The road is named after the last Kapitan Cina of Selangor, who made his fortune from tin mining, then turned philanthropist, providing for the health and education of KL’s early settlers.
Yap Kwan Seng, a Hakka born in Canton in 1846, moved to Malaya at the age of 18 and worked his way into a fortune, ending up with a workforce of 7,000 and owning more tin mines than any of his contemporaries.
His granddaughter, Yap Swee Lin, describes him to FMT as a pioneering advocate of healthcare and education for the underprivileged.
His greatest achievement is considered to be the founding of the Pooi Shin Thong charity in 1881, providing traditional medical care free for the underprivileged, especially sick tin miners.
Pooi Shin Thong is believed to have been located at a shop lot in Petaling Street when KL was not much more than a village. Yap opened it as a clinic with medical care provided by two traditional Chinese medicine practitioners.
Today it is Tung Shin hospital, in Jalan Pudu, not far away from its beginning. The modern hospital provides both treatment using traditional Chinese and western medicine.
Swee Lin, youngest daughter of Kapitan Yap’s youngest son, told FMT that her grandfather “always said that everyone should have the opportunity to study, and then when they get old, there should be adequate healthcare for them”.
She said he understood the value of having a quality education and even encouraged girls to study at a time when their status in society was much more restricted.
During British rule, influential figures were the appointed chiefs of the different ethnic communities, wielding considerable authority, and also contributing to social, economic, and political development.
Yap was the fifth and last Kapitan Cina, from 1889 to 1901, after which the position was abolished.
Kapitan Yap was a co-founder of Victoria Institution in 1893, with fellow historical figures Loke Yew, Thamboosamy Pillai, Sultan Abdul Samad and William Treacher. It went on to become one of the nation’s leading schools, establishing a reputation for excellence in academic achievements and sports.
Yap, a born entrepreneur, anticipated the demand for bricks as a construction material, establishing the first brick kiln in what is still known as Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur.
He died of consumption (tuberculosis) in 1901 at 55, leaving five wives in Malaysia and three in China, and a large family consisting of fifteen sons and ten daughters, according to his obituary in the Straits Times.
His reputation has lasted well in Hong Kong and Canton, and Swee Lin said people there would often greet her to convey their respects for her grandfather’s achievements.
She is also happy with the recognition from the authorities in naming the road after him. “Even though many commuters using Jalan Yap Kwan Seng may not really be aware of who he was, it’s right that his life has been commemorated.”