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Birth date: 9.10.l932
Birthplace: Libis, Johore, Malaysia
19??-19?? Bukit Beruang
Brought to the state of Malacca during the economy recession when my father sold off his rubber plot for not able to make a living in Libis and moved to Machap with my mother and sister. My brother Koh Kim Chan was born in Machap and my mother die due to the childbirth complication. I was then three year old. I did not know why and when my grandpa moved to Bukit Beruang which is five miles away from Malacca. I believe that my grandpa (this is my mother's father)was the first batch of immigrant from China who had married with local girl who have had Malay parentage. They were given plot of land to cultivate padi and vegetables to supply the town folks nearby. Because I had accompanied my grandpa many time to visit his graveyard for Cheng Beng when I was small but I never heard of his mother's graveyard.
He used to travel to Machap to work in Ong Eng Tian estate. He and my father were the contractors who look after the estate by engaging the worker to clean the grass, to tap the trees and to see that the trees are not infected by termites etc. He owned an Austin car. He sold the car just before the second world war after the death of my grandma. My grandpa was the headman of village. He was the head of a small Chinese school controlling body. That is he looks after the teacher' salary and the school's running etc. He kept the tents for wedding occasion or funeral occasions and he was the arbitrator of any small disputes. He would be invited to any function in the village.
He was also the keeper of the embroidered cloth used to cover the coffins. I first went to Chinese school across the road of my grandpa's house. My sister and I went to live with grandpa as you know without a mother it would be difficult for my father to look as for my brother he was given to someone to look after.(not given away. He was taken back to live with us at the age of six) When I went to school it was already 1938, the Japanese have attacked the China proper for about fifteen months (it started on 7th. July l937). The school was in a rectangular shape say forty feet long and thirty feet. At the end of the building was the teacher quarter and there was a small build facing the teacher quarters was the kitchen where the teacher prepare his meals. As far as I know he prepared his once a day for the whole day. As to when he prepared his meal I did not know as I had never seen his doing it. The building was made of plank wall with plenty wide windows and attap roof which is prevailing in the tropic during that time. Yes, I forget to add,at the left hand corner of the school building near the end of a small slop there was a well and a bath house for the teacher. There is nothing much to describe about the bath house it is a round shape of attap attachment.The kind of bathhouse used in the rural kampong and the bathhouses built for prisoners of wars in the films.
The wall facing the pupils are hanging on three pictures the centre one on a higher position is the picture of the Father of China Dr.Sun Yet Sen,on the left Generalissimo Chiang Kai Shek and on the right on the same level with the generalissimo was the Soon Chee Woon the brother-in-law of the generalissimo, his position was not very clear to me at that time.
The generalissimo was young and handsome in his glistering uniform with the sandbrown and chestful for medals of various sizes. He was suppose to be the savior of China against the Japanese who tried to conquered China within three months.The generalissimo supposed to have followed Dr. Sun all along since the beginning for forming of Kuomintang Army (Kuomintang)is the Dr.Sun's party's name and in China the army belong to the party not the country even up to today. They say that the party has got to control the guns. However, Chiang is one of the Dr. Sun inner clique and due to his capability therefore he was entrusted with the running of the county. Above all I think the western world was also more trustful in him for his softness towards the western powers. His approach to the western powers were more or less like the Manchu attitude.
Well, I can classify him as one of the warlord of those days. The warlords were interested in powers just like the emperors, they just think of passing down their power from generation to generation, they did not care the well being of the Chinese race and the welfare of the people. They gathered all the fortunetellers around the Palace watcher the auspicious times and days to offer offerings to the divine spirits so that they will reward them with good fortune to continue their prosperities. The next thing they do is to consume the herbs to strengthen their sex life so that they can enjoy with numerous concubines.
However, the war continued and the Japs kept on pushing in with the atrocities that no human being had ever perpetrated to any other human beings before. We heard about these in Malaysia and we were frightened as we waited for the Japs to arrive. The mighty British was only a tiger paper and the fierce eagle (USA) was neutral in the war. So, humans kept on dying until they were hurt themselves.
At the corner of the North East and North West of China there was a army of men (Communists) who were also fighting the Japs with an national programme to mold a nationalistic nation with Chinese nationalistic spirit and soul. They implemented land reform so that farmers own their own land on which they work on, the educational policy, etc. Chiang called them Bandits. The war continue throughout the second world war then the civil war and finally the Communists defeated Chiang and founded the People's Republic of China in lst. Oct. l949. Chiang lost the war in spite of the support of the US and the arms and ammunitions left over from the second world war. When the heart is not straight nothing good can come out of it. That is a heavenly rule.
The Japs arrived in Malaya finally. I really do not remember the exact date but I saw them in my grandpa's house to conduct a thorough search in every house in the village. They took away my mother's sister's husband's car and one or two cars that belong to the town folk who tried to hide their cars in the village. We were so frightened as we had heard of them so much. All the women folks had left for the jungle to stay there for a few days.
Somehow they did not come again to our village. Unfortunately at that time it was difficult to move about beyond our own village as the transportation was minimal. I wanted to see a head being chopped off and displayed in a round about at Bunga Raya, Newcome Road, Bukit Cina and River Side Road with the warning that no one should oppose the Japanese occupation force. Sad to say no one took me to see it. One or two prominent Chinese families who had helped to organised concerts and other activities to collect money to be sent to China to fund the war effort were killed wholesales. The fears that had been created in Malacca Town was difficult to describe. So when I listened to the news in the radio or television about war violence I would feel the same feeling of those days.
19??-19?? Machap
My father took me and Kim Chan to Machap (16 miles from Malacca Town when Machap Bhru village is )to stay in his provision shop because he did not want us to be farmers if we were to stay with my grandpa. I think this happened after the Japs landed after six months and before the school reopened.
