Early last Monday I received a call from State’s Deputy Chief Scout Commissioner Haji Mohd Said Bolhassan, a well-decorated scout leader whom I have known for almost 40 years.
As usual, though I have tendered an official resignation as a commissioner – my last post was as State’s Assistant Chief Scout Commissioner in-charge of Media and ITC – I have never resigned from or left scouting completely for the simple reason that scouting is just a part of me or rather I am a part of scouting. Scouting, which to me is ageless, really has a soft spot in my heart. And for that matter my scouting buddies have no hesitation in asking me for help, especially when it involves the media and publication.
I first met my scouting brother Hj. Said in 1979 when I was KLM-27 (then referring to Maktab Perguruan Rajang (MPR), Bintangor) group commissioner when he – I used to call him Dato which he likes very much – came to conduct Woodbadge Part 1 Course that ran for a day in MPR. I took the course together with the college trainees, some of whom had zero experience in scouting and a few were older than me, then aged 25. Throughout my Woodbadge or scouting courses, except for my National Training Course (NTC) for the third bead of the woodbadge which I took in 1993 at Kem Sardon in Cheras, Hj. Said was always around to conduct or help in conducting. Our most memorable moment together was a three-night stay in one of Sri Aman’s primary schools where a Woodbadge Course Part 3 was conducted. That could be in the early 90s before my NTC. Before leaving Sri Aman we went to the Tamu where he acted as a ‘Dato’ and paid our breakfast so that all the scout commissioners joining us call him ‘Dato’. He was either private secretary or ADC for then Head of State Tun Salahuddin or was it the late Tun Ahmad Zaidi Adruce, but hitherto hasn’t got any of the honorifics except those attributed to his grandchildren.
Scouting, thanks to our founder Lord Baden Powell, has introduced me to a great number of friends from across the continents, people of all class and creeds. This harmonises with the international scout law number four that a Scout belongs to the worldwide family of Scouts. One scouter from India – can’t recall his name – once stayed with us at our humble home in Rock Road for a few days, I took him to our Jong Crocodile Farm in Siburan together with my two kids and their mom. That was in 1996 or thereabout.
This scouting movement is available to people of all faiths as well as people who are humanist, atheist or have no affirmed faith and therefore must therefore take account of the different religious obligations or non religious beliefs of its members.
It was in 1969 that I passed my Tenderfoot requirements including the swimming test where we had to use our Scout uniforms – over the fast following Sebetan River despite being jammed and thereby dammed with floating logs. The presence of a female Canadian teacher in her swimming suit was an added impetus to pass – Miss Christine Grotefield who was nearly six feet in height was an unforgettable landmark in rural Saratok. I remember dancing with her with my nose in between her cleavage in 1969 when I was aged 15 – in fact she was the last lady standing as the rest were already taken by the seniors and I was probably the only Form 2 boy joining the weekend dance organised by the Student Council and charging RM0.50 per person for the entrance fee. One requested song was charged 20 sen. Years later l was the proud designer of the school hall mural and was paid RM10 for such a fine job that completed in three days. By the time I became the school head in 1985 the hall was just a memory.
Cikgu Ahmad, our Scout master in 1969, made a fine job of training us all but by the time the Malaysian Jamboree in Melaka of 1970 came, none of us were entered in the Sarawak contingent for reasons beyond my comprehension then. I did not have the opportunity to be tested for my Second Class skills and went into scouting wilderness for the rest of my secondary school and tertiary education days.
It was only a decade later that I renewed my bond with the scouting movement when being appointed as Group Commissioner upon reporting for duty as a lecturer at Rajang Teachers College in rural Binatang, later renamed Bintangor – Mintang according to the Foochows. This was how I came to know Richard Riot Jaem (now Minister of Human Resources Malaysia Datuk Seri Dr. Richard Riot Jaem) who was the Regional Scout Commissioner for Sarikei Division while serving as Divisional Youth and Sports Officer of the Department with the same name.
But throughout my scouting days, it has always been ‘Dato’ Haji Mohd Said bin Bolhassan that has become my good friend and mentor, even during the reign of the late Chief Scout Commissioner Dunstan Melling Undau who reinvigorated my scouting enthusiasm with a promise of the FOURTH bid as international trainer and in his (Melling’s) word the scouting equivalent of a PhD.
Many, and probably including Haji Said himself, thought that I resigned from scouting out of disillusionment for not getting decorated. This is partly true though when I became a scout leader, decorations (medals etc) never crossed my mind. It was more for the enjoyment of my innate link to nature for being born in the rural setting among the croaks of frogs and toads, the calls of birds and the shrieks of monkeys. So naturally when others received honours and medals I accepted that I had not done enough, not until lately when some Toms, Dicks and Harrys were bestowed with honours that I could never dream of, not even when holding senior appointments in the state’s scouting heirarchy. Never mind if these lucky guys really deserve those medals but do they really deserve them.
On what grounds were those medals granted? I am not privy to that, neither do I have any hint nor I care. But awards are given if your names are put up with strong support and I am sure this must have to do with having the correct connection even if the subject does not really deserve the award. I was in the best position to ask years in view that the Scouts Council president was – and still is – Tan Sri William Mawan Ikom, a friend I have known since 1975 and that the former chief commissioner the late Dunstan Melling Undau was my cousin and close friend. But because awards have been eluding me since many decades ago I just carried on doing my best till a a year ago when I decided it was time to call a day..officially.
Most scouting leaders are given the Letter of Merit from the National Chief Scout for a job well done which I never have the privilege to know. I just worked hard without thinking of any reward. It was more the satisfaction of having achieved something rather than getting reward. Nevertheless I remember being recommended for state awards since 1982 while having achieved nothing except for some dubious paperwork which I was happy to support with just a simple signature. It didn’t come as a surprise that those awards were far from my reach and all the signatures supporting those recommendations were forgotten even pass1989 after having started three new scouting districts and reinvigorating at least another three. Haji Said who is also the Executive Secretary at Scout HQ in Batu Lintang should have the records and check who among the senior scout commissioner with a record surpassing or at least equalling my starting three scouting districts. I am glad now that a few of leaders trained and led by me from those rural districts are doing well now, with several holding state appointments and are themselves district commissioners. These guys really deserve it but on decorations I wouldn’t know the details.
The late Tan Sri Datuk Amar Dr Sulaiman Daud signed the award document for my one and only scouting award, the Pingat Perkhidmatan Baik (Silver Medal Meritorious Award) in 1992 which was almost two decades overdue. This was a jump from the basic award, namely the aforesaid Letter of Commendation with a yellow-white-yellow bar whereas mine has an overall green bar, the second lowest award. So when I attended the NTC a year later I proudly put my single bar on. None of the other course participants had any service bar except for a Sea Scout leader who had his uniform adorned by a single yellow-white-yellow bar.
Scout leaders should primarily concern with giving their best services and my conscience is very clear pertaining to services given. The records are there to be scrutinised by whoever have access to them. In my resignation letter I stated that I resigned as a commissioner but not from scouting. I wish ‘Dato’ Haji Mohd Said Bolhassan good health and good scouting.
