Estate Ltd. himself, and he obtained the assistance of other businessmen to jointly set up Malacca Pinda Rubber Estates Ltd. and Ayer Molek Rubber Company, Ltd. Three years later in 1912, he was nominated as Malacca Council Commissioner and a Justice of the Peace for Malacca by the British government. Months later, he was also nominated as the Commissioner of the Town Council for the towns and Malacca port as well. In 1914, he resuscitated the Chinese Company of the Malacca Volunteer Corps (later also known as B Company, 4th Battalion, Straits Settlement Volunteer Force) and served as a private for five years until 1919. In 1915, the Straits Chinese British Association (SCBA) was revived by him, electing him as the President of SCBA soon after. In 1923, at the age of 40, he was appointed as a nominated member of the Legislative Council of the Straits Settlements. In 1926, Tan made history with his monumental speech of ideals of a territorially and politically united Malaya in a speech to the council. Like many Straits-born Chinese of his time, Tan was partial towards Britain but was deeply influenced by ideas of independence which were sweeping across many British colonies. He advocated the concept of a "united self-governing British Malaya". From 1933 to 1935, he was an unofficial member of the Straits Settlements Executive Council. He championed social causes like opposing opium smoking, promoting Chinese vernacular education, legislating against polygamy and pressing for immigration policy reform. During the Japanese occupation of Malaya, Tan and his family lived in India in exile. They witnessed the struggles of Mahatma Gandhi and Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru for independence during their stay in India, and inspired them to do the same for their motherland Malaya when they returned. The birth of Malayan Chinese Association Tan returned to Malacca after the Japanese surrendered. On 27 February 1949, Tan founded the Malayan Chinese Association (MCA) alongside Tun Leong Yew Koh () and Colonel Lee Hau Shik. Although he was 66 when elected to the position, Tan was regarded as the only man able to bring the Malayan Chinese together in perhaps their most trying time. The post-war years and the Emergency was a difficult and dangerous juncture for the community. The Chinese were deeply divided and their loyalty was under scrutiny. Among the Chinese, only Tan had the stature to engage with senior Malays such as Datuk Onn