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This time we were inserted into an infantry company’s location by helicopter, we had to abseil into this location as there was no LP. I improved on my abseiling as there was a training tower at the Engineer’s base. We could do the harnessing ourselves; we became adept at it because of constant training. The Troop Leader was Lt Tang Yew Kai, who came in later, by an Alouette helicopter.

Our job was to construct a Landing Pad, this would be used for rapid deployment for a follow up operation if ever there was a contact. Initially we used small well placed charges to bring down trees, later when there was enough space created, more explosives were sent down to us by helicopters, these explosives in wooden cartons were winched down to us.

We needed them, to blow up the stumps that were still there after felling a tree, this LP was going to be permanent one. We had to clear the approaches, as we were located on a ridge, the north and south were valleys with trees blocking the approaches. It was a very tough job, we had to use powered saws, wood augurs, machete and the two handled saw.

The work was grueling as there was a dateline, we were given two days from the day of arrival. The explosives we placed into holes and cuttings and blew them up. We followed up with blasting the big tree trunks which we could not lift into smaller manageable pieces.

Water was the main source of our problem, we had to organize water parties, once in the morning and once in the evening. It was hell, collecting water, the water source was a good 50 minutes away, one way and another 1 hour 30 minutes for the return journey.

Two of us carried water for the 10 people in our group, the infantry joined us with their reps who were giving us local protection. There were usually a total of 8 people in this water procurement exercise. For my team I had to carry a section water bag and ten water bottles, while my buddy carried the same amount.

Going out was not a problem, as all the water bottles and water bags were empty and the going was downhill all the way to the stream. Going to the stream was also an opportunity for cleaning up. Normally the guys who go on this water party also have to cook for the rest of the team during meal times, deliver to them on their working spot as to rush against the deadline.

The going was good, as it was downhill, could be described as a breeze. We had to secure all the stuff to our bodies, to leave our hands free for us to operate our rifles. The infantry guys were armed with M-16’s whereas we were armed with the heavy SLR’s 7.62 rifles.

We reached the stream, the corporal in charge positioned men on the far bank of the stream and had one sentry at the home bank. He told us to fill up, we filled up all our water containers, after which we stripped and had a quick dip in the water, felt refreshed. All of them took turns, in time we had to return.

The going was tough, weighed down by the weight of water, sometimes we slid down the slope, as we could not get a grip on the steep inclines. As we were in a single file, the guy below had to push the guy in front to help him climb, sometimes your face received a full boot from the guy in front.

We reached the LP after an hour of struggling, with the thought that you don’t have to do it tomorrow. The first thing I did along with my friend was to deliver the water bottles to the guys working, we were greeted with smiles of relief and gratefulness.

I went back to my basha and started gathering mess tins from the rest of the guys’ packs. I opened the combat rations and started cooking for them. Once done I ate, after which I went to relieve one of them, I took up his place to continue where he had left off, this was the cycle practiced until everyone had eaten. The last person will clean up. The LP was completed that day.

That night it rained, rained is too a light word to describe, trees were swaying. The rain came into our bashas soaking us completely. We were damned bloody cold, we huddled together to keep warm until dawn. Mud was everywhere, we were exhaling vapor in the cold. Just as the sun came up, we could hear the chopper beating the air.

The big bird came down letting fly debris and all. The welcoming thing was the heat from its exhaust. We were extricated from the LP that morning. The flight was approximately 20 minutes to the Slim river police station. Just when the chopper landed, a fire started at the exhausts. Everyone quickly jumped off, whilst people on the ground came running with fire extinguishers. Guess that was a close call, I would not be writing this if that heli had blown in mid air.

At the end of that operation nine of the Enemy were killed. Six of them actually starved to death, when their bodies were discovered they were already decomposing, their mouths were full of maggots. 3 other were shot dead, one of the killed was a young seventeen-year-old girl, half of her face was blown off.

The chaps who made contact and killed them were there. One of them opened up her olive green pants exposing her privates, laughingly telling us that it was still warm, and asking us if anyone of us wanted to have a go at her. All armies have sick and raving lunatics.

For the whole of 1974, it was bombs and booby traps in Peninsular Malaysia. The Inspector General of police was assassinated when stopping at the traffic lights that year. Not long after that the Chief Police Officer for the state of Perak, my home state, was assassinated by a Communist hit squad. Koo Choo Kong, who was the Perak chief police officer, was shot and killed on November 13, 1975 by two terrorists, who were subsequently arrested, tried and hanged.

Koo gave his life in the service of the country despite death threats by the communist terrorists, and he was accorded a hero’s funeral attended by some 20,000 people, including the then Prime Minister, Tun Abdul Razak and Deputy Prime Minister Tun Hussein Onn and the then Inspector-General of Police, Tun Haniff Omar.

The government had a strategic long term plan to develop the northern areas of the Peninsula which was infested with Communist Terrorists of the Malayan Communist Party. In collaboration with the Japanese engineers the governments and the Public Works Department (JKR), decided to construct a highway running from the west coast to the east Coast linking the backward state of Kelantan.

This highway would act as a barrier to the Communists who infiltrated from the North and those who were fleeing the Security Forces. One fine day the Communists struck, they rigged explosives to the engine blocks of around 76 heavy machinery (plant), which included bulldozers (Caterpillars), graders, rollers and many others used in the construction of a highway.

They did this in the wee hours of the morning when there were no workers and the work force had stood down for the night. The workers stayed with a unit of the Territorial Army. The explosives were set off damaging 69 of the heavy machinery, 7 charges misfired, it was a great setback for the Government. It cost the government millions of dollars. The enemy challenged the Territorial Army, laid a lot of booby traps and withdrew.

They left behind banners, calling the then Prime Minister of Malaysia a “Traitor to the Nation” (Pengkhianat Negara). Regular forces were rushed there. As then the Prime Minister had joined the Japanese Army after Malaya fell to the Japanese, guess to save his own skin or to fight the British.

Guess you shouldn’t trust the natives when you are an occupying force yourself. That’s another reason why Malaya fell in a few short days to the Japanese, I believe there was lots of support from the Malays for the Japanese against the British.

We were airlifted to Grik in upper Perak, as the first booby trap clearing team to be tasked for this outrage. We were placed in a temporary Camp. That evening we moved out to the location. Whilst en route to the location in a convoy, the leading armored escort a V100 Commando hit a mine and was disabled. The crew was injured.