La Salle Brothers ended where they began

This article was from Malaysiakini, and I find it very meaningful especially for Xaverians like me, so I decided to copy and paste it here, for those that do not subscribe to Malaysiakini.

La Salle Brothers ended where they began
Terence Netto | Jun 20, 09 11:43am

“In my beginning is my end,” runs the refrain from a poem of TS Eliot’s, lines with a special poignance to Ho Kok Chee, brother director of St Xavier’s Institution and a Masters in English – a postgraduate qualification he has had to equip himself with, as otherwise his fitness for the headmastership of the school would have been deemed by the authorities as inadequate.
MCPX

In the event, it enabled him to last 16 years as brother director, the longest tenure of the 28 principals who preceded him since the foundation in 1852 of this flagship school.

Ho’s retirement today brought to a close the 157-year presence of the La Salle Brothers in Malaysia, a Roman Catholic teaching order that at its height was responsible for the administration and ownership of 59 primary and secondary schools in Malaysia that educated something like two million students.

Alumni of these schools have graced the upper reaches of Malaysian socio-political life since independence and have not been averse to crediting their alma mater for the training they received.

However, a glance at the list of Malaysian luminaries who have been educated in these schools would stay the impulse to any triumphalism about the worth of the education afforded there, for the products occupy the range from the proud to the sordid. It must be admitted that much the same could be said for the legatees of most other famous schools in the country.

Why then the poignance that attended the closure rituals at Bro Paul Ho’s departure?

Perhaps it was because of the ideal of gratuitous service that animated the La Salle Brothers, who at the height of their presence in Malaysian education in the 1950s and 60s, numbered about a hundred members spread among the staff of the few score schools, mainly located in the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia, that they built and ran.

In a skeptical age, it would be easy to deprecate the value of this service but when it is seen that barely 10 percent of the enrollment in each of these schools was composed of pupils of the same religion as the Brothers, and that the latter did nothing in the way that could be construed as attempts to proselytise, their record of service was indeed what they claimed it was: gratuitous.

Faintly optimistic of the future

“It’s a new beginning,” opined Bro Paul Ho in remarks made to Malaysiakini as he packed his belongings in the modest office near the entrance to the school earlier this week in preparation for Friday’s departure.

He sounded faintly optimistic of the future, that the “special character of this school and its like” – meaning the half dozen other schools in the major towns of the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia – would resist the attrition that would come from being administered by Education Ministry appointees not imbued with the spirit of the La Salle order.

It was hard to see the grounds for his optimism, albeit a faint one. But there wasn’t anything contrived in the way he gave vent to it.

“It now depends on those who value the education they have received in these schools to preserve their alma mater’s special character,” he elaborated.

“They have to exert the effort to preserve it,” he asserted. “If they cannot be depended upon to do that, who else would do it now that the Brothers are no longer around to preserve it?”

He added: “The La Salle order has looked upon students that have come to it for their education as special gifts to be respected for their human dignity and worth, irrespective of whether they belonged to the religion the Brothers professed.

“That was what made the order and the schools they ran special. That was why no proselytising was done because we respected the dignity of the person entrusted to our care.

“Our ideal of gratuitous service was based on that respect for the dignity of the human person and the end of our presence does not mean that the value of that ideal is no longer relevant nor is ended the possibility that it could endure in the hearts of those who have been touched by its worthiness,” said Bro Paul in a light-hearted tone that belied the gravity of what he said.

“The Brothers were never in this for profit or proselytising,” he emphasised. “They were in it for the dignity of the human person and that is why a void in their presence does not mean the cessation of that ideal.”

Bro Paul Ho chuckled when it was suggested to him that he was standing TS Eliot’s famous refrain on its head – “In my end is my beginning.”

Original article posted here.

Bro. Paul Ho, the last missionary brother principle of La Sallian schools in Malaysia

With the retirement of our most revered Bro. Paul Ho, it will mark the end – at least for now, the last missionary Brother Director as Principle in Saint Xavier’s Institution, other La Sallian missionary schools in Malaysia. SXI is the first La Sallian school to be built in Malaysia, and will also be the last that a Brother becomes a Principle. Bro. Paul is a man of wisdom and humour. Almost all of the school students liked him, and are sad that he is going to leave us.