I joined the new school, there were about a hundred pupils because Machap was a bigger place. In school, in name, we learn Japanese language but none of the five or six teachers in the school could speak a word of Japanese. Consequently we ended up learning Chinese. In fact I picked up more Chinese during these occupation years in school. The teachers told us a lot about the Japanese fighters in China etc.etc.
In our daily life the Japs enforce more stringent rules in order to subdue us. The economic condition is getting worse daily. The imported goods had disappeared from the market, such as sugar, salt, flour, and even rice. They encourage us to grow our own food stuff or import from the neighbouring countries such as Indonesia and Thailand. The merchant in Malaka Town built bigger wooden tongkangs (boats) to carry dry chillies, salted fish, assam Jawa etc.etc. from Indonesia. While dried tapioca and some other produce came from Thailand, Malaya at that time was short of cultivated land for food stuff cultivation because the British used the available land for rubber cultivation. Therefore, a lot of people went hungry and finally die of starvation. In those days it was not only short of food produced but due to many factors, no job so no money to buy food, question of transportation of food produce, distribution system etc.etc. Anyway it was in wartime conditions.
Strangely enough the Japs adopted old systems that were used by the old imperial China such as registering household personnel who move from place to place. When say A from Malacca Town goes to Mchap to visit us, A's name must be deleted from Malacca and add to Machap'list. The other system was the night watch of the village, conscription of workers for public works etc.etc. As far as I know those systems were used during the Chinese imperial dynasties hundred of years ago. The Japs really created a lot of miseries for the people of Asia instead of happiness promised. They were worse than the white colonialist at least they provided us with peaceful conditions for us to live on and work. I always wonder how come these small Japanese creatures could dare to dream that they could with such s small number of small men to conquer the whole of Asia for themselves. The Creator must be naive.
During the Japs occupation days were passed gloomily, it appeared that some of fear was hanging in the atmosphere. Any misfortune could crop up suddenly. A traitor being murdered somewhere in the countryside. An MPAJA (Malayan People's Anti-Japanese Army) was caught in the village. All these will send the police and local soldiers all over the village. There was no developments that would benefit the people but projects for war effort such as aerodrome like the Malacca air-port which was started at that time. A lot of conscripted workers died there while working on it. My school caretaker was conscripted to work there and he died of wound sustained from working there. It began from a small cut and the wound began to rot until he died. I did not carried out a survey or kept a record of death of people but in recollection I remember of seeing more death during the occupation days than any other time.
One fine morning as usual we were doing through the morning chores-in this particular morning Kim Chan and I were attending our padi plot against the wild birds which came to feed on our padi so we had to chase them away. We learnt that a group of MPAJA personnel had emerged from the Jungle to walked on the street of Machap. We were told that the Japs had surrendered to the allied troops. we did not hear of the surrender as a rumours before this or anything like that. So, suddenly we found that the Banana Leaf currency was valueless and the British currency were back in circulation. Everyone of us was very happy, now that the hated Japs had all last being chased off.
We were the lucky family. Before the war our shop was holding a rice distribution permit. So when the Japs came naturally we were the one who handled all the essential commodities distribution job, items like rice, salt, sugar and kerozene oil for lighting. Since we handled the item naturally we were never short of such item. What it meant was that we could have whole white rice to enjoy while others had to mix their rice with sweet potatoes. Sometime even sweet potatoes were in short supply because the folks living in towns want them badly because they did not grow sweet potatoes. Some of the poorer families could not afford sweet potatoes and had to rely on tapioca and this would cause beri-beri faster. Somehow our family did not suffer much on food as we had money to pay for food. My fried who died in 2007 who were living nest two doors away from our shop was not so lucky because his father was a Chinese physician so his shop was stuck with Chinese medicinal staff which could not filled the stomach. They were ever short of money to buy food because he had a lot of brothers and sisters. So they suffered from malaria and beri beri. Although his family went through the war but the fortune never returned to its prewar status. His father was taken away by the MPAJA and never heard of it again. His elder brother became the estate lorry driver and he became an estate worker.
There was no killing spree in Machap or Bukit Berung. There were about four or five executions carried out in Machap and none whatsoever in Bukit Berung. As far as I could remember all of them were Chinese except one Malay. The Malay was a father of a policeman who was stationed in Machap and he of course acted excessively by beating people, in one instant I saw him chasing and beating a pork seller in front of all people. So when the Japs surrendered the MPAJA people looked for him and caught his father instead in Bachang,in Malacca Town. It seems that his father was also a big bully in the kampong. So that was the end of him. The rest were the informers. Some films and book described how the MPAJA personnel took hold of the kampong or town and carried out brutal killing etc.etc. well it did not happen within the sphere of our knowledge. The MPAJA disappeared from public as soon as the British troop arrived. We saw them driving through our town in their tanks from the north to the south. The did not stop or did anything to suggest that they were happy to be back. I am sure some of them knew what future hold for them.
When things start settling down, the MCP (Malayan Communist Party) started their campaign to organise night class for youngsters. I was one of the attendees too. Otherwise there was nothing to do. We sang anti-Japanese songs and listening to stories, it made us very happy. I never remember that they tried to indoctrinate anyone with communist ideology and they never emphasized the segregation of racial origins, instead they emphasize the integration of various races into one.
I think a film produced by the Singapore TV by the name 'three years and eight months' quite aptly describe the situation of the occupation. Tragically, the Japanese glorious days in the then Malaya lasted three years and eight months. What joy did they get out of it except the killing of peoples. During those three years and eight moths none of the Japanese soldier or personnel had shown any mercy to anyone of us by doing something good. They were totally merciless - what race that can be so ruthless?
19??-19?? Malacca Town
While Machap took up a new lease of life a totally new chapter of my family life was also unfolding. The new chapter was going to change the course of our life for the future. We sold the shop in Machap and move to Malacca Town. Oh! how exciting it was. It was a Sunday morning we hired a small lorry and move only our bedding and personal belongs and move to Malacca to a new shop. The shop was belonging to a businessman who went to Machap to escape the Japanese capture and upon liberation he did have any plan for the shop so he passed it to us to rent it. We started business there until the 1980's when my uncle got enough of it.
