BY early December of 1974, our group of Upper Six Arts students was ready to disband and part ways. I had to bid farewell to a few good friends among the boys and girls in my class.
The nearly two years of bonding we shared was something I could not easily forget, thus I said goodbye with a heavy heart.
There were important lessons inside and outside the classroom. Friendships were something to hold onto when seeking support and solace.
I made some great friends among both students and teachers who shared similar interests.
In September of 1974, I met a Canadian teacher named Lloyd Jones. He expressed interest in purchasing two batik pieces when he visited my solo ‘batik’ exhibition in two classrooms.
He mentioned that he had adopted an Iban boy named David Rengga Jones as his son.
Lloyd taught at Simanggang Government Secondary School in the late 1960s as a volunteer and had left Sarawak to establish lodging facilities resembling a longhouse settlement in Lake Head, Ontario, Canada.
He proposed to buy the two pieces, and although he did not have enough cash to meet the RM180 price set for each, I
agreed to accept a delayed payment.
He promised to settle the payment from his home country upon his return in two weeks.
I had forgotten about it until he delighted me by sending 360 Canadian dollars via HSBC, doubling the amount in cash three weeks later.
This friendship led to further correspondence.
Among the girls in my class, I was particularly close to Ivy Ngui, Shirley Goh and Rohani Abdul Karim, who wrote in my autograph book that she aspired to be Prime Minister.
Well done, Rohani, as you came close to achieving that goal by becoming a federal minister with the honorific of Datuk Seri.
I am now friends with Ivy and Rohani on Facebook.
I had the pleasure of attending Rohani’s second daughter’s wedding around 2016 when I reunited with old classmates
Ivy, Datuk Mohd Sait Ahmad and our friend Toman Mamora, who taught at Methodist but not in our class.
By late January of 1975, I received notification that a job was available in the Info/Psywar Section of the Sibu Information Department, which fell under RASCOM (Rajang Area Security Command) within the Divisional Information Office led by Philip Gani, also known as Nyayum of Betong.
I met with Nyayum, and on February 1 of that year, I started the job he offered, accepting a monthly salary of RM350.
On February 1, I commenced my duties in the Info/Psywar Section of the Information Department at RASCOM Sibu.
I was assigned to a room with three others under Henry Gima, the Information Assistant Officer who oversaw the Iban newspaper Berita Rayat, where I served as his assistant editor.
Berita Rayat was a monthly eight-page Iban newspaper. Our typist, Linda, who shared our office, was Nyayum’s wife.
LaughterS filled the room when I sketched the Communist terrorists for the second edition of the paper in March 1975, making them resemble cowboys.
At RASCOM, I befriended outside individuals who frequented our canteen.
Two were William Mawan Ikom (now Tan Sri), who worked as a tally clerk at Rajang Port Authority in Sibu, and George Bernard Francis, employed by a Korean company near RASCOM.
Mawan and I were both involved in the Sarawak Dayak National Union (SDNU) under the leadership of our good friend Temenggong Jonathan Bangau Renang, which strengthened our friendship as we attended several meetings and outings together.
Another friend was Inspector Wilfred Gomez Malong, who led the Border Scouts at Salim Camp, with whom I even went on a blind date.
Several memorable events occurred at the RASCOM office, but I would like to share one amusing incident.
It involved our RASCOM van driver, whose name escapes me, recounting how he picked up Tun Jugah just outside the sports field near our office.
He dropped Tun Jugah off at the CEO’s office, assuming the important figures were expecting Tun Jugah at the old Sibu airport as planned.
However, as the helicopter pilot flew past the Padang Sukan, Tun Jugah insisted, “This is RASCOM, my son; we stop here” (Nyin RASCOM anak, ditu kitai ngetu).
This explained why they were picked up by the passing van at the field’s edge.
Upon the return of the esteemed visitors, Tun Jugah was found waiting with a broad smile in CEO Mohamad Sarkawi’s office.
Resident Abang J (Datuk Abg Zainuddin) and the police chief at the time, SAC Ramsay Noel Jitam, were also part of the returning group from the airport.
In early June of 1975, I received a letter from Lloyd Jones regarding a study opportunity at Lakehead University, Ontario, Canada, facilitated by Reverend Bob Steven, a church minister offering lodging while Professor Irving Taylor offered mentorship for Economic Studies at the university.
Before I could respond, I also received an offer to study law at the University of London through ITM Shah Alam.
A week later, I received an offer to pursue Humanities with Education at the University of Science (USM) in Minden, Penang.
I was particularly interested in the offer from USM, despite the lack of financial support. I wrote a letter in Iban to Datuk Alfred
Jabu Numpang (now Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri) regarding the offer and my need for financial assistance.
To my surprise, two days later, I received a call from Jabu informing me that two federal officers would interview me at the Sibu District Office in two days.
On the second day following Jabu’s call, I attended the interview and was instructed to report to the Kuching Federal Office on June 27 of that year.
I confirmed my acceptance of the USM offer and expressed gratitude to Lloyd Jones and Reverend Bob Steven for their offers while respectfully declining the offer from ITM Shah Alam.
I proceeded to submit my resignation letter to my boss, Nyayum, who appreciated that I was able to secure a place at the university.
Everyone was supportive and I received substantial financial backing from various sources, exceeding two months’ worth
of my salary, including RM200 from Temenggong Jonathan Bangau.
By June 25, I had arrived in Kuching, where my supportive uncle, Musa Giri (now Datuk), who served as the Principal Assistant Secretary at the Welfare Office, guided me through the process. He accompanied me to the Federal Office to sign the Federal Scholarship Agreement.
He was my guarantor; Albert Dass was the assistant guarantor, while Tun Jugah signed as a witness.
Tun Jugah offered encouragement, saying, “Good, my son, study hard so you can obtain a university degree.”
Therefore, by June 27, my path to USM was clear, and I had decided not to pursue an education in law or economics in Canada.
The views expressed here are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of the Sarawak Tribune.
