SAHOCA 26: TEACHERS' DAY

KHAS UNTUK PAK CHOY, GURU BERSARA

Kepada guru yang telah banyak berjasa,

Yang telah mendidik anak bangsa,

Menjadi khazanah nusa dan bangsa,

Kini sibuk mendidik anak cucu pula,

Bukanlah mudah nak mendidik manusia,

Lebih mudah lagi mendidik anak rusa,

Sekarang barulah Pak Choy rasa,

Kena buli dek cucu setiap masa,

Pak Choy hanya boleh bersara fizikal sahaja,

Janganlah pula bersara di minda,

Nanti rosak binasa ditelan masa,

Buat Haji Yaacob gelak ketawa,

Janganlah marah, hanya melawak saja,

Di Hari Guru, hari yang mulia,

Khas untuk Pak Choy, Guru bersara.

16.05.2010

SAHOCA 25: CLOSER LOOKS AT SMI 56

During our SMOne 1956 Reunion in 2002 at Hotel Seri Malaysia, Haji Yaacob informed us that his utmost dream in life was to become a millionaire. We were baffled whether he really meant what he said. Haji Yaacob was a retired teacher but he does inherited some agricultural land from his late father. During my tenure as the District Officer of Kubang Pasu (1990-1995) I used to see Haji Yaacob coming often to the District Office to settle the disputes of land ownership with his other siblings.

When we enquired about the means that he would use to achieve his dream, Haji Yaacob gladly said that he has enough savings from his entire career as a teacher and also from the produce of his vast land. He has invested his entire savings into Amanah Saham Nasional. From his calculation, he would become a millionaire in a few years time based on the amount of dividends that he would derive from his ASN shares.

Sure enough when I asked Haji Yaacob about his dream in 2002 at our third reunion on 1^st. May 2010, Haji Yaacob contentedly told us that he has already achieve his dream to become a millionaire. Apart from that, Haji Yaacob also told us that he has built his million dollar dream house in Kampong Sungai Baru and he has also acquired the disputed hereditary lands . We were really proud and happy that our classmate has achieved that status quo without being a businessman but instead through his sheer frugal thrifty way of life for the past fifty years.

Meanwhile in the same breath, we also wondered whether Haji Yaacob is really enjoying the fruits of his labour. Although Haji Yaacob is a millionaire but Haji Yaacob does not drive a car but instead travel around on his old faithful kapcai motorbike. His hearing is also impaired and we have to raise our voices when communicating with him.

Whereas in contrast we have another classmate Abdul Halim Abdullah who rides around on his superbike or his caravan visiting places when ever he desires. He would also go to any extend just to have his foods which he really admires such as Mutabak Pak Awang in Changloon. Halim rode his superbike from Penang to Changloon just to have the taste of Mutabak Pak Awang during the fasting month. When I asked Halim about the identity of Mustabak Pak Awang, Halim told me just to watch the mutabak stall which has the customers queuing to buy the murtabak and not the other way round whereby the murtabak were piled up queuing and waiting for the customers.

Apart from his mode of transportation and foods, Halim enjoys his golf and also his hobby of music and carpentry. He has also took up the challenge to become a Global Malay that has been ardently propagated by Tun Dr. Mahathir just by having Japanese and Australian in laws. The morale of the story is that every classmate of ours should enjoy the fruits of their labour according to their likes and fancy within the parameter of Islam when we have crossed the bonus age of sixty four and above.

Haji Yaacob bin Haji Mohamed.
He resides in Kampong Sungai Baru, Gunung. He has 4 children with 9 grand children. He was already a Haji before he registered as a student of SMOne in 1956.

Haji Yaacob's dream bungalow in Kampong Sungai Baru, Gunung.

Haji Abdul Halim bin Abdullah
He resides in Kelana Jaya, Selangor but frequented hi summer house in Bandar Darulaman, Jitra. He has 4 children with 6 grand children. He has gone through double angioplasty procedure

Vision of tranquility from the veranda of Halim's house beside Darulaman Golf Green

Abu Bakar Yaacob.
He resides in Jalan Kolam renang, Bakar Bata. He has 5 children with 3 grand children. Abu Bakar's favourite daily place of rendezvous is Warung Cucur Udang at Bakar Bata.

Harun bin Ali
He resides in Tanjung Bendahara, Alor Setar. He has 6 children with 6 grand children.
He has a very good memory of SMOne class and he is very energetic in locating his classmates

Yahaya Ahmad B.
He resides in Tanjung Bendahara. He has 4 children with 8 grand children. He has also gone through by pass operation


Ismail bin Ibrahim
He resides at Jalan Datok Kumbar. He has 9 children with 6 grand children. He is aided by a pace maker for his heart problem

Ibrahim bin Subhan
He resides at Taman Golf. He has 4 children with 9 grandchildren.