According to my uncle it was his idea that we move to Malacca Town. The MCP in Machap was becoming restless with their union movement over the Ong Eng Tian estate, the estate on which my father was working on. They stirred up strikes and agitate the workers to go against the management on every front. To put it in a nut shell they just want unrest. This was communists tactics all over the world. Some of the youngsters in the village at my age were asked to volunteered to the Communist cause. With these backdrop my uncle thought that it was best to run away. It was praise-worthy decision. We settled down in Malacca town peacefully and happy then we went to attend school. That was beginning of l947. In l948 a new historical chapter of Malayan history was to begin anew and would be more exciting.
The inevitable finally happened. In l948 the MCP took up arms to fight the British Administration. It plunged the country into semi war situation. The government declared emergency through out the country. It did not affect everyone in the public life seriously except the rubber tappers, tin miners because they were the people who were directly contributing to the national income. If not for the sack of my father being directly involved in the industry it would not come to our consciousness at all. My father was wanted by the MCP members. He had to carry a pistol to protect himself. One of his staff was short dead. A colleague was killed and another wounded. The wounded one joined CID (Criminal Investigation Department) after he recovered from his wound. MCP were called Communist Terrorist(CT). They ambushed public vehicles, murder government informers, derailed railway tracks etc. they just wanted to created havoc as much as possible. This had been going on day in and day out until they killed the British High Commissioner in l951. I think the British must had thought that enough was enough so they brought in military general to be the High Commission to run the administration. His name was Sir General Templer.
The call-up of youngsters after declaring emergency cause a stir in the Chinese community. Some of the youngsters went to China to escape the call-up and those who had been called up to serve in the police force spent a lot of money to bail themselves out. I was the only one that did not worry being called up. One, I was one or two years younger than the age required. Two I was interest to join the armed forces. I have always been interested to know the mechanism of the army. My analysis was very simple, ever since the European army came over to Asia colonizing, plundering, robbing, burning etc. they never met any worthwhile resistance from the countries that they invaded. No matter how rich that country's historical background in philosophical talents, astronomical achievements, da,da, all came to naught. They conquered India, Indo-China, Indonesia,Malaya, Brunei, Sarawak and Vietnam. Why?! That was what I wanted to know about.
19??-19?? Taiping
In l952 the First Battalion Federation Regiment was formed in Taiping. I signed up without hesitation. I traveled by train to Taiping to join the camp at Kemunting Barrack. I was very happy, I was happy that I was free from my family and I am independent, I would give no one any more trouble to look after me. I enjoy the training and I even enjoy the food they provided. I slept in the barrack with other recruits. On my right with the regimental number 2010l7 an Indian fellow and on my left with the regimental number 201006 also an Indian fellow from Klang, Selangor. Sadly enough, both of them have passed away. The l0l7 died of gun shot wound due to his negligent while the other fellow die of natural death at the age of say fifty plus. The Federation Regiment comprised of three main racial groups, I.e. 40%Malays, 40% Chinese 20% Indians and Eurasians and others.
The regiment had four cook-houses, i.e. Muslim coo-house cater for Muslim,Chinese cook-house cater for Chinese food while Indian cook-house cook Indian food.Anybody can have one of the three types of food provided he arranged with the messing officer well before hand. One morning during my recruit training I got a call to report to the company office to see the company officer commanding (company OC). There he asked me as to whether I like to be the officer mess caterer, that is a junior non-commission officer looking after the regiment's officers mess pertaining to daily maintenance of the mess. For instance its extra ration, cleanliness and daily routine stuff, liaison between the officer and its mess staff etc. Well, I turned it down instantly. Any offer of clerical position like orderly room clerical post, pay clerk, PRI clerical post all are not accepted. My purpose and intention of joining the army was very specific and clear, to learn the art of war although the war being waged here was jungle warfare. So, I and a few others were hand picked to attend various jungle warfare courses in PD run by Malay Regiment and Kota Tinggi run by the British Army. We were even sent to be attached to the Gurghar unit in Johore for a month to do the actual jungle patrol. We did not have the chance to contact the CT's. During our patrol through the jungle we saw some large old abandoned camps.The camp could have hold nothing less that forty to fifty members. That showed that the CT's were operating in a large group in the beginning of the up-rising. Then they split up in small groups as in the large group it presented a pretty target. The next reason was due to their internal differences in ideologies. No matter what was the reason or reasons they were obviously in the losing end.
19??-19?? Port Dickson
The whole battalion moved from Taiping to Port Dickson camp in l954 and my company 'B' company became a training company. By then I was promoted to the rank of Sergeant to became a platoon sergeant. Somehow I did not know to say whether it was good luck to me or not the Company Sergeant Major was demoted to the rank of sergeant because live ammunitions were found in the empty cases of ammunitions which were sent to Singapore for recycle. Of course they complained to our unit of the discovery and it is grave offense. So I was chosen to fill the gap. I felt sorry for the ex-warrant officer.So I become a warrant officer holding the appointment of company sergeant major. My joy now was to run a body of roughly one hundred and twenty soldiers. It is said that the quarter master (holding the rank of staff sergeant, one rank below than the warrant officer two) is the mother of the company while the company sergeant major is the father of the company. The discipline and efficiency of the company largely depending on the grooming and training of company sergeant major and its platoons sergeants and other junior non-commission officers..
22.Aug. 07: My right eye is getting better after the cataract second operation, the first operation was a fiasco. It was done by a lady doctor by the name of doctor Chew. I do not really know was the real reason she left a lot of remnant behind that gave me hell for two to three weeks. The last one was done by Doctor Fauzi. The operations were done in the university hospital in PJ. This morning went to armed forces pension office to submit claims for the lens and some payments for the eye-drops. It amounted to about six hundred over ringgits. However I have to wait for the refunds for about one month as they have run out of funds.