Lilian Chan, a citizen journalist had interview Bro Paul, and here it is:

In Part One, Brother Paul talked about religious tolerance and teaching of Science and Mathematics. Watch how he kutuk-ed the attitude of those who become teachers for the wrong reasons, the politicians for harping on their colonial masters bondage and reason why people are less open-minded about others’ religions.

Part 2 coming soon…

But, if you have a Facebook account, you can always view it here.

Credit to Lilian Chan for contents, filming, recording, interviewing.

Dr. Mansor Othman our new Deputy Chief Minister I

I whole-heartedly congratulate our new Deputy Chief Minister I of Penang, YB Dr. Mansor Othman for winning the state seat of Penanti with a whopping 5,558-vote majority, defeating other 3 candidates contested by clinching 91% of total votes cast.

Although a relatively low turnout – at about 46.15%, but its enough to indicate that PKR has not lost support amongst the strong opposition stronghold of PKR at Penanti located in Permatang Pauh. I just can’t wait to see the outcome of the next by-election at Manek Urai, although I think that BN would be contesting this time.

The very basis of Constitutional Monarchy

First and foremost, I am not a an expert of such topics. However, I’ve been reading aplenty of the recent Court of Appeal ruling that favours the BN’s Menteri Besar Zambry. Such rulings and judgment will not only shake the very basis of the spirit of Constitution for violating its Doctrine Separation of Powers, but also the very basis of Constitutional Monarchy. Indirectly, the Courts of Appeal judgment will be a future reference for other constitutional crisis in years to come. It means that the Courts have set a dangerous precedent by granting the Sultan and the Rulers an absolute power to dismiss and remove a Menteri Besar or Chief Minister without having to go through proper procedures in accordance to the Federal and State Constitution, in which a vote of no confidence have to be tabled.

And yes, this comes to show that the independence of a judiciary remains questioned. The favourable double treatment of the BN MB for accelarating the stay order has been given mere hours but weeks for the PR MB to overturn to stay order. It is the public perception that matters most. Like what PRK always said, the judiciary and the police are one of the BN component parties, and this was further proven.

Form Six

The title itself should be self-explanatory, especially in many things. One of them means that I would not be spending most of my time on the computer. Yes, its time I pay a little bit more attention to my studies. At least for now the lesson hasn’t officially starts yet. It could be described as a new beginning, cause I’ve opted to go for Humanities (or Arts stream). I’m currently taking Accounts, Business Studies and Economics. General Paper is compulsory.

Form 6 has been well thus far. A totally new environment, biggest difference being in a class with the opposite gender! Haha. Nevertheless, I think its gonna be a very pleasant experience. I’ve been in Form 6 for five days already, and I think the worst part is the Orientation. Yeah, its kinda petty and boring to say the least. Anyways, I can conclude that lesson was really fun. Its always good to learn something new, I thought. My main worry is Accounts, since I do not have any basic and foundation in that subject, so I appear to have doubt. I was told that after this year, we could be able to be on par with those who have the basics since its gonna be different from what they learn previously.

I’ve also decided not to blog about politics too often, but more to the social or bread and butter issues happening around Penang. I must also stress that I might not be very consistent in blogging, the least I could do it is most probably blog during weekends, but when my tuition and lesson commences, its gonna be a very tough time in juggling my time. Oh yeah, I wish my friends taking Form 6 all the best!

And, this is how I’ve progressed after 2 weeks:

What’s up, guys?

Five and a half months of play, boredom, laziness, whatever has come to an end when I received the Form 6 Offer Letter that next Monday would be the registration day as well as my first day of school. Well, I wasn’t anticipating for it to start THAT early, at least I thought it would be a week later, which is May 18th. Oh well, I guess I have to live up with it. Nevertheless, I was busy these few days with my new social game which I just discovered. I find it particularly attractive and ridiculously addictive. No joke. Its sort of a game where you need to commit, because if you don’t, your employees run out of energy or stamina, and thus you lose popularity. Yeah, thats more or less how it works.

This is a rough idea of the Restaurant City I was talking about:

Yeah, after this I would still have to head to Gurney Plaza and subsequently overnight at my friend’s place. This will also be my final outing before Form 6 starts. And, I miss those days where we get to hang out very often for movies, food and everything! Nevertheless, I still look forward to Form 6. =)