Shamsuddin Hussein @ Din Dongga
He resides at Bandar Darulaman. He has 7 children with 10 grandchildren. He is the most prolific student of SMOne 1956 with the most number of grandchildren

Annuar Khamis
He resides at Taman Aman, Pendang. He has 4 children with 5 grandchildren

Mohd. Saad Shafie @ Ad Tot
He resides at Jalan Tunku Bendahara @ Jalan Maxwell, Alor Setar. He has 6 children. Saad has gone through heart by pass operation


Shariff Saad
He resides at telok Kechai. He has 5 children with 6 grandchildren

SAHOCA 24: DOWN MEMORY LANE

Abd. Halim Abdullah in contrast with the future Inspector General of Police, Bakri Omar

College's Speech Day in 1965.

The late Che Gu Mohd. Noor, our Form Teacher explaining to His Royal Highness The Sultan about our class exhibits witnessed by the late Dr. C.K. Cheung SAHC Board of Governor and the late Mr. Ong Poh Kee, the Headmaster.

As my vision was so high as the Parliament Building, I could not reach the finish line in tandem with my athletic prowess: Osman Ramlee

From left: Mohd. Noor, Ramlee, Halim and Zainul Ariff

Taken at Rumah Kedah, Cameron Highlands in 1974

From left (standing): Fadzil Abbas (husband of former Form VI classmate, Zahariah), Abdullah Ahmad @ Lah Belacan, Shamsuddin Osman (future KSN), Johari Kandar, Ghazali Mohd. Noor and the late Abdullah Salleh.
From left (sitting): Gupta, Hassan Puteh, Abd. Halim Abdullah, Adnan Shamsuddin and Khalil Mutalib

Sitting in front: Che Mat Che Puteh

From left: Mahadi @ Khairuddin Sobri Hashim, Mohd. Daud Dali, Mokhtar Mahmud and Abd. Halim Abdullah

In 1963, it was then beyond imagination that Wan Min Wan Din would graduate with honours in 1969. Together with his two closed friend from Jitra, (a retired colonel and a retired teacher) Wan Min has obediently experienced school public canning on the stage of SAHC Assembly Hall in 1963, for disorderly behaviour (fighting in public) with their stern enemies from Jitra also. When Wan Min was fighting habitually on the Jitra/Alor Setar school bus, I used to collect his strewn school books on the bus floor.

However with Allah's blessing, Haji Wan Min Wan Din has churned out to be very pious man to the level of an Imam as well as a very successful educator in the violence world of education in which he has very wide practical experiences throughout his youthful life. Alhamdullillah.

From left: Abd. Halim and Mohd. Daud Hamzah.

Mohd. Daud Hamzah has a very unique way of studying while squatting in his underwear. His unique way of studying was very effective because he ended his career as an Education Professor at USM.

Our convocation day on 7th. July 1969.
From left. Abd. Halim Abdullah , Syed Zain , Wan Min Wan Din and Zainul Ariff Hussein

The four of us stayed together at the NUPW Hostel at Section 14, Petaling Jaya in 1966. Our mode of transport to the University of Malaya were: Abd. Halim (Honda 50), Syed Zain (Honda 65), Wan Min (Honda 90) and Zainul Ariff (Lambreeta). With these motorbikes, we thought we were really kings of the road until we were caught up by the police road blocks.

SAHOCA 23: THIRD REUNION SMI 1956

This year’s labour day was a very significant day for the classmates of Special Malay Class One 1956 at the Sultan Abdul Hamid College Primary School, Alor Setar. On Saturday, 1^st. May 2010 we managed to have our third reunion at my house at Taman Tunku Mahmud Pumpong, Alor Setar.

We were very fortunate indeed because we were the last badge of SMOne students that were registered as the students of Sultan Abdul Hamid College Primary School. Later in 1957, SAHC Primary School was totally divorced from its parent Sultan Abdul Hamid College and renamed as the Iskandar Primary School taking the name after Tun Dr. Mahathir’s father..

There were forty of us comprising of Malay boys from the various Malay Schools scattered at the northern districts of Kedah i.e. Kubang Pasu, Kota Setar, Langkawi, Padang Terap, Sik and Yan. We were the chosen ones from standard four classes after we have successfully passed our Special Malay One Entrance Examination in 1955.

As there were no strict guidelines on the age limitation, our age difference spanned the period of three years which were based on our birth years that were 1944, 1945 and 1946. As such, we could see the difference in body sizes which corresponded with their birth years when we registered at the school.

