With age catching up, the Malaysian Ex-British Army Association is facing a “sunset”, with dwindling members.
Revealing their predicament, association president Abdul Rahman Ahmad said that of the initial 1,100 members, only 370 were active, while 39 had passed away.
“The rest cannot be traced as they have either shifted or migrated elsewhere, and have not forwarded their latest mailing addresses or contact details. We have even lost communication with their widows or next-of-kin.
“We are also not financially healthy and hardly carry out any activities, except for the annual general meeting once a year,” Rahman, 81, said after presiding at the association’s 15th AGM at the Adamson Hotel in Lorong Haji Hussein 2 in the Chow Kit area.
The association was formed on March 9, 2009 for those who served The Crown from the 1940s onwards – and who saw action during the Confrontation with Indonesia (1963-66) and the communist insurgency Emergency Periods (1948-1960; 1968-1989).
Some of them were trained, while still in school, for three years at the British Army Boys Trade School at Nee Soon Camp, near Sembawang in Singapore, before joining the military proper to serve as other ranks in a variety of royal corps. Others joined the army directly as adult recruits.
The AGM was attended by 16 members and two next-of-kin.
Key figures present were deputy president Danny Chee Shiuh Sing, 83, secretary Paimin Tukiran, 79, assistant secretary Othman Arshad, 83, treasurer Joseph Scully, 80, internal auditors Lim Yang Meng, 80, and Phang Meng Kit, 79, and committee members Yahya Osman, 86, and Tengku Daud Tengku Agong, 84.
“At our age, you can imagine what a challenge it is for us to travel from all over the country to attend the AGM. All our meetings have been held in Kuala Lumpur as the secretariat is based here and the facilities are ideal for us.
“The committee members – from retired privates, to lance corporals and corporals – are all volunteers and fork out their own expenses to keep the association going,” said Rahman.
He added that the association did receive small annual grants from the London-based Royal Commonwealth Ex-Services League (RCEL) and the Malaysian Armed Forces Veterans Affairs Department (JHEV).
“Much of these grants are used to assist needy members or their widows’ welfare.
“As we are all not pensioners, we are fortunate for JHEV to recognise us as veterans, to be eligible for medical facilities at armed forces and government hospitals.
Rahman added that since a few years back, members were also receiving RM500 monthly as welfare aid from JHEV.
At the AGM, members unanimously agreed to cease seeking assistance from the RCEL from Jan 1 next year.
“The association will, however, strive to assist the remaining surviving members in whatever way we can, until ceasing operations altogether when the time comes,” said Arshad.
Apart from attending the British monarch’s annual birthday celebrations in Kuala Lumpur, the association hosted the 32nd Royal Commonwealth Ex-Services League Conference in 2016 here.
The event was attended by 120 top-level veteran delegates from 57 countries, and was graced by the late Queen Elizabeth’s son, the then Duke of York Prince Andrew as the RCEL’s grand president. Also present was former United Kingdom chief of defence staff Lord Richards of Herstmonceux, as its deputy grand president.
The association was represented by its then president Che Onn Neamat and patron Capt (Rtd) Halim Yom.
RCEL finance controller Col (Rtd) Nigel Dransfield revealed that it had over 11 million members from Commonwealth countries who fought in the Second World War along with their British counterparts.
He said they came from all over the Commonwealth, a million from Canada; 2.5 million from the Indian sub-continent; from South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, the Caribbean, the Far East and from across Africa.
“The Commonwealth people were rising up to support Britain and to fight for the freedom the world enjoys today. That was 80 years ago.
“Today, many countries are now independent, and with that independence came new governments – governments which in some cases refused to recognise the contribution made by these brave people because at the time, they were serving under The Crown,” said Dransfield.