So,we stay in Port Dickson for about thirteen months doing the recruits training to fill up the strength of the battalion. As I said earlier I joined the army is to learn the organisation of armed forces. In this case I had the opportunity to learn about the organisation of the British army. It was one of the best army in the world. I read the Queen Regulations,the MML(manual of military laws). All available weapons training pamphlets.
19??-19?? Butterworth
From Port Dickson, the whole battalion moved to Butterworth. I was not sure which unit was stationed there but it was sure that the camp was occupied by either Australian or British battalion. At that time the talk between the MCP and the alliance party of Malaya plus the Singapore politicians were planning to hold talk before declaring independence. It was agreed that before and after the talk there be a safe passage for the MCP members to come for the talk. The talk was supposed to be held at Baling town and therefore all the security forces around certain miles around the Baling town had to be evacuated. Particularly the foreign troops, that was where we came in. For as soon as the talk was over and the time of amnesty was over my company that was the 'B' company of the lst.Bn. Federation Regiment moved in to Kroh near the Baling town but we did not carry out any jungle operation.
The film called the Pork Chop Hill in Korean War.(Today is 30th. Aug. 2009): I am anxious to write this part before I forget to it. In the British Army they had this so called AKC thing to provide the troops with free cinema shows. It was operated with a small van which traveled to every small units in the outskirt of towns or villages. So one of these films was to the members of the Warrant Officers and Sgt.'s Mess in the Batu Cantonment. By that time I have already being transferred to Malaysian Maintenance Corps. During that time there were still many many British personnel were serving in the Ordnance Corps as the Malaysian Ordnance Corps was newly established to completely Malaysianised the army. Actually,not only the army, the police and other branches of the armed forces were in the same process.
A young 19th.or 2oth. odd years old British student was called up for National Service in the British Army. He was trained for six months as normal and after the training he was sent to Korea war front. One day he led a section of the servicemen(ten to twelve men),to carried out patrol. When his team came to the top of the Pork Chop Hill, he was attacked by the Chinese volunteer army. And what follow just to see how he and his men killed the Chinese and at the end of it when the reinforcement came to rescued them he had the hill covered with the Chinese corpses. You should see how they make the Chinese looked so stupid when they were charging up the hill. That enraged me tremendously and I just could not controlled myself and stared screaming at the British audience. It was really humiliating to my race. I could not help it. When the war was over I was relieved to see that the Asian army for the first time fought a draw-war with the white men army ever since they came to Asia, otherwise they would have a free choice to do whatever they want.
Did you get into trouble after creating the scene? AS
2nd.Sept.2007,Sunday. The Star newspaper publishes the picture of the American 4x100 team that won the gold medal in the World Athletics Championships in Japan yesterday. They are Leroy Dixon, Tyson Gay, Davis Patron and Wallace Spearmon and they are black. The ll0m hurdle winner is no more no less a pure Chinese.
19??-19?? Sungai Udang
Where did mum come into the story? AS
We stayed in Kroh for a few months then we moved to Kuala Kangsar. We stayed in Kuala Kangsar for a few months. Then we drifted to Johor for a while then to Ayer Tekar in Malacca. Finally we moved into our supposed to be our permanent home camp the Sungai Udang camp. The camp was specially build for the lst.Bn.Federation Regiment. Tengku Abdul Rahman who was the first Prime Minister came to officially opened the camp. It was in l957 after the declaration of independence. Our family was given a brand new WO married quarter in the camp. Our first son was born in Malacca General Hospital on the month of June 1957. It was in Kroh in l955 that I took two weeks annual leave to go back to Malacca to get married. I went back to work after one week of marriage. All the A,B,C,D, and HQ company, the complete regiment stay in one camp and did all the necessary training and prepared for the administration inspection. They called this the resting period for the regiment. The biggest event happened to me personally in l957 was being selected to be a pall bearer during the installation of the first Yang Di-Pertuan Agong in the istana.
19??-19?? Kuala Lumpur MINDEF
The administration inspection took place in the early of l958. As far as I know it went on alright. Thus we stayed on in Sungai Udang camp until the month of August I was transfered to the Armed Forces Maintenance Corps which was being formed up in Kuala Lumpur. I was posted to the Purchasing Organisation of the corps based in MINDEF (the ministry of defence). So ended my career in the infantry unit of the armed forces.The exact date of my posting was 3rd August l958. It was a Sunday. I was sent to KL in a one tonner. Thus ended my five years nine months and two days of being an infantryman career.
On the 4th. August l958 I reported duty to a new department(the purchasing organisation) of the Armed Forces Maintenance Corps in MINDEF. The head of the organisation was called Major Harris and the second man was WOl Chapman. The working atmosphere was very different from that of a infantry unit. The atmosphere here was very relax. There was no muster parade etc. You are just like a working staff of an office. You just walk into the office wearing military uniform. At that time the Malayan Armed Forces just formed up the logistic units to takeover from the logistic functions from the British army.
19??-19?? Kuala Lumpur Batu Cantonment
The department was responsible for storing samples of military equipment that was used by the armed forces. Call for tenders and inspection of stores.The department remained in MINDEF until l961 it merged with the Central Ordnance Depot in the Batu Cantonment. Between that space of time I was sent to UK for training on Provision, Control and Account, and Storage Maintenance and Work Study. It was great to see how the British Army operate its supply system. During the training I had the opportunity of hopping from depot to depot. The training took about eleven months. When I came back I went straight to the Batu Cantonment.The Commanding Officer was Lt.Col. A.J. Luke. There were a lot of Mat. Salleh WO1 and WO2 and I did not get along with them very well and therefore I was not popular with them too. Because of that I stay as WO2 for ten years from l954 to l964.
