Khalili is an affable and jovial person and I sometimes come across him at the Village Park restaurant in Uptown, Damansara Utama when I go for breakfast there at weekends. He was heading the administration of the Ministry when I was posted as the deputy secretary in 1991 and I was indebted to him for being a trustworthy and efficient subordinate, especially in giving me the tips on how to deal with the moods of Tok Mat who was then the Minister. I had an easy time with Dato' Yahya Yacob being an Old Putra and also with the DG of Broadcasting, Dato' Jaafar Kamin who was my contemporary when we were students in University of Malaya.
On recollection of my stint at Angkasapuri, it was one of the most enjoyable posting I ever had in my career as a public servant not because of its glamour but what I could do to improve the place,especially in housekeeping matters. I suppose many of the people who worked in Angkasapuri were under the illusions of being a celebrity centre because that is where many of the great names of the entertainment industry were born. But I had a different perception altogether. As I was in charge of Security, I had to make sure nothing untoward happened during my term, and as such instituted immediate measures to improve the security image of the place.For the efforts which I took, Tok Mat nicknamed me IGP and some ex-RTM staff still remembered me for that. But what is most satisfying was that I was able to meet the announcers whose names were household words during my schooldays when TV was not introduced yet. In fact I was toying with the idea of becoming a producer with RTM upon my graduation, but gave it up when I consulted my late Uncle who was then in TV Malaysia, Hashim Amir Hamzah. One day we went around wishing the staff at the Radio House, Selamat Hari Raya as Syawal was nearing and when I met Nurlidar Saidi she was so delighted when I told her that I was a radio fan during my schooldays and she was one of those whom I liked to hear. She immediately asked me whether I heard about that episode in Manila when she had to fly back because the late Tunku was worried that Soekarno had take a fancy on her. She was laughing it off as if it was a joke and said if she married Soekarno, there would be no "Konfrontasi" between Malaysia and Indonesia. When I left Angkasapuri, by then the Fire-Safety Comittee was revived and I appointed the Chief Engineer, Alimusa who later became the DG as the Chairperson. By a sheer stroke of luck, fire broke out on one of the floor of Angkasapuri but since the sprinklers had been installed and activated, the damage was not so severe. But it was a lesson learnt that safety could not be taken for granted.
It is a small village in the kecamatan of Tambusai, Kabupaten Rokan Hulu in the Province of Riau, Sumatra. During the Padri Wars of 1830's , Tuanku Tambusai (aka known as Fakeh Hj Muhammad Salleh ) fought the Dutch forces together with Imam Bonjol and Tuanku Rao in West Sumatra and in Northern Sumatra .The last defence was in Benteng 7 Lapis,Daludalu which fell in 1838. He escaped capture and came to Malaya. He was buried in Rasah in 1882.
Thursday, November 04, 2010
My Recollection of Angkasapuri
Last Tuesday, 02 November 2010 I was at the Neuro ward of KL General Hospital visiting a long time friend and an ex-colleague during my stint at Angkasapuri. Dato' Yahya Yacob called me in the afternoon to ask me whether I was free to go with him and I replied in the affirmative. Encik Khalili Naam had been in hospital for a couple of months due to a stroke and this is my second visit together with Dato' Yahya who was then the Secretary-General of the Information Ministry when I served as his deputy.
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7 comments:
Dear Hal,
Administration is anticipation. You did well in anticipation as infernos of highrise buildings can be destructive.
Another gem of anticipation was rightly voiced by Justice Harun Hashim who once said, ' whatever you do always make sure you make it easier to those that come after you'
This has the effect of an overall improvement in your admin. before you leave and not create problems for others taking over from you.
Dear Hank,
You are absolutely right. I became a clean-up man almost wherever I served in all the places I was posted. I told my subordinates that when I leave I wanted whoever took over from me should not be preoccupied with the shit left by the previous person.
Therefore I had a reputation of being a slave driver, but my conscience was clear and as what you have quoted Justice Harun Hashim said, I am more than vindicated.
You quoted so many names in this posting of people whose names were so much spoken of in days gone by. It is another reminiscence to me .
I almost forgot that you served quite a while in the Ministry of Information under Tok Mat, Akhi, while Dato Yaakub was the Sec-Gen. Your description of the experience there evoked a lot of fond memories in me, especially in terms of being considered as the boss in a star-spangled working environment.
Thank God i did not get involved in any scandal coz Angkasapuri is famous for that. Interestingly, I never got to know any of the TV or Radio personalities - the artists i mean- personally. I remember revitalizing the TV programs such that TV3 got worried and wanted me removed. I criticized the producers in order to motivate them until they forced me to apologize publicly. I did with the condition that if they don't change I will take it on them again. RTM's rating and advertisement income shot up. much to the chagrin of TV3 and Ahmad CB.
Yes, I think it was fun working in RTM but you must know Tok Mat, the most difficult character to understand among the cabinet ministers. But once you gained his trust, he would become a very close friend.Dato Jaafar Kamin was alos the Dir-Gen. a;ways taking notes but according to Tok Mat. never taking actions ( said in jest of course). I don't know Dato Yaakub but his behavior reminds me a lot of arwah Tok Mat himself.
Well you enjoyed the stint and I did too. I guess those are the kind of memories we live on in our Aurumn years.
Pak Cik and Akhi Norzah,
It was indeed a pleasure when you love the place where you work and the opposite when you just cannot feel good in your environment. The people around you makes a lot of difference, especially those who call the shots.
Actually I could have done more to bring some semblance of change, but time was not on my side and changing attitudes is the most difficult when it entails human beings. But I am happy that I am being remembered for what minute things I did. One day when I was interviewing a candidate for a post of a musician in Filem Negara and the Departmental representative was Dato' Mokhzani the RTM Music Director. Though I had never spoken to him before, but he told me that I was known for being strict, especially on security. Thus I felt vindicated that no on air programmes was called off due to a bomb hoax even till today, because I laid a procedure that before any important event where VIP's are our guests, a 'sweep' is done by the police to make sure there is no undue threat from unseen enemies of the people.
Ahmad Khalili.....my father....
Dear Ezna,
May Allah bestow His Grace and Forgiveness on your father and place him amongst the pious, Al-Fatihah.
My fond memories of working with him must not go unmentioned. I thoroughly enjoyed his company and whenever I wanted to take off some of the drudgery of office-work, I would normally go to his office and he would be more than willing to share the jokes of working in Angkasapuri. His advice on how to deal with certain personalities made my job plain sailing. There were many pitfalls in serving in Angkasapuri as mentioned above by the former Secretary-General, Datuk Mohd. Noor Ghani or better known by his pen-name, Norzah.
He rightly pointed out that working with Tok Mat was rather difficult if he did not get you into his confidence. At first he was chary of me, but later when I pointed out that procedures must be followed if what he wants get Treasury's approval, he relented.
Thanks for your comment.
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