Full of pride for Kajang High School

The Star, Friday, 1 April 2016

STARMETRO’s story “Kajang school’s old boys on centennial mission” brought back  fond memories of the years I spent in my alma mater, Kajang High School (KHS). I belong to the Class of ‘71 and when I left KHS 45 years ago, little did I know that   25 years later, my son would have his secondary education in the same school I first  stepped into in 1967.

KHS, built on top of a slight hill, was the preferred school in the area, as parents found it the most attractive secondary school using English as the medium of instruction.

The school field, the staircases, the different classroom blocks, the assembly area, the library, the workshops for metal and woodwork, the canteen, the badminton and basketball courts are very much etched in our memories.

I have many fond memories of the teachers, my class and schoolmates and the events that help shape the character of the students.

In those years where few cars and buses were on the road and bicycles and bullock-carts were a common sight, KHS stood tall in the heart of Ulu Langat, producing some high academic achievers, top sportsmen, prominent government officials, politicians, ministers and even a governor throughout its illustrious history, surpassing even those elite schools in big towns and cities.

One of the better-known politicians who studied in KHS was the late Tan Sri Dr Tan Chee Khoon, a respected doctor and politician who championed the lot of the common folk in Parliament.

Another product of KHS was the late Tun Aziz Abdul Majid, governor of Malacca from 1971 to 1975, who was, incidentally, also born in Kajang.

I remember the many dedicated teachers and headmasters who taught in the school, who showed their commitment to educating us while also having the power to punish, instil discipline and maintain order.

I remember too my class and schoolmates, who in their unique ways contributed to make KHS what it is today.

Though all of us have aged, slowed down and mellowed over the years, with many becoming grandfathers, we still talk with enthusiasm and delight when we gather for reunions.

Many do not know that the original motto of KHS was actually in Latin, Labor Omnia Vincit meaning “Work conquers all” or “Hard work overcomes all difficulties”.

It was then the driving force in our endeavours to excel in sports and education, among others.

Labor Omnia Vincit was the battle-cry when we cheered our football, cricket and rugby teams as they played other schools for honours. KHS was also noted for producing a number of well-known state and national sportsmen.

The present motto is Berilmu, Berdispilin and Berjaya meaning “Knowledge and discipline empowers success”.

We hope the students will uphold the present motto with pride as we cheer you on to carve your future as well.

It was a school of distinction and excellence and no one was denied the opportunity to excel in sports or academic pursuits.

Many also do not know that KHS was earlier named Government English School Kajang and later renamed Kajang High School and then SMK Kajang, as it is known today.

In a number of recent gatherings of the Class of ‘71, we invited some surviving teachers who had played their role well during our years in KHS as an appreciation for their devotion, commitment and comradeship.

We sat down as buddies, no longer teachers or students, and reminisced the wonderful years that had gone by.

We wonder how time flies in the face of massive development in Kajang but the school still stands tall and majestic on the hilly slope.

It has not lost its shine all these decades since I left.

My classmates and I are in our early 60s and we have never forgotten our alma mater and the nice friends we crossed paths with when we walked through the corridors of KHS for five years.

Some even returned to serve as teachers and continue the legacy of our own former teachers.

Regardless of our religion, culture and ethnicity, we remained true and committed to our friendships and our rich diversity that KHS feverishly cultivated, fostered and upheld all these years.

Back then, we were not race conscious nor critical of one’s culture but we fostered unity and friendship and remained close till today.

We miss those bygone days when students of different races, religions and cultures come together as one.

KHS then was a place for racial integration and I hope it remains so today.

In the midst of massive transformation of Kajang since I left school,

KHS has transformed itself through different phases of development, continuing the legacy of the bygone era since its birth in 1919 to what it is today, a school with great potential at its doorstep, ready to play an active and meaningful role in churning out committed and disciplined students ready for transformation to employable men and women in the market place As an alumnus of the school and together with the many thousands, both young and old, who had walked through its corridors, we will gather for KHS’ centennial celebrations in 1919.

Kajang High School, we cheer you on till we gather for the 100th anniversary!

DR TAN ENG BEE

Kajang