Luke took me off from the Purchasing Organisation because there was complaint from one of the tenderer that I had spoken during the tender board meeting in favour of a certain shoe maker and because of that he was awarded with the shoe contract. He put me in the stocktaking section until I got my W01 rank. Then he took me as COD chief clerk to work directly under his nose. To add to my misfortune, he got his second tour, that mean he had three more years to stay in COD. It boiled down to the fact that I would be a dead duck for another three years. The end of Luke's three years contract finally came. Lt-Col. Randal (I forgot his initial, if I am not mistaken was R.A.). After working under his command as a Chief Clerk, one day he told me that after all I am not a bad guy. When the vacancy for OEO (Ordnance Executive Officer) was available he did not object when my name was recommended by Major Hew to be put up for selection. Major Hew was the Admin Officer in the COD HQ at that time. I went for the selection board and I selected for promotion as a Lieutenant with effect from 25th. July l967. Needless to say I was very happy to be promoted. This is a big achievement to me as not many persons is so lucky to be an officer who join as a recruit. From my batch of recruits, four had been selected to be trained in Sandhurst Military Academy in England and they ended up as Lt-Cols.(the racial breakdown was one Indian, two Eurasian and one Malay). The Indian Officer was cashiered for bad conduct while still holding the rank of 2nd.Lt. after returning from Sandhurst. I am not very sure the fact but I learnt that one of the Eurasian Officers was also cashiered due to misappropriation of fund while he was employed in the intelligent department. As far as I can remember there were two more officers who rose from the rank and file were cashiered due to misappropriation of fund, one due to horse racing while the other was involved with woman. Only one officer who rose from the rank and file from the 1st. Fed. Reg. reached the rank of full Col.(he is an Eurasian who is still living while I write this stuff).
The rank of OEO is on automatic promotion basic,i.e. Lt. for two years,Capt. for eight years and it will be promoted to Major, by then it will be too old for an OEO to remain in the Corps. That is why I ended up at the rank of Capt. as I was promoted a bit too late therefor I was short of eight months for the rank of Maj. when I reach the age of retirement that is 45yrs old.
A recruit's pay when I join was fifty dollars minus two dollars for so called barrack damage. So the net pay was forty eight dollars. We were issued with a cake of soap a week, metal polish, shoe polish, a tin of cigarettes weekly. Uniforms were of course fully issued. We did not need civilian dress at all as we were nor allowed to wear civilian dress while we were doing the recruit training for six months. After the training we were allowed to wear civilian dress with neck ties when leaving barracks.
Beer was available at fifty cents a big bottle sold in the canteen. At night I used to drink a big bottle whenever I was free. Do not think that we would be totally free at night as we were required to clean our equipment such as shining our boots, polish the metal should titles, collar batches etc. In the army our bedding and all the equipment must be in the tip top condition. So we do not have very much time to spend in the canteen. We have to spend time to maintain oneself to meet the military requirement in order to be named as best recruit if not at least in the top notch category.
During the colonial days, the MOR (Malayan other ranks) was paid at the rate of a rubber tapper's monthly income. They reasoned that if a person did not join the army and worked as a rubber tapper his income per monthly would be like fifty or sixty dollars. So after recruit training a train solder was paid about sixty dollars. But for me I remember I was promoted to full corporal and was sent to do jungle operation training with the 1st.l0 Gurgher Bn. in Jamulong at Johore state for one and half month. Before returning to my own unit in Taiping I was promoted to Sergeant and sent to Jungle Warfare Training School in Kota Inggi in Johore for about six or eight weeks of training. After which my battalion went to Port Dickson and I was made a platoon Sgt. training new recruits. I remember like 21st of April l954 I was promoted to WO2 as a company Sgt. major to take over the place of the demoted Sgt. major after the incident of live rounds found in the empty cases. I hold the rank of W02 for about ten years then W0l for a few years then Lt. for two years, then Kapt. for eight over years until I reach the age of 45 at 9.l0.77. A total service of twenty five years and twenty two days.
To sum up my army life, in the infantry battalion for about six years from 15th. Sep. li52 to 3rd. Aug. l958. It was quite hectic, the moving of camps was frequent the ceremony parades and the locations of camps were always in the isolated locations like in the rubber estates, in the fringes of new villages etc. Ceremony parades were for VVIPs, like birthday parades, merdeka parades etc.etc. I was the pall bearer for the installation of the first His Majesty the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong in the istana.
19?? KOH (GAO) Association
The founding of KOH(GAO) association. The history of the existence of the various Chinese guilds and associations in Malaysia is well known already. Somehow strangely enough ever since I was young I have been quite interested in them for their aims and purposes. I think they are good in serving the community. My father was a member of the Koh association of Singapore, at that time Singapore was part of Malaya. Somehow it went into oblivion after the founder Koh Teck Kin passed away because we did not hear anything about it for many many years. Since there is no such association in Malaysia to represent the Koh clansman. After a lot of thinking, after overcoming the negative factors I brave myself to write to some of the Koh clansmen in KL to ask them what they think about forming a Koh association. I got the names from the telephone directory which sound like Koh because the spelling of Koh could be Kow, Kooh, Koo etc.etc. The only person I was sure about his surname was the KOH CHUAN HUAT and KOH HONG HUAT, they are both tea merchants. The respond was quite encouraging, so the first meeting was held in the Kum Leng restaurant to iron out the details. Finally the application was submitted and approval was granted. The first batch who signed up for membership was twelve.(the full story with dates and pictures is available at the association premises).
It took twenty years to gather about hundred thousand ringgits to buy the association premises. After gotten the premises the membership soared and now there were about three hundred odd. On the 1st. of Dec. '07 the first inaugural meeting to discuss the formation of the world Koh association to be held in Xiame, Foochian,China. There will be twenty three members from Malaysian Koh association to attend the meeting. finally it is hoped that the association will be the centre of information pertaining the Koh clansmen in Malaysia.
