Around June 1995, an advertisement came out in the newspapers, calling
13-year-old boys all over Malaysia to enter the prestigious Royal Military
College (RMC). I have an army uncle who studied there for 2 years (1981-1982),
and together with my parents, he encouraged me to enrol into RMC. In November
1995, I went for the Selection, which includes a written examination, medical
check-up, physical training and a Final Interview. I passed those gruelling
procedures and in Thursday, 14th of December 1995, I officially
became an RMC student or ‘Putera’ as they were, and are still, called
nowadays.
There were 2 intakes during my time, one for Form 2 and another for Form
4. Altogether, there were about 275 freshies, or ‘new boys’ reporting into
the RMC, the one and only institution of its kind ever exists on Earth. All the
boys were divided into 8 companies; each company resides on their respective
floor or ‘company line’, in the 3 hostel blocks. The 8 companies are A to H:
Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Delta, Eagle (Echo), Foxtrot, Golf and Hotel.
I was drafted into Bravo Company (B-Coy) with 18 other Form 2s. Together,
we were known as the B-Coy Form 2 Squad, and other squads also adopted similar
names. After a week, I was officially 432517 Putera Md Ariff b Md Yusof from
Bravo Company, Room A2-3, studying in Form 2 Beta.
Life in the RMC was never easy, but it was never dull either. Each
gruelling day provides its own memories for me, be it sweet or sour, happy or
sad. However disgruntled I may be, all those memories did supply me with
lifelong experiences, preparing me to face life as a good citizen. Loyalty,
courage, integrity and honour: those are the values that were instilled inside
us, the Puteras of RMC. For myself, academic excellences escorted me throughout
my 4 years in Sungai Besi. I obtained 8As in the 1997 PMR exams and became the
College’s top student for SPM 1999, passing with 9As (8A1s and 1A2, which was
for Chemistry, sadly enough, as I won the Chemistry Book Prize for that
particular year).
I also did well in sports, representing the College in football and
chess. It was for Bravo Company in 1998 and 1999 where my mates and I won the
gold medals in the 4 x 400 metres relay during the College’s Annual Athletics
Meet. There were also times when I represented B-Coy in the road-relay and
cross-country competitions. However, I didn’t win any sports’ colours during
my 4 years stay but for me, it’s a very small matter.
In the military field, my batch, ‘De Royal B.R.A.T.s’ has been to 2
exercises in 1998, in Kuala Kubu Baru and Raub, in May and November
respectively. One of the down sides was when we lost one of our batch-mates, who
died due to dehydration during a road-run activity in Kuala Kubu Baru. But
above all, the B.R.A.T.s have shown that their physical and mental strengths are
at par with all the other previous intakes of RMC. In other events, I
represented Bravo Company in the Inter Company Shooting Competition in 1997 and
1999, helping B-Coy to came out as champions in 1997. In the military test, I
was ranked 14th among all the B.R.A.T.s.
Personally, I did receive a few awards though, although most of them were
in academics. I was the best student in my batch for 4 consecutive years. I won
quite a number of Book Prizes (Malay and Mathematics in 1996; Malay, Mathematics
and History in 1997; Islamic Studies and Physics in 1998; and a personal record
number of 6 Book Prizes in 1999 for Malay, English, Islamic Studies,
Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry). I was in the Director of Studies (DOS) List during Form 3 and Form 5,
and received the ‘Putera Mithali’ title for May 1999. I was also the Best
Participant in the Inter-Company Science and Mathematics Quiz in 1996, 1998 and
1999. But the most memorable awards of all were the ones that I received in the
Passing-Out Parade, the PIBG Prize 1998 and the DOS Prize 1999. In both
occasions, I won a wristwatch and I still keep those prized possessions until
today.
In 1999, I was the President of the Mess Council (PMC), President of the
Computer Club, and the Chief of the Musolla Bureau under the Islamic Students
Association. I was also a rank holder for my final 2 years, appointed as Putera
Sergeant (P/Sgt) and Acting Junior Under Officer (A/JUO) in 1998 before being
promoted to the rank of Junior Under Officer (JUO) in 1999. I may not be a
‘born leader’, but the RMC did help a lot in instilling leadership qualities
in myself, just like what it has done to every other Puteras since its inception in
1952.
There were also times where I represented the College in other curricular
and co-curricular activities, and as far as I can reminisce, it started in 1997
when I became a member of the College’s formidable Choral-Speaking team. The
whole team, consisted purely of the B.R.A.T.s, remained together for 2 years,
and we won the 3rd prize in the 1998 KL Choral-Speaking competition,
going down ‘fighting’ to the likes of BBGS and St. John's.
8 of my batch, including myself were selected to represent RMC in the
Muslim Leadership Course (Nadwah Kepimpinan Islam), an annual event joined by
students of every Residential School (Sekolah Berasrama Penuh or SBP), held in
the Federal Islamic Secondary School of Labu (SMAP Labu) in September 1998. It
was the first time in my life that I have the chance to mingle around with
students from other schools, especially students that are well-known for their
academic and leadership capabilities. Shortly after returning back to RMC, I joined 14 of the
B.R.A.T.s to the Outward Bound School (OBS) in Lumut, for a gruelling but
memorable 25-day course. We spent most of our time camping, kayaking, trekking
and sailing. It was in OBS that I donated blood for the first time. Generally,
all the participants were supposed to take part in activities involving
Physical Fitness, Self-Discipline, Self-Awareness and Community Service. At the
end of the day, I received the OBS Merit Award, which is also given to 7 of my
friends, while the others obtained the Membership Award.
In 1999, I was selected to enter the Hewlett Packard Inter School Tech
Quiz and the National Science Quiz. However, one of the best moments for me was
when my friend and I were being picked to join the SBP Bestari Program in the
Technical Teaching College in Cheras. It was an intensive camp for SPM Physics
and Additional Mathematics subjects, with 2 students being selected from each
SBP to join the program. I’ve made many friends there, and some of us managed
to re-group again in MARA College Banting in 2000, including myself.
De Royal B.R.A.T.s passed out from the RMC on the 29th of
January 2000 after spending 1142 days of fun, hardship, ‘insecurity’ and
happiness in the College. It was a sad day for all of us, to leave the college
that has nurtured us, from boys, becoming men. Never in my life will I ever be
able to forget any moment of my 4 years stay in RMC, the one and only.
Looking back at my life, it seems as if I was destined to enter the RMC. Not getting 4As in UPSR certainly dampen my hope to enter any SBPs or any other boarding schools, but it simply make my entrance process into RMC very much clearer and easier. Nowadays, it’s not easy for a student already studying in a residential school to reject himself from the school and going into RMC. Today, most people will not see RMC as a ‘powerhouse’ as it once was. But again, personally I think 90% of the effort needed to raise the image of this prestigious institution should come from the students themselves. As long as the students’ mentalities remain below par, the College can make no progress.