The appointment is a first for the PNTC since the establishment of the Totalisator Board in 1961.

Ong, 57, is a lawyer by profession and a former chairman of the Penang State Bar Committee. He has been a committee member of the PNTC since 1993 and has served as its President for the last four years.

Prior to his appointment as chairman, Ong was a board member for two terms from 1998 to 2000 and 2002 to 2004.

"It’s a great honour for the club coming at a time when the club is celebrating its 140th anniversary. I hope to make racing more exciting and more accessible to the public," said Ong in a press statement.

Ong also added that he is looking forward to his tenure as chairman and address the many challenges facing the billion-ringgit horseracing industry especially other competing forms of gaming and leisure pursuits.

In order to increase attendance and turnover, Ong advocates close co-operation of the three Malaysian turf clubs, the police and the Treasury.

The TBM was set up by an Act of Parliament Racing (Totalisator Board) Act 1961. The Act conferred on the Board a scheme for the operating of totalisators for betting by the racing public.

Other powers of the TBM include equine research, maintenance and improvement of turf clubs.

Besides racing revenue for the Treasury, the TBM donates millions every year to various social and charitable causes in the country. The National Stud Farm at Tanjong Rambutan, which is the only horse breeding farm in the country, is also owned by the TBM.