PEKAN - Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah today reminisced about the sweet memories of his childhood and primary school days at Sekolah Kebangsaan (SK) Ahmad, here.
His Majesty said the primary school located approximately two kilometres from Istana Mangga Tunggal, where he was born, was the place where he received his first formal education in Standard One in 1966.
"The school was made of wood back then, and when we ran around, it was quite noisy...and under the stilt floor, we used to play marbles and sometimes, there would be water dripping.
"We would play football on the school field, and I was among the best football players and I even represented Pahang when I was in Standard Three. "I have so many sweet memories here, including riding my bicycle from the palace to the school,” His Majesty said when gracing the proclamation of SK Ahmad and Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK) Ahmad here today.
Pahang Regent Tengku Hassanal Ibrahim Alam Shah, Tengku Panglima Raja Col Tengku Amir Nasser Ibrahim Shah and Tengku Panglima Perang Tengku Ahmad Ismail Mu'adzam Shah were in attendance.
Also present were Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek and State Agriculture, Agro-based Industry, Biotechnology and Education Committee chairman Datuk Seri Mohd Soffi Abd Razak.
Elaborating, Al-Sultan Abdullah said it was with his classmates that he had a taste of a broken arm when they tried to play Tarzan on a rambutan tree one day.
"There were 20 of us, but when I fell and broke my arm, they ran helter-skelter. Only three or four of them who left, informed the palace, and everybody panicked,” he said.
The King, however, said he lost contact with his classmates after moving to Kuantan in 1970 but was proud nonetheless when he found out that they were doing well in their studies, with some even graduated from overseas universities.
At the event, Al-Sultan Abdullah also consented to SK Ahmad and SMK Ahmad, which were established in 1926, to be renamed SK Sultan Ahmad and SMK Sultan Ahmad, in honour of the Sultan of modern Pahang, Sultan Ahmad Al-Muadzam Shah.
His Majesty also expressed hope that the teachers at the two schools would continue striving for excellence and produce more leaders for Pahang and for Malaysia. - BERNAMA