19?? Civilian Life
During my re-settlement period, that is six months before finishing the army service I had already registered the Koh Trading company to prepare to do business. I tried to be a equipment, spare parts, uniforms and other military goods supplier. Since I was from the purchasing organisation and also various stores officer in charge so it should logically present not much of problem. I would only take the "Local Purchase Orders" that means each order should not be more than a few thousand ringgit. In the first one or two years the business was good because the army was expanding due to the political situation in the regions. Then the good days finally tapering off. At the same time I was an AIA insurance agent, so the income was OK. However, the insurance business was also ended due to lack of clients. Joined security company which was owned by the ex-general of the armed forces for a few years. I even bought a share in the social escort business, the people who run this can of business is normally undependable so the business closed down after six months. Also at that time it was economic recession. I joined another security company for about one and half years before I ended being employed as an lottery agent. This also ended disastrously due to stronger competitor. One morning I discovered that my feces was black in colour, at first I ignored it as there was no pain in my stomach. Then at bout nine o'clock there was an acute pain in the stomch and a sudden purge with plenty of black stool. After the purge there was so pain in the stomach and SS and Lip advised me to go University Hospital for check-up and was admitted for a week. It was discovered that there was an internal bleeding in my stomach. After medication it is back to normal again. All this happened when I was 74yrs plus going to 75yrs old.
After thirty years of effort it come to nothing. Lately I went for cataract operation on my right eye. According to the doctor the left eye is developing cataract and it needs operation when it become more acute. My molar tooth is hurting and the dentist is fixed for 7th. Nov. 07, Wednesday. I really feel old now. Who say old is gold. As it is now I have to spend more money to maintain my health. Luckily I get free medical treatment as a government pensioner.
Today(3.ll.07), my and wife spent half a day in helping to look after Lip Wern as SS had gone to the Subang Medical Centre to look after her husband who had an backbone operation. We took him to EM's house to play.
4th.Nov.07.(Sunday): The internet connection was terrible. Rest and reading newspaper at home for half of the day until about four o'clock SS call us to go to EM's house to attend to Lip Wern while she went to see Phillip in the Subang Medical Centre. After her visit we all went to see Phillip with Lip Wern and ended up with a dinner given by Peter. Arrived home at about 1030 night.
Alcohol, Cigarettes, Drugs
Let me add something about my life. One, the drinking of alcohol. I came from a family with my father drinking alcohol. He used to drink hard alcohol such brandy of that sort. But I must remind you that he was a disciplined drinker. He would drink only after taking a bath and before dinner. He never got madly drunk. At the same time my uncle, that is my father's younger brother, he was also a kaki drinking. The same thing I never seek see him piss drunk. so due to those circumstances I automatically get accustomed to drinking. It came automatically to me in drinking. Since my first occupation was joining the army and beer was one of the item provided cheaply so naturally I took advantage of it. But again I want to remind you that I did not always get piss drunk and I had a rule that I mostly did not drink on Sundays because I used those days to take family for outings, such as swimming, going the Templer Park and other picnic spots because I wanted my children to learn and be close to nature. One thing I want to emphasize here that I want my off springs to be rugged rather than being softies. That was why I did not spend my time in the shopping complexes with them when they were young. While I was serving in the army I did not stock beer in my frig. I only drink in the WO and Sgt. mess when I was hold the rank of W0 and in the officer's mess when I became an officer. That is why although I had been drinking for over fifty years in and out of the army I still can kick out the habit. Now I have made a vow that I will drink again when I reach my 80th. birthday. But I will not make it a habit again.
The reason I kicked out the habit is simply because I do not want to drink alcohol in front of my grand children. The thought of it came to me suddenly, that if I could picked up drinking alcohol so naturally by seeing my father and uncle drinking alcohol, then my decedents can also be the same. So, there be it. Good-bye my dear beer or any kind of alcohol. I find that without drinking alcohol one feels stronger and happier physically otherwise one will suffer the hangover. I do not really know why people like to torture themselves. Two, with the same thinking I kick out the smoking habit because smoking made me suffer from burnt lips, tongue, the wind pipe and lung. Smoking makes one tasteless when eating, hurting the lips and tongue and the feeling of mile pain in the wind pipe and lung at night and in the morning. So I thought what should I be tortured by the cigarettes. Whatever it is I have not been addicted to the two bad habits.
Drug: Never touched. I had learned that majority of Chinese population of China had been poisoned by the white colonialists-British-by selling opium to them in the l9th century. That led to the so-call the opium war and that China lost Hong Kong to the British.During the Japanese occupation and immediately after the liberation I still could see the opium smokers lying down in the opium den smoking opium in Machap. Till today I still can remember the smoke coming out of the opium smoking. Don't tell me the evil of drugs, they make one useless.
Religion, Gambling, Partying
Religion: My grand father prayed the traditional god or gods.His house had worships altars. But when I went to Machap to live with my father and uncle there was altar in the shop house. I joined the villagers to pray on the religious festivals and also prayed in the Malay keramat. After moving to Malacca town after the Japanese occupation I entered the Methodist English school. There I learnt Bible stories for a few years before joining the army. In spite of these religions experiences I never take up praying. I feel that religion is a complex subject and also there is no one religion is so complete. I feel that religion can really change any person from what he really is.
18th.Nov.2007 (Sunday) went to association member's son's wedding dinner (held at 2pm in a Chinese middle school)with four members in the van.
l9th.Nov.2007. Mum went to a tour of Thailand and Cambodia with her gang.
Gambling. Never attempt on it. I like outdoor life so gambling is not my cup of tea. I don't like to be stuck in a room to play cards or whatever.
Night clubbing. This is another thing I am not keen to get involve with. I presume it must be interesting to go nightclubbing. One can drink there and there are a lot of girl to mingle around. But I don't like to also get involve with. It does not mean that I am a pious man but partly I could not afford to do it.
