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COMMENTARY | I was just a 16-year-old schoolboy when our first prime minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman, shouted the word Merdeka (independence) seven times in front of a joyous crowd at the Selangor Club Padang (now known as Dataran Merdeka) on August 31, 1957 But when the country celebrated Malaysia Day on September 16, 1963, I was already a working adult.
I would like to share my memories of these two historical events.
Independent: Although we were not actually present at the Padang on August 31, 1957, my father, S Ramanathan Iyer, who worked at the Kajang and Kuala Lumpur courts, told us that he saw the preparations from the High Court building opposite the venue.
Since there was no television then, we listened to the radio broadcast the next morning.
At Kajang High School, we witnessed the lowering of the British flag and the raising of the Malay flag by the principal, Mr. Davidson. During the following days, we learned to sing a new song: My country, especially at the beginning of school assemblies.
I can still sing the lyrics.
British officials remained: As this was a peaceful transition of power, many British officials, including Davidson, stayed behind, basically to train their successors and finish their tours.
He even loaned us the official van when we went to the Kuala Lumpur City Hall Auditorium to assist in some of the theatrical productions of the Malaysian Arts Theater Group under the supervision of Woodworking and Metalworking teacher Satish Chand Bhandari.
I learned how to operate the stage lights and move props. As this building was in the vicinity of Dataran Merdeka, we used to walk and revisit this historical place many times.
Victoria Institution: When I entered the Form Six at VI after passing a competitive entrance exam in January 1958, GED Lewis was the principal.
Initially, I was the subject of discussions about how a head The boy could be seventh out of 500 who had taken this exam statewide, but then made lasting friendships with students like former Selandar deputy from Malacca, Kok Wee Kiat, author M Shanmughalingam and a member of the board of directors of Bank Negara Malaysia . NNP Sadasivan. Not forgetting author and playwright Krishen Jit, and academic Rollins Bonney.
By then, my father had been transferred back to the KL Court of Sessions at Court Hill Puduraya. In 1958, I also managed to persuade Lewis to admit my younger brother Ramani to Form Four and the next Vengadesan brother to Form One, so my father was proud that his first three children were admitted to the prestigious VI.
Here too we sing with pride My country during assemblies.
Since we had to wait for Dad to finish work, we walked back from VI through the train tracks to Puduraya, had a vegetarian lunch prepared by the mother and packed in tiffin boxes in the garage of the judge’s bungalow house and we also did our homework there.
However, by the end of the year, my father had rented a house in Lorong Hicks and we walked from there through Tong Shin Terrace and again through the train tracks to VI and back.
Malaysia Day: This was memorable for the Ramanathan family, but for the wrong reason.
On that fateful morning of September 16, 1963, I was helping my father polish his three-week Ford Cortina at our government headquarters in Jalan Pegawai when we received a call that his friend Maniam in Kajang had passed away.
My father asked if he could go, but since he had to be the referee for a hockey game in Sentul, I turned him down, so he went with my mother and two neighbors. Then the game was suspended due to rain and I was resting at my friend’s house on Jalan Kolam Air.
My brother Ramani reached me by phone and asked me to go to the KL General Hospital because my father had died. He had collapsed behind the wheel while driving to his friend’s funeral and had a massive heart attack on the road on the 11th mile Cheras.
My older sister Santha even had to be reached through a loudspeaker when she was attending the celebrations at the Merdeka stadium.
As the eldest son, it was my painful and heartbreaking duty to cremate him the next day. And that is why my family will never be able to forget Malaysia Day 1963.
The author is a director of Mediaplus Consultancy.
The opinions expressed here are those of the author / contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.
