It is a horrible time to be a scout in Penang Free School. If what is reported in a recent top-level meeting between the school administrators is to be believed, the scouts in Penang Free School may as well just close shop and join the Boys Brigade or some other sissy organisation. Scouting in Penang Free School as we know it will cease to exist.
Our source who was part of that meeting and wishes to remain anonymous claims that the school is planning to demolish the Scout Den and reclaim the land it is currently situated at for expansion of either the school library or surau. It remains to be seen which group will eventually get the rights to the land but with enough funds for only one project, only one will emerge victorious. According to our source, the surau committee is slightly ahead at the moment.
This of course is nothing new with this very same topic cropping up nearly every year but the school administration seems adamant the Scout Den must be demolished by the end of the year for the expansion work on either the library or the surau to commence as soon as possible. A school administrator claims that the current Scout Den has to be demolished since it doesn't have JKR approvals and it was heavily infested with termites, posing a danger to nearby buildings.
The library committee claims the current library is too small and more space is needed to accommodate more bookshelves and reading spaces. The surau committee however counters by saying that very much everything can be found on the internet nowadays and the library is obsolete in this time and age. They presented statistics that proved readership levels and visits to the library have declined over the years and it would just be a waste of funds if the library was expanded. However, they reasoned that with the increasing number of Muslim students enrolled in Penang Free School, the current surau is just not big enough to cater for all the Muslim students and teachers although we all know the State Mosque is just right across the road.
The principal didn't want to respond to any questions when contacted and instead rambled like a deranged madman, "Who you? Who give permission come inside? Who? Who? I Principal!!! Who you? What you do here? Who give permission come? Who? Who? No! No! I ask you who!!!". We were utterly shocked with the standard of his English since he was the principal of the oldest English school in Southeast Asia and also one of the most prestigious schools in Malaysia! He marched straight back to his office after the totally incomprehensible ramble probably attending to matters of his suit filed by a former chairman of the school Board of Governors.
The Group Scout Masters of the three prominent scouting groups were amazingly outraged that the school administrators have decided to demolish the Scout Den. In fact, they stood united during the meeting to demand that the Scout Den be left as it is. If the school proceeds with the demolition of the Scout Den, they demanded that a bigger Scout Den be constructed somewhere else on the school grounds. One brave GSM even suggested that the principal quarters be converted into the Scout Den if the current Scout Den is demolished.
It is widely believed by the scouts in Penang Free School that the GSM's don't care much about the welfare of the scouting group and they look forward to the day all three scouting groups were dissolved and they are free from the shackles of the scouting movement.
"That is a very unfair claim," said one of the GSM's when posed with that statement. "We have always been fighting for the cause of the scouting movement in Penang Free School although we do all the talking behind closed doors." When asked if it was true there were plans to merge the three scouting groups, he declined to comment. Instead he threatened, "Why you ask so much? You want me to cancel your camp?"
It is common knowledge that for many years, one person has been working very hard to combine all the three troops under the Penang Free School scouts banner. Recently, it was reported that junior members will be part of 1st Georgetown South and their membership transferred to 7th Georgetown South in their senior years. 8th Georgetown South would remain as it is since it was a unique sea scout group unlike the other two.
However, the latest scheme of things seems to see all three groups combined under the 178th Georgetown South banner due to dwindling membership as seen in the recent Recruitment Drive. It has been decided that they will neither be known as land scouts or sea scouts. Instead, they will be called amphibious scouts. As for their uniforms, they will rotate between the grey and white uniforms every month. During camps, they will rotate the uniforms alternately (ie. grey on Day One, white on Day Two). All of this was finally agreed upon by all the leaders of the three scouting groups at the recently concluded PFS Combined Scout Council meeting.
At the same meeting, they have also decided to boycott any school events which required the services of the scouts like Sports Day (eg. Guard of Honour, D-formation and assisting track marshals etc) until the issue of the Scout Den is resolved. It is truly remarkable to see all the three scouting movements in Penang Free School stand as one.
And all of this has to happen on this day.
Our source who was part of that meeting and wishes to remain anonymous claims that the school is planning to demolish the Scout Den and reclaim the land it is currently situated at for expansion of either the school library or surau. It remains to be seen which group will eventually get the rights to the land but with enough funds for only one project, only one will emerge victorious. According to our source, the surau committee is slightly ahead at the moment.
