An unprecedented request

1. My father served as an unofficial member of the State Executive Council and Council of State from 1948 to 1955. He was 66 upon being appointed unofficial member of both councils. Because of his age and his valuable services in the KCS and during the Occupation, he was well-respected by fellow unofficial members.

2. Being a down-to-earth and honest person he was approachable to friends and members of the community who sought his help and advice. In connection with his willingness to help others, I would like to quote a paragraph from a newspaper report:

As a teacher and adviser he was sought by all friends and others in need of intellectual assistance. Being generous and sympathetic, he seriously followed the principle of placing service before self.

3. Incidentally, on account of his helpful nature there was a very unlikely situation which my father was involved in. It came about at the end of 1954 through the middle of 1955. The following account relating to the situation was based on three interesting letters I found in the Archives.

4. The letters were contained in an official file on the subject: “Request for the grant of bonuses to Unofficial Members of the Council of State upon their final cessation of their membership.” The first letter, addressed to the State Secretary of Kedah, was signed by several unofficial members, including my father. The second one is the Menteri Besar’s letter addressed to my father. The third one is my father’s letter to the Menteri Besar (MB).

5. But first, the context of the story. It was mid-1950s. Following the dissolution of the Council of State in July 1955 the unofficial members were facing the expiry of their term of office. The elections of the unofficial members of the Council of State were underway, so the nominated unofficial ex-members would cease to be appointed.

6. Coming back to the letters, the first dated 16 December 1954 was a request letter containing several statements for the consideration of the Government of Kedah. The author(s) pointed up the cessation of their membership as the elections of the unofficial members were underway. They contended they had carried out their duties for several years and in so doing they had shown considerable public spirit at their own expense of time and money. They reasoned that in the performance of their duties they had manifested a sense of loyalty, patriotism and devotion to duty towards the State of Kedah.

7. The request for the grant of bonuses was worded thus:

Now on the eve of our final retirement, we invoke the benign consideration of the Government to award each of us with a suitable bonus as a token of appreciation by the Government of our services rendered unstintly [sic] and faithfully as loyal and patriotic citizens.

The request was further emphasized by citing the news that the Government of Selangor had granted bonuses to its unofficial members upon the expiry of their term of office.

8. The request letter was replied by the MB himself albeit belatedly. It seemed that he hit the nail in the head regarding the unprecedented request. He addressed the letter dated 10 May 1955 to my father as his name was at the top of the list of signatures. He explained that it had taken a long time to reply because the Secretariat had been investigating the position in other States.

9. The MB admitted that the information was not fully up to date but the Secretariat had not yet heard of a single decision similar to Selangor’s made by any other State or Settlement. In fact, he quoted one administration that had expressed itself thus:

“This Administration disagrees most strongly with the proposal of the Selangor Council of State Standing Committee on Privileges that a lump sum bonus should be paid to the past and present unofficial members of the Council of State on its dissolution ..........,.... it is thought that the consensus of opinion among Unofficial Members of the Council would be that they have been honoured to serve without thought of personal gain.”

10. The MB explained that the Selangor decision resulted from a motion brought by an unofficial member – Che Yahya bin Sheikh Ahmad. He stated that the Selangor Committee of Privileges then considered the matter and recommended that bonuses be given and the recommendation was then adopted by the Council. He noted that the matter seemed to have rested there until then.

11. The MB argued that the idea of a cash bonus for past services on the Council of State was an extremely controversial one. According to him it should be debated in the Council, as it was in Selangor, before any decision was to be taken. He wondered if any unofficial member would wish to introduce a motion, as Che Yahya did in Selangor.

12. The MB stressed that it might be more dignified if expression of appreciation for the great services rendered by the nominated unofficial members of the old Council were left to the new Council after it had started to function. In spite of his comments on the matter, the MB welcomed my father’s personal views.

To be continued.