Reading, Hobbies
Reading,I never miss doing it. But I what read don't seem to help me to reproduce it. That is why I did not excel in any exam or obtain good results on my courses which I attended during my service to show that I am a smart man. I read the newspapers and some books on history etc.
Hobby, no one in particular. Like to drive around to look see wherever I can afford to reach.
I think as person I am a lazy man, a man who is not attentive to details. No perseverance etc. etc. Well, it is not my own fault. I have been made that way. Tried to amend it but failed
Today is 24th. Nov. 2007. I did not pen anything for the last few days because I could not think of anything to pen about. As it is now I still cannot think of anything to write about. Tomorrow there will be GAO association's 24th. year annual dinner to be held in a restaurant at l pm. There will be about three hundred guests and members to attend. Thirty one of us will be leaving for Xiamen on the 30th. Nov. 2007 to attend the inaugural meeting of the world GAO association.
PA, WRITE ABOUT MONEY, CHILDREN, WIFE, RELATIVES, FRIENDS, SIGNIFICANT EVENTS.
27th.Nov.2007. Surfing the BBC website under title "Politics 'stifling $100 laptop'". The professor concerned is thinking of profit or benefits to the poor children who don't even have enough food to fill their stomach instead of to own a $100 computer. What they want the computer for, to learn about elections or to know about beautiful life the film stars in Holywood enjoy. The second article talk about the Chinese building of road in Etopiah. How the Chinese make so many of them so unhappy because they have to make way for the road. Which is better, to huild a road for them or just to be a sour grape?
The time now is 11am and the date is 30th.Nov.2007. We are getting final preparation for X'man. We will depart KL for KLIA at about 3pm. and fly off at 7pm. for the first meeting on forming world GAO association.
It is a pity, yesterday that was 9th. Dec. 07, I wrote about the two days events in Xiaman but I forgot to click 'save page'before closing the computer and this morning 10th.Dec.07. I discovered that it was missing. So I have to rewrite again.
Day one of the meeting was devoted on talks and lectures on the history of GAO clansman and its migration. There were about six hundred members present but mainly came from various provinces of China. Delegates from foreigh coungties were Malaysia, Filipine and Singapore.One representative from UK, he is a neurologist from a research institution. The Singapore delegation was headed by a professor from social studies faculty, University Singapore. I think the speech from the neurologist was the most aspiring,dynamic and humarous. Generally the meeting was enlightening on the history of GAO clansman family.
It apears that quite a number of our ancestors were high officials in the emperial courts and literary intellecturals and because of this they were persecuted and harassed when the dynasties changed. So they had to migrate from the north to the southern remote area.
On the second day we were taken to visit ancestor grave and temples where they kept the record of the lineage of GAO families. We were given all these records in well printed book forms, so there should not be in talk talk only. All these books are kept in the association, so it will be a referrence centre for the GAO clansman in Malaysia.
On the third day, that was 3rd.Dec.07, we visited a tea producing district. It is a hilly area, the road there are like that of our Cameron Highlands and Frasir Hill combined. They are windy and precarious.(note I use the words they are, because they are many roads leading to the hilly area everywhere is planted with tea.)It is really an eye opener. Of course during the days when the farmers from that area were migrating to this country was a different picture totally. Now the government is doing eveything possible to encourage export of tea to the world. At night we were taken to the city centre to see the tea city itself where all the shop dealing with tea leaves. The tea city is no smaller than Port Dickson town.
From 4th. to 7th. Dec.07. we were taken by local tour agency to visit places of interests like ancient temples some of them date back to thousand of years, ancient bridge, fort to defend foreign intruders, family dwelling-fort built by detroned princes when their dynasty was overthrown. All of these relics were well preserved.That shows that when they say they have five thousand years of civilised history is true.
The highways we were travelling on are as good as the Malaysian highways. When looking out of the window one can see rows and rows of cultivated greenery such as banana trees, sugercane trees, varioud type of vegetables no land was left uncultivated. In the ponds there were ducks or goose swimming busily seacher for food. I don't know whether they are hungry or it is their habit of searching for food when they are free. For I know they have nothing else to do!?
With the beautiful hills, great rivers, glitering streams, the vast well cultivated farmlands and busy farmers toiling the land, China is not after all as bad as the negative reports and gloomy scenario churned out by the wenstern medias. China is certainly reviving to greatness.
The trip was a great success.
Tried to enter this entry into the diary but could not. l6 Dec.07 (Sunday0.
No activity except surfing the net in the morning. Went to the assn. for tea and the normal meet-up at 3.30 up to 4.30pm. Went to the wedding dinner at 5.30 for tea ceremony before the dinner. The dinner started at 8pm. and it ended up at about 10.30. Our whole family was present. After the dinner we took the S'poreans to see the China Town, Pudu Bas station, Jln. Bukit Bintang, Jln.Higgs and Jln. Raja Laut before heading home. Reached home at about 12.30am. Strangely enough for the last two nights I got up at 3am and refused to fall asleep again. So I took a cup of tea and a few biscuits and went back to sleep again. The sleep was punctuated with waking up intermittently and got up at 7.30am the next moring. Well, there is nothing to be alarmed of,I put this in as a record only.
17th.Dec.07.(Monday)
No activity nearly for the whole day because waiting for the opportunity to take the three S'poreans for sight-seeing but two of them spent the whole day shopping, so I did not have anything to do. In the evening I went for my walk. I walked a big loop. From home to the Batu village railway station and from walked along the river back home. A new Batu village railway station in being constructed for the electricfied double track train system.