Those who were from outlaying districts were placed at the SAHC Hostel. Many of them were given nick names which depicted their physical characteristics and place of origins. Ismail Yaacob from Yen was given the nick name of Pak Choy while another Ismail from Jerlun was given the nick Pak Kaduk. While the dwarfed Yusoff Hamid was given the nick name of Little Boy . Abu Bakar Yaacob who hailed from Kampung Alor Belat was given the name of Aloq Belat.

However on the 1^st. of May 2010 and after a period of 54 years, our previous age differences did not matter anymore because all of us seemed to be on equal footings with the appearance of frail looking god fearing citizens.

Some of the common characteristics of those days were the spellings of our names which were influenced by the English spellings such as Mohamed instead of Muhammad or Yaacob instead of Yaakub. As most of us were from the kampongs, our behaviours did not go in tandem with the English spelling names. Naturally we brought along our kampong way of life even though we were already absorbed into the world of English Education.

We started our third reunion by having a group photograph and followed by a prayer recital for our departed friends led by Haji Mohamed Lebai Endut and concluded by Haji Ismail Ibrahim. From the original forty, 12 has passed away namely:

1. Abdullahee Che Din
2. Ahmad bin Hambali
3. Abdullah bin Salleh
4. Azizan bin Taib
5. Farid bin Ali
6. Ishak bin Hassan
7. Marzuki bin Jaffar
8. Mohd. Noor bin Taib
9. Norlajis bin Omar
10. Omar bin Don
11. Wahab bin Musa
12. Yusoff bin Hamid @ Liitle Boy.

On the 1^st. May 2010, we managed to assemble 13 classmates comprised of:

1. Abu Bakar Yaacob

2. Annuar Khmais

3. Halim Mat Ninggal

4. Harun Ali

5. Ibrahim Subhan

6. Ismail Ibrahim

7. Mohd. Saad Shafie

8. Mohamed Lebai Endut

9. Shamsuddin Hussein

10. Shariff Saad

11. Syed Zain

12. Haji Yaacob Mohamed

13. Yahaya Ahmad B

From the impromptu survey that we did during the third reunion, the 13 of us were very proud that we have also contributed to the advancement of the country by producing additional 168 citizens to Malaysia .

Five of our classmates namely

1. Kassim Hamid

2. Abdul Halim Ali

3. Syed Sheh

4. Halim @ Ropie Hamid

5. Ismail Yaacob @ Pak Choy

send their best wishes for the success of the 3^rd. reunion. They could not make it to the reunion because of distance, prior commitment and also medical constraints.

However we doubted on the absence of Ismail Yaacob @ Pak Choy because of his prior commitment or rather he had done it on purpose. We did believed whole heartedly that his absence was because of his unfinished business with Haji Yaacob Mohamed. Because of this adverse factor, all of us compelled Haji Yaccob to let bygone be bygone. Haji Yaacob has sincerely and wholly pardoned our beloved late friend and also Pak Choy, the guarantor. So, we do sincerely hope that Ismail Yaacob @ Pak Choy would be present on our fourth reunion irrespectively .whether Haji Yaacob would be there or not. Insya Allah

I was rather sad because I failed to contact the other 10 classmates namely:

1. Fadzil Ahmad

2. Hashim Murad

3. Ismail Shafie @ Pak Kaduk

4. Mansor Hambali

5. Mokhtar Yunus

6. Omar Ahmad

7. Shafie Mehad

8. Md. Shuaib Che Din

9. Yahaya Ahmad A

10. Zubir Ahmad

If ever any follower of my blog came to know the where about of my ten lost friends, please do not hesitate to furnish me with the precious information on them.

On my part as the host, I am thankful to Allah for having such a very wonderful supportive and understanding friends who has responded very positively towards the idea of having the third reunion. They were the pivotal contributors towards the success of the third reunion. For three solid hours the classmates kept themselves busy by reminiscing about the past memories of 1956.

I am also very indebted to Zam and her two sisters who came over with their husband and kid. Even her auntie, Mak Chik Sayang came over with her famous bengkang pisang. My two sons Shiwar and Ezman has also joined hands in ensuring the success of the third gathering. Alhamdullillah. It was indeed a very memorable reunion and we promised to ourselves that we would continue with our reunion as long as Allah permits us. We have resolved that we would attend Ismail Ibrahim's daughter's wedding on 5.6.2010 at 2.00 pm so as to continue with our acquaintanceship. InsyaAllah

My co host, Halim Abdullah admiring the reunion streamer while waiting for the arrivals of our classmates

Our third reunion banner donated by my son, Ezwar


Preparing for the the feast at the kitchen
From left: Rohani Jasmani, her daughter Mazlin and her sister Noraini @ Mek Tet

From left: Wan Mansor, Mazlin, Rohani Jasmani, Noraini @ Mek Tet, Ezman and Mak Chik Sayang.

