Another page of military history being brazenly wipe out

I read with utter disgust, the decision by the Ministry of Defence to allow Majidee Camp, an Army camp that had existed prior to the Second World War, to be developed as a commercial centre. The developer is reported to be Zaman Land Sdn Bhd., that is said to have made an agreement with the Johor State government and Kumpulan Pasarana Rakyat Johor (KPRJ), a company formed by some UMNO politicians. I am further appalled by the absolute silence of the Armed Forces, and the Army in particular, to allow such a decision to be made, knowing that a page of the history of the Malaysian Army will be forever lost.

Being a retired Army officer, I have had on several occasions visited and stayed at Majidee Camp, with its uniquely solid structured buildings, that are constructed to last for several more generations. But unfortunately, the camp is slowly reaching its closure and eventual demise, through the pretext of development, by those who have little thought of preserving the pages of military history. I know for one, that what is today the Malaysian Army Special Forces, or the Malaysian Special Service Unit (MSSU) as it was designated then, was established in Majidee Camp in the early 60’s. Its establishment was the pride of the Army, where only the toughest could gain entry into the unit.

I hasten to wonder why has this culture of greed and outrageous land thievery by supposedly developers, and presumably in cohort with politicians, care little about national security and defence. What is so wrong about having to leave the camp as it is? Has the soldiers been such a nuisance to the public that they don’t deserve to reside in Johor Baru? Where next will they go? Certainly not into temporary wooden structured camps, that was the norm in the seventies.

I am quite sure that what is left of Majidee Camp, will sooner or later, be acquired, giving the dumb justification that it is no longer appropriate and safe to have an Army Camp in the midst of urban development. The Army unit final eviction from Majidee Camp is likened to the Israeli’s military occupation of Palestinian land. This is indeed a well crafted thought by the powers that be, and my utmost congratulations to the Ministry of Defence for being in connivance with such idiotic thoughts.

This leaves me to wonder whether a similar fate will befall upon other military camps located in urban areas, that are scattered across the country. And my memory flashes on Kinrara Military Hospital at Puchong, Selangor, which was almost sold to a developer in 2004, in exchange for some development projects. It was the media then, that saved the Kinrara Military Hospital from being wipe out.