This of course is nothing new with this very same topic cropping up nearly every year but the school administration seems adamant the Scout Den must be demolished by the end of the year for the expansion work on either the library or the surau to commence as soon as possible. A school administrator claims that the current Scout Den has to be demolished since it doesn't have JKR approvals and it was heavily infested with termites, posing a danger to nearby buildings.
The library committee claims the current library is too small and more space is needed to accommodate more bookshelves and reading spaces. The surau committee however counters by saying that very much everything can be found on the internet nowadays and the library is obsolete in this time and age. They presented statistics that proved readership levels and visits to the library have declined over the years and it would just be a waste of funds if the library was expanded. However, they reasoned that with the increasing number of Muslim students enrolled in Penang Free School, the current surau is just not big enough to cater for all the Muslim students and teachers although we all know the State Mosque is just right across the road.
The principal didn't want to respond to any questions when contacted and instead rambled like a deranged madman, "Who you? Who give permission come inside? Who? Who? I Principal!!! Who you? What you do here? Who give permission come? Who? Who? No! No! I ask you who!!!". We were utterly shocked with the standard of his English since he was the principal of the oldest English school in Southeast Asia and also one of the most prestigious schools in Malaysia! He marched straight back to his office after the totally incomprehensible ramble probably attending to matters of his suit filed by a former chairman of the school Board of Governors.
The Group Scout Masters of the three prominent scouting groups were amazingly outraged that the school administrators have decided to demolish the Scout Den. In fact, they stood united during the meeting to demand that the Scout Den be left as it is. If the school proceeds with the demolition of the Scout Den, they demanded that a bigger Scout Den be constructed somewhere else on the school grounds. One brave GSM even suggested that the principal quarters be converted into the Scout Den if the current Scout Den is demolished.
It is widely believed by the scouts in Penang Free School that the GSM's don't care much about the welfare of the scouting group and they look forward to the day all three scouting groups were dissolved and they are free from the shackles of the scouting movement.
"That is a very unfair claim," said one of the GSM's when posed with that statement. "We have always been fighting for the cause of the scouting movement in Penang Free School although we do all the talking behind closed doors." When asked if it was true there were plans to merge the three scouting groups, he declined to comment. Instead he threatened, "Why you ask so much? You want me to cancel your camp?"
It is common knowledge that for many years, one person has been working very hard to combine all the three troops under the Penang Free School scouts banner. Recently, it was reported that junior members will be part of 1st Georgetown South and their membership transferred to 7th Georgetown South in their senior years. 8th Georgetown South would remain as it is since it was a unique sea scout group unlike the other two.
However, the latest scheme of things seems to see all three groups combined under the 178th Georgetown South banner due to dwindling membership as seen in the recent Recruitment Drive. It has been decided that they will neither be known as land scouts or sea scouts. Instead, they will be called amphibious scouts. As for their uniforms, they will rotate between the grey and white uniforms every month. During camps, they will rotate the uniforms alternately (ie. grey on Day One, white on Day Two). All of this was finally agreed upon by all the leaders of the three scouting groups at the recently concluded PFS Combined Scout Council meeting.
At the same meeting, they have also decided to boycott any school events which required the services of the scouts like Sports Day (eg. Guard of Honour, D-formation and assisting track marshals etc) until the issue of the Scout Den is resolved. It is truly remarkable to see all the three scouting movements in Penang Free School stand as one.
And all of this has to happen on this day.
When was this? I am sure HM Jalil will not allow that to happen, the old scouts have been brain storming on how to get SCOUTING back on track.. It is our HOPE that the scout Den stays ! There are a lot of Old Scout wishing to contribute back to their respective troops to revive the glory of being a FREE SCHOOL SCOUT... But only when the Boys are deserving of their help.. Show us how good you are, invite the Old Scouts back to school or to your activities, let them experience and share with you of what they did when they were at your age. I am sure you can get lots of support. Penang Free School Scouts are in all levels of the industry. If you show you are deserving of their HELP I am sure they will not turn their backs on you... ONCE A PFS SCOUT ALWAYS A PFS SCOUT... Old Scouts don't die, they just fade away...
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