Ready for consumption

The earliest bird, Shamsuddin Hussein @ Din Dongga

From left: Yahaya Ahmad B, Halim Abdullah, Ismail Ibrahim being welcome by the gracious Din Dongga who has not met them for the past 40 years.

The arrival of Mohd Saad Shafie

Distributing pamphlets and explaining about the order of the day


Din Dongga and Haji Yaacob exchanging vital informations as they could not recognise the faces on the 1957 class photograph

Exchanging pleasantries

From left: Mohamed Endut, Abd. Halim Abdullah, Yahaya Ahmad B, Shamsuddin Hussein and Ismail Ibrahim browsing over third reunion phamplet while waiting for the rest to arrive.


Ezman giving a helping hand for the group photograph session taken by Shiwar on his Canon 450D

Seated from left: Ismail Ibrahim, Annuar Khamis, Halim Mat Ninggal, Syed Zain, Yahaya Ahmad B and Haji Yaacob Mohamed
Standing from left: Abu Bakar Yaacob, Shamsuddin Hussein, Abd. Halim Abdullah, Mohamed Lebai Endut, Ibrahim Subhan, Harun Ali, Shariff Saad and Mohd. Saad Shafie.

The group photograph was processed by Shiwar immediately and distributed as souvenirs before they departed for home


Welcoming the classmates to the third reunion

Engaging in the prayer recital for our departed friends


Halim Mat Ninggal flanked by Saad Shaife (left) and Mohamed Lebai Endut (right)

Mohamed Lebai Endut leading the prayer recital for our 12 departed friends

Smilingly waiting for my invitation for the food reception

Very attentive Halim Mat Ninggal on my wheel chair

Ismail Ibrahim took the opportunity to invite all those present for his daughter's wedding feast on 05.06.2010

Encouraging Halim Mat Ninggal to walk by himself with the aid of the walker


After much coxing, Halim managed to stand up by himself

Harun Ali giving his helping hands for Halim's departure


Ismail Ibrahim and Harun Ali assured the safety of Halim's departure


Halim Mat Ninggal bidding farewell

Halim Ali volunteered as a traffic warden for Halim Mat Ninggal's wife, Hajjah Nuzwir reverse gear

My SMOne 1956 classmates bidding farewell to me and Zam

From left: Shariff, Haji Yaacob, Harun Ali and Annuar Khamis departed for Haji Yaacob's house at Sungai Baru

The Magician passing by my house on the way to Dato' Syed Unan Mashri's grand child's birthday bash which coincided with our third reunion.

Haji Mohamed Lebai Endut relating to Zam about the circumstances that led him to abandon his Form Four Class in 1962 and joining the Day Teachers Training College located beside the SAHC Hostel. Lebai Endut forbade his son, Mohamed from pursuing his ambition in joining the Royal Military College at Sungai Besi. Just to spite his father, he went to the interview for the teaching profession recruitment exercise just by wearing his College's uniform (brown coloured shorts with white short sleeve shirt.).Miraculously he succeeded in his attempt and as such he became the first among the SMOne 1956 students to become a teacher at the age of 19 years old.
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He remembered teasing us who were still studying in Form Four by ringing his bicycle's bell when ever he passed by our Form Four Class. It was rather a frustrating affair for us when hearing the bells while Mohamed and his would be lady teachers passing by our class every day while we were slogging with our studies.

Apart from that, for the third reunion, Mohamed Endut opologised for his failure to conclude his prayers to our departed friends because he could not help from visualising the departed friends from his mind. Another retired teacher, Haji Ismail Ibrahim took over from Mohamed Endut to conclude the prayer recital. Alhamdullillah.

CLOSER LOOKS AT OUR FRIENDS



Haji Mohamed Lebai Endut spend his retirement days practising his golf swings daily at his orchard at Kampung Bukit Payung. He has 3 children with 9 grand children



Abdul Halim Mat Ninggal resides in Taman Perpaduan, Kuala Kedah. He has 3 children with 4 grand children.

During our first reunion at the Alor Setar Government Rest House in 1976, he brought along a wide heavy leather belt. He brought the belt in anticipation of defending himself against any back lash from his classmates which he used to bully in 1956. In 1956, he was the biggest of us all since he was also the eldest. He was a bulldozer on the soccer field knocking every thing on his way. He was also a terror outside the field and we were not surprised when ended his career a a navy man.

Ironically on our third reunion, Halim Mat Ninggal was wheel chair bound with Parkinson. Despite of his handicap, yet Halim's spirit for the third reunion was tremendous and beyond our imagination. His wife, Hajjah Nuzwir told us that Halim kept awaking up through out the night in frenzy anticipation of the third reunion on the next day. Kudos to Halim with his sheer will power to join the third reunion and for his determination, we have awarded him with a Gajah Duduk sarung.