Kedah's preeminent Ibrahim School celebrates centennial

By Shanika Abdullatib

KUALA LUMPUR, July 16 (Bernama) -- Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Ibrahim, or better known as Ibrahim School, in Jalan Kolam Ayer, Sungai Petani, Kedah, which turns a century old in August, has produced many famous names in various fields in the country.

 It is a tall order to emulate the success of the first English school which has produced two Kedah Menteri Besar and eight vice-chancellors.

For former student of the school, Emeritus Professor Datuk Dr Md Noor Salleh, besides the above-mentioned figures, two names, Ah Tat and the Augustin family, would always crop up when talking about the history of the school, which was founded in 1919 during the British colonial period.

Md Noor, a native of Kedah who is currently serving at the Civil Engineering Department of the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), explained that the Ibrahim School hostel then was under the watchful eye of Ah Tat although the school was funded by the British government as well as parents of students.

"I believe every alumnus will not forget about Ah Tat, the hostel caretaker and the school canteen operator. I myself lived in a dorm for six years when attending school from 1959 to 1964.

"Since Ah Tat took care of the boarding students’ meals, it created a bond between him and the students. Naturally, all the students’ mischief and shenanigans, especially of those staying next to The Gurkha Boys, were at the back of his hand,” he said.

As for the Augustin family, Md Noor, who is also chairman of the Ibrahim School Alumni Association, said the family was "feared" in sports as they were the backbone of the school's cricket and hockey teams.

"Datuk Frederick Augustin's family was indeed popular because his 11 children were involved in sports, especially cricket and hockey. Not once but it happened on several occasions, where if there were not enough players, all of his children fondly known as 'The Augustin Clan' would go down the cricket or hockey field to represent the school or district,” he said.

Interestingly, The Augustine Cricket XI team created history when their names were carved in the Book of Wisden, described as the “Bible of cricket” and main reference by the international cricket community, including being the first and oldest cricket family in Penang.

With the 100-year history of the inception of the school founded by Syed Jan Al-Jafree (1919-1946) and now with Ideris Abd Rahim as principal since February 2016, Md Noor admits that the school has never been short of producing leading figures in the country.

These include 'giving birth' to eight vice-chancellors of top universities in Malaysia, among them Professor Tan Sri Dr Ghauth Jasmon (UM), Prof Datuk Dr Zakaria Kasa (UPSI), Prof Dr Abdul Razak Habib (UNITAR), Prof Dr Premkumar Rajagopal (MUST), Prof Datuk Dr Syed Arabi Idid (IIUM) and Prof Dr Ismail Bakar (UTHM).

"These vice-chancellors have become a symbol of pride for us,” he said.

The declaration of Ibrahim School as a 100-year-old school in Kedah by the Sultan of Kedah, Sultan Sallehuddin Sultan Badlishah, on Saturday (July 13) justified the importance of the school's history to the country.

It was first known as Government English School in 1919 where its original site is the current Telekom office, Sungai Petani.

 The school was later named Ibrahim School in 1936 in memory of the late Tengku Ibrahim Ibni Sultan Abdul Hamid Shah and subsequently divided into primary and secondary schools in 1954.

"For the alumni of this school ... regardless of the year ... much of our good and bad times were shared and passed down to our juniors. This includes during World War II when this school had to be shut down to be the base of the Japanese army, before it reopened in 1945 until now and continues to be pride of all its citizens.

In celebrating the 100th anniversary, several events were held from May, including a 5-km 100-Year Run, a documentary recording and a gala dinner which included school alumni.

-- BERNAMA