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First Jesselton posting proves daunting
Published on: Monday, August 24, 2020
By: Nicholas Chung
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But reality soon overtook me; my initial enthusiasm on coming to work in a big town and my excitement turned to dismay. My heart actually missed two beats when I was shown what appeared to be my quarters – a dilapidated wooden shack!
"From enthusiasm to dismay"
It was the old Railway barracks located near the Jesselton Police Station, just below the Atkinson Clock Tower and the old Radio Sabah Building. The Railway Department had long since abandoned the building. On entering the quarters, I found that I was in the same sort of kajang-and-attap structure that had dominated my childhood days.
My neighbours were a motley group of fellow junior Customs officers and staff, and a few Marine Department wharfingers and some signallers. Some of them had families. My cubicle of a bedroom was infested with cockroaches. The only pretension of modernity was a naked 40-watt bulb hanging on its wire. There was no furniture of any kind, not even a bed.
For the first few nights, I had to sleep on the floor. The mosquitoes had a good time feasting on me. Finally, I was able to go to town and bought a canvas bed, a mosquito net, a small table and a plywood chair. The kitchen was shared, and sanitation and bathing facilities were basic.
In many ways the Bakapit lodgings had been much better than this. The railway shunting yard was right in front of the house. Every morning and late afternoon, the train would pass by, belching thick black smoke. Its thunderous chugging along the rail vibrated the house and unnerved the uninitiated.
Despite all this, the house did have a couple of advantages. It was close to the town centre and only a short distance from the office. Mercifully, I did not have to stay in this type of environment for long as the building was condemned and torn down within a few months.
I was finally allocated a new type of flat for bachelors at Madras Drive, Tanjung Aru. The house had a similar design to the one in Lahad Datu, but was furnished with all the basic household items and situated in a much cleaner area. I settled in happily and commuted by bus to work.
The headquarters of the Royal North Borneo Customs and Excise Department was housed at the northwestern end of the first floor of the purpose-built modern concrete building painted white with blue window panels.
The Commissioner, Roy Knowles, and his deputy, G.R. Johnson, occupied adjoining offices in the western wing with a commanding view of the equally concrete wharf. Tony Wilkins’ office was next to the two chiefs.
The remaining office space was taken up by the office superintendent and the accountant. The late Mr Lee, the AC in charge of the Jesselton Port operations, occupied the office to the left of the staircase landing. He supervised the work in the ‘Long Room’, which was the main office where members of the public transacted their business with the Customs staff.
The Marine Department staff occupied an area at the extreme end of the building. On the ground floor, the main hall known as the ‘shed’ was used to control the movement of pedestrians entering and leaving the area. Other sections of the hall were used as stores, utility and staff recreation rooms.
The working atmosphere in those days was purposeful; everyone seemed to have a proper sense of direction and there were no idlers. The colonial masters ran a tight ship.
Mr Knowles was a workaholic who controlled the department’s affairs with a firm hand, and nothing, no matter how trivial, seemed to escape his attention. He was a first-rate motivator of those who worked under him, and instilled confidence and commanded respect, even awe, from his subordinates. He looked after the staff’s welfare and even kept an eye on their private lives.
When their children, Christopher and Ellena, were in Jesselton for their school holidays, the Knowles would host social evenings and picnics and the atmosphere was like a big family gathering. Tony Wilkins, despite his reputation as a demanding taskmaster, held open-house gatherings for staff in his house where food and beer were provided.
Around this time, with the political winds of change pointing towards independence from the British, Mr Knowles and his team were quietly preparing the local officers to take over.
The Colombo Plan in-service training schemes for promising officers were put in place, and local Superintendents were sent to Canada, Australia and the UK for training. The Hong Kong colonial Government also did its part by sponsoring Customs preventive officers from North Borneo for a basic type of practical training.
In those days, the scheme of service provided for the advancement of officers in the basic grade in Division III through the ranks, all the way to Superscale in Division I. The deciding factors for selection for training and promotion were ability to pass the prescribed examinations, performance as recorded in the annual confidential reports, the ability to benefit from the courses offered and the capacity to discharge the duties of the next higher post.
In other words, a strict policy of meritocracy was the norm. To my surprise, I was a beneficiary of the policy; in early 1963, I was selected along with colleagues Reginald Edwin Yap (Eddy) and Lim Lai Ting, both my seniors in service, to attend a course with the Preventive Procedure and Excise Control in Hong Kong.
It was intensive on-the-job training. We went through all the paces and facets of a preventive officer’s daily routine. Between fieldwork sessions, lectures and brainstorming sessions were held to bolster our effectiveness. Tony Wilkins appeared in Hong Kong, partly to check on us and partly to spend his vacation.
His arrival was a morale booster for us; he insisted that we join him for dinner every night, and at weekends we were invited to join him sight-seeing in Hong Kong and Kowloon. This vacation time showed a completely different Tony Wilkins. He was relaxed, affable and cheerful, simply enjoying his holiday. No growling, or demanding and pushing his juniors around.
Customs staff picnic at Pulau Gaya in 1962. Tony Wilkins is seated, second from left. The author is standing, far right.
The author with Mr and Mrs Knowles on their return visit to Kota Kinabalu in 1984. The author is fourth from left.
Roy and Phyllis Knowles accepting gift at their farewell party in
December 1964. (From left) Mrs Kong Khi Chong, Phyllis Knowles, Albert Chong, Roy Knowles, Kong Khi Chong and Hanafiah Abdul Rahman.
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