18th.Dec.07.(Tuesday)
Mama did not want to join her friends for morning tea session in the coffee shop so she joined me in going round. We had been bogged down at home so we want to go round round a bit. So we went to China town for a bowl of curry mee and 'yong tau foo' at the back lane there. Unfortunately our favourite stall was closed, so we ordered our curry mee from the next stall, it turned out the gravy was not hot enough and the taste of the crurry mee was not up to standard. After eating we walked through the Petaling street looking at the stalls. When we were at the Sultan Steet we went into one or two antique shops and bookshops to undate our knowledge. We finally ended up in the Ue3 shopping complex where exclusively sell Chinese wares such as books, magasines, antique, etc. We browse through the tea shops, bookshops antique shops till about 2pm. when we make our way home.
19th.Dec.07(Wed.)
At abour eight thirty,received news of arrival of a new member of the Koh family. I named hin Fu Yi in Chinese. Fu Yi means prospourity in Chinese. As normal surfing the net and reading the newspaper the whole day until evening walk time. Went to see the work site of the road linking Jln. Kuching to Sentul. Up to bed time, there was nothing happening.
20th.Dec.07(Thu.)
It is a Muslim holiday(Haji New Year). Spent half of morning in Wangso Maju Jusco shopping complex. In fact we took an old cntique clock to Kok Art Craft for repair but it was closed so we wander to Wangso Maju and we happened to discover the shopping complex and decided to drop in just to look-see. We only bought a bottle of Hero marmalade.
In the evening while surfing the net I came across an article in the China.Org.Cn talking about an article written by Senior minister of Singapore published in Forbe magazine commenting on the rise of China and India. He stated that the growth of annual GDP of both countries is more or less the same and at the same time India possesses aircraft carrier and her armed forces are well trained based on western method and yet the western powers and the Japanese media do not make any accusation of Indian threat while capping China with " China Threat." The reason he stated that India is practising multi-party democracy and most of the Indians read and write English therefore the Western powers and the Jap are quite at east with India while China is practising different political system from that of the Western powers and also the speed of progress is fantastic that worry them. I do not know whether it is true that he does not know the real reason or he is being diplomatic not to mention the real reasons. First of all Chinese and Indians are totally two different races and with different cultural and historical back ground. India was colonised by the white power for three hundred over years while the white powers and the Japs did not have a single peaceful day while there were trying to subdue t China. The Western powers were being harassed ceaselessly and the Japs were totally beaten. The Western powers were in China beacuse of the weakness of the Manchu imperial government. Not the Chinese.
21st.Dec.07(Fri).
Took the damadged clock to Koh Art and Craft at Melawati for repaired. We met bothe the old Kok and his wife. While mama was with the wife I was chatting with the old Kok listening to his story as to how he is passing his old age life. He is now 86 years old. The main problem he had was his legs went numb and the doctor made him walk again after seeing quite a number doctors who failed to put this right and worst of all he was told that since he is so old, it is a nomal phenomenon. He even had a brain operation to remove a blood clog. The various medical checks,they run up to about four thousand ringgits for the last few years. It seems that money can keep a person alife for quite a long while. An afternoon nap, afternoon tea,evening walk at the metropolitan lake, dinner and a ittle TV shows particularly news and that called for a day. Johore, Pahang Kuantan and Kelantan river are experiencing flood.
22nd.Dec.07(Sat).
Stayed at home until the evening went toE.M's party. Yesterday was Chinese festival called "tong chak" means winter festival.It is the beginning of winter in China. Mama made some rice balls eaten with the sugar water. The Chinese believe that by eat the round rice ball we will be round and roll as the rice ball. I think the idea is we will be diplomatic, pramatic in out look, flexible in handling problems. I think these traits can be found in the Chinese race. It was a BBQ party with a few of Peter's friends. Of course there was plenty of food to eat and we stayed there up to about lam. The atmosphere was free and easy, that was why we enoyed it so much.
23rd.Dec.07(Sun).
Got up at 6am. Had a cup of tea. Went to the park for a walk. It was a beautiful morning, sat down at the side of the pool, the breeze was cool, it would be ideal if the wheather is like this for the whole day. Went to the assn. for tea drinking as normal Sunday do. Normal chat nothing in particular. Went to bed at 10.30pm as the TV programme was lousy.
24th.Dec.07(Mon).
Busy for the whole morning, taking mum to post office to redeem some of her saving premium money. Ferried her to see lawyer in Kepong to ask him about a will for I-6 Bamboo Garden, the law firm was closed for Christmas, then to Ma Chong tour agency to find out about her trip to Vietnam in Jln. Mahameru and finally to govt. clinic in Jln. Ipoh for her cough. Heavy tunder storm deprived me of my evening walk. Stayed home and watched my DVD about story on the rise of powerful countried from 15th. century. Countries like Portugal, Spain, Holland, England, France, Germany, Japan, Russia and USA. The DVD was produced by China, because China is now busy searching the experiences of those countries to be applied by herself in order to be strong and prosperous.
25th.Dec.07(Tue).
It was a quiet X'mas day. One does not feel that it was a great religious holiday. I think people is tired of it all. Hope for world peace ?!
Went to see Lip Wern for today is his birthday. Gave him a Panda mama cuddling a baby panda bought from the Xiemen airport on my way home from GAO clansman gadering on the lst. to 7th. Dec.07. I bought the panda because it symbling that the baby panda is like Lip Wern, the big female panda is like his mama and pada it is representing China. Had lunch and stayed there up to 3.30pm before heading for home.
Same thing, it rained in the evening. Stayed home surfing the net, watched TV till bedtime.
26th.Dec.07(Wed).
Went for a morning walk around the new wailway station area. Stayed at home for the whole day. Rained in the evening prevent any outdoor activity.
By the way if you see any flame of the forest or the yellow flower trees around the Metropolita garden or along the river side then you should know who bring them there. I brought the flame of the forest flower seeds from the Bukit China (Chinese cemetaries) in Melaka to spreat them where they are now. The yellow flower seeds come from our lake garden. I see that our Metropolitan garden is lack of colours, so I thought some colours would make it more decorative.
