(The picture shown above are the Best Officer Cadets from each university & was taken during the 24th Edition of the Sovereign Parade in 2005)
On the 18th of JUNE 2007. Army, Navy, & Air Force Officer Cadets from various Public Institute of Higher Learning in Malaysia aka PALAPES/ROTU who have underwent a rigourous military training for 3 years will have themselves 'graduate' and recieve the scroll from the 13th Yang Dipertuan Agong Al-Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin ibni Almarhum Al-Sultan Mahmud (YDPA) tommorow. The parade will be held at at UiTM's (University Technology of MARA) and is expect to be witnesses by many family and current active in service or retired militarymen. This is the 2nd time UiTM host the sovereign parade since last 2 years which was headed by the 12th YDPA i.e. Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin Tuanku Syed Putra Jamalullail who was a graduate from the Royal Military Academy of Sandhurst which is the place to groom future leaders in not just military but other fields too.
Being in the 8th Intake of the UiTM Naval Reserve Officer Training Unit, my batch will graduate their training and will be promoted as being the 2nd Leftenant in the Reserve Navy. However, being a law student I have to drop my military training after 1 year to pursue in my studies of reading the law in the university as it takes too much time training as compared to my studies. I missed so much of the military life i had during my earlier years in the unversity. So tommorow I will not be promoted as a 2nd Leftenant in the reserved military service. However, i'm still proud of my friends who manage to finish it. Congratulations mate!
Being the sole law student in the university to enter the reserve navy is hard enough when u had no friends (within the law faculty) who had the same interest in the military. Often my friends at the faculty asked me, "Why do u want to enter the military? The strict training is hard for u as being a law student u know? How many hours do u think you'll spend a day studying than marching in the field and all those phisical training?" These questions and phrases that are often spoken from my law student friends who would rather have a relax life at the hostel.
I don't know why I love the military. Most probably because of passion...and most probably because it is in the blood of my paternal family to enter the service that is considered by many to be the 1/3 of the noble occupation and oldest in the world! The other 2 are Doctors & Teachers. U see, my grandfather Captain Adnan Seth served the army his whole life. His passion in serving the country by joining the military makes him quit his studies at SRP level and join the army as a Private. He rose to the ranks and had training in England and finally retired with the rank of Captain. Due to this the YDPA conferred him the award medal of AMN (Ahli Mangku Negara) which is the 5th Class Order of the of the nation's recognition on the person.
Next is my granduncle i.e. my grandfather's younger brother General Ghazali Seth who after completed his Form 6 at the English College at Johor went to follow his brother to serve the military. He wanted to join as a Cadet Officer but accidently registered himself as a Recruit. Eventhough he was a bit disappointed, he went to raining without regret. It was said at that time the training to be an Officer Cadet are only available in England. After 2 years serving as a Non-Commission Officer (NCO). His superior recognize his dedication and gave him a shot to be an Officer Cadet & have him train at the Royal Military Academy in Sandhurst. He was commissioned as a 2nd Leftenant in England by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth of United Kingdom. He came back to Malaysia and serve the Royal Malayan Army and end his brilliant career as a 4-Star General as the 7th the Chief of the Malaysian Armed Forces.
My grandfather & my granduncle weren't the only brothers who had entered the army. My distant relatives, the Leftenant General Jaafar Onn and his brother Captain Tun Hussein Onn had their stint in the army. Though Hussein Onn who was commissioned at India Military Academy at Dehra-Dun and retired early with the rank as a Captain, he went to join his father into politics and ended his magnificent career as the 3rd Prime Minister of Malaysia.
Then came my uncle Arazi Adnan Seth who entered the military after completed his secondary education also join the army. Currently held as the rank of Major, he had serve the army at many division in his career. The Ministry of Defence once sent him to the United States Pentagon to learn more about the American Army. Following his father's footsteps, it is expected that he will end his career and retired as an armymen.
The last of the editions...Me. I love the military so much that i wish i had a chance to enter the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst or the Brittania Naval College at Dartmouth. However, since i'd entered UiTM as a law student and wishes to experience some of the military life, i join the Reserve Navy. I think i like the Navy better than Army because they like to keep things clean. They went to the sea to see the world and protect the nationals territorial waters while the Army guarded the ruler's territory in the jungle. As an experienced swimmer, i found the Navy better suits me than the Army. Anyhow, either Army or Navy. They both served the Malaysians and its ruler in an honourable manner.
So u see, when my colleagues at the law faculty asked me why i wanted to join the military eventhough they are paid lesser than the other civil servants. I told them that they're in my blood. The warrior's heart that pumps the honourable blood in my veins explains a lot. So even when i will not be commission as a 2nd Leftenant before the YDPA, I'll still held my head high and celebrate with my friends their commissioning tommorow. Maybe its not my rezeki to join the military now. Maybe 1 day when I had my chance again, i'll try to complete what i left behind.
A famous english proverb once told...
"When God said YES, he will grant u your wish.
When God said NO, he will grant u something better.
When God said WAIT, he will grant u the best! In his own time..."
