodist Boys' School Kuala Lumpur.

[21] Tan Kee Kwong quit Gerakan to join Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) in early September 2008, citing that race-based politics is on the decline.