HERE it is at last - a chronicle of our life story in the Malay College Kuala Kangsar that began 47 years ago. And what a journey, what an adventure and what an exploit it proved to be for the Class of '71 right from the moment the first group of "settlers" in our batch stepped foot in Prep School on January 8, 1967.
The fact that Kuala Kangsar was back to life that day after reeling from a massive flood provided what was perhaps a most propitious start to our family life in the MCKK community, right till the few of us who were left behind in Form VI packed our bags for good in December 1973. Of course one of us, Mael J "tersesat" and for a good and fruitful reason, stayed on for another year so he could become headboy in 1974. Those were the wonder years as we would describe it, shaping us up from the fragility of adolescence to the zeal of young adults ready to take on a new phase. Hence the tagline: More Salt, More Sugar, More Spice.
The banner hits its mark so precise that only those in the Class of '71 would understand. More Salt relates to Zamani's unforgettable snap on stage. More Sugar refers to our physical well-being, refined in appearance and enduring in health, while More Spice is what we see around us today. Put it all together and we get the best of the 6773 batch with the underlining ‘More’, the song that brought fame to us when Vic crooned it to stardom in the 1967 KK District Talentime. This book is dedicated to this magical period, a pictorial biography of how we came together and stayed together, forging our ties as we went along and establishing a bond way past college life. Pictures that appear in this publication speak volumes about what went on then and so do the stories and anecdotes. The black-and-white images truly add to a colourful reminiscence and bring back a flood of memories that we will forever cherish.
Most of our classmates are 60 this year and this book is to commemorate this special occasion as well as 40 years since the last of us left college. Many of us have made good in confronting life's challenges. It is unfortunate that a few have not been so lucky especially in having to tackle problems related to health. Even then, the ties that bind us provide the healing kinship we cannot find anywhere else. Quite a number have passed on but they have only left us physically for their souls are always among us. This book is about us talking to ourselves, a total recall of Tuesday Activities, teachers, mischiefs and detention classes.
This project which took about eight months to be completed, would not have been possible without the support of everyone. The photographs which we sourced from our own members, are magnificent. The stories are nostalgic and the feedback incredible. Kudos to the editors, namely Syed Nadzri, Nash Hamid, Idrus Ismail and Aziz Abdullah for their tireless effort in getting it all together. I understand it was not an easy task to get our brothers to contribute worthwhile essays. I'm sure it was also not easy to vet through the hundreds of pictures, all of which bore some relevance to our lives in college. Thank you to Jo Razak for his continuous support and the wistful recollections of his days in MCKK. Also to the committee members for helping out to ensure the success of the project in one way or another, to ZAPT Design for its enormous technical input and publishing expertise. Not forgetting those who generously came up with the much-needed pecuniary assistance, most notably Dahlan Rashid and Zamani Kassim. And a big thank you indeed to our brother minister, Nazri Aziz, for his eminent support which has definitely taken our project to another level. Last, but not least, I wish to record my appreciation to all the brothers from the Class of '71 for their continuous support, guidance and true friendship over the years. This book will remind us all that whilst we may have left MCKK more than 40 years ago, MCKK never really left us.
BUNG WAK!
Shukri Hussin
Chairman
Class of '71 Book Committee