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The remains of Old Victorian, Dato' Loke Wan Tho, and those of his
wife, Datin Loke, were laid to rest after a two-hour long
funeral procession through the main streets of Kuala Lumpur. Thousands
lined the streets three to four deep to pay their respects to the
cinema magnate and philanthropist who, with his wife, was killed in
an air crash in Taiwan on June 20, 1964. Among the mourners were the
Prime Minister, Tengku Abdul Rahman, the Deputy Prime Minister, Dato'
Abdul Razak, the Finance Minister, Mr Tan Siew Sin, as well as
representatives of film companies.
The procession was led by a mobile traffic squad, followed by a car bearing the photos of the late Dato' and Datin. Then followed the Royal Malaysia Police Band, two detachments of the V.I. Cadet Corps and a unit of the Selangor Women's Athletic Association. At the service at the family burial grounds, Bishop H. B. Amstutz said of Dato' Loke: "Integrity was a hallmark of his life and sympathetic understanding not found in those highly privileged. Philanthropy was also a real part of his life, although his charities were not privileged and he never wanted to be linked privately with donations." After the caskets were lowered into their respective graves, the Last Post was sounded by three V.I. Cadets, a final farewell from the Old School which the late Dato' had attended in the 1930s. His father was Towkay Loke Yew, one of the founders of the V.I.
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