OPKIM (Operasi Khidmat
Masyarakat) has been UiTM’s mission to close the gap between students and the
community outside the campus. This year we picked Kg Pasir Raja in Dungun Terenganu to be the location for OPKIM2013. It has been our annual event (in all of UiTM’s
faculties and branch campuses) for as long as I can remember. And I have been
with UiTM for more than 20 years already. We would go out and meet people in
the remote areas of Malaysia. Experience life and learn how to interact with
people from diverse backgrounds. About 12 years ago when I was a lecturer in
UiTM Dungun, I had the opportunity to join a program to create awareness of ICT
among the kampong-folks in Kg. Pasir Raja. I jotted down a note below :
Have you ever been to Kg Pasir Raja in Hulu Dungun ? I
am not surprised if you don’t. It is one of the remote areas in Terengganu
where communications are difficult. The access road is off the Jerangau-Jabor
highway about 40 km into the tropical forest that hides the highest waterfall
in SouthEast Asia, the Cemerong waterfall. Just before the Kg Pasir Raja
settlement this waterfall can be seen majestically tuck away in the nearby
forest. I have started to question
myself on how to put my message across about IT and all. I mean would it make
any difference if this people know IT or not because they are not going to use
it anyway. Is there a way to bring it over here one way or another? I was
asking all sort of questions just to justify my presence in this remote jungle
of Hulu Dungun. The Penghulu (Ayah Li) greeted us with a big smile and firm
handshake. I looked and nobody seems to be around. It was 10 minutes to the
scheduled talk that I was supposed to give and no one seemed to come. As I looked nervous and uneasy Ayah
Li said don’t worry they will come ,it is Friday, come join us to the market.
Now I come to understand the situation. People here live a simple life with no
train to catch or deadline to meet.
Nothing to worry about. I wish to come
and live here to get away from all those stress. I guess you can call it
“heaven on earth”. I arrived just 10 minutes ago but everyone at the market
seems to know me. By the time I started
the lecture, everyone at the market was there. I guess this is one of those
places that were reserved for very special people to come and live a perfect
life. I am not sure that they understand everything that I have said but they
were all there to listen. Ketengah installed a satellite-driven internet
connection for the Kg Pasir Raja community to learn and study what everyone
else is doing out there.|
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Now when I returned for
this program on the 3rd of September 2013, Ayah Li is no longer with us, he
died end of last year; my pakcik and makcik can still remember me (as the one
that gave ‘em bags and stuff after the lecture) and the kids have grown up. Other
than that Kg Pasir Raja still has the old and serene ambience, hospitality at
the best and food that you would not find anywhere else. It was really good to
be back. The sound of the river flow and the trees at the crosswind seemed to
greet me back. Nature is home and Kg. Pasir Raja is a perfect place to
experience nature with all its grandeur.
I woke up just before
dawn and walk a 5-minute distance to the mosque for Fajr prayer. After the
prayer went on to wake up some of the guys that stayed around the mosque. The
sky was still dark but you could see and listen to the movement of children
getting ready for school and folks doing early chores in the morning. It
reminded me of my life back home more than thirty years ago. I stood still as if being transported back to
the past. Amazing time and awesome experience. The first day started at the
local school. SK Kg Pasir Raja has only 67 pupils from pre-school up to Year 6.
The kids were amazing---very excited with us and happy to participate in our
program. I am glad we went there.
as OPKIM 2013 facilitators
That evening the rain
came down. We went on following the ceramah and appreciated the sharing of ‘ilm
nevertheless. The ceramah was in Terengganu
dialect so not sure how much my students could understand the message.
The homestay program in
Kg Pasir Raja is as real as you want it to be. You will stay at one of the many
homes here in this village. I mean a real kampong house. They made it a bit
modern to suit city folks; comfortable beds and clean bathrooms but no more
than that. So you can really experience
the kampong-style of living. The kitchen, living room and surrounding areas are
all “original setting” as they have been for so many years the family has been
there. They serve whatever they have in the kitchen for your meals and as the
place is so remote the food is uniquely local. Lunch and dinner would include
local salad served with budu(fish sauce)and spiced up with hot chilies and a
squeeze of lime;a taste that you don’t want to miss before leaving this
kampong. Another dish is local river fish in hot and spicy coconut milk with a
taste of tempoyak (durian paste). Trust me you won’t find it anywhere else in
the world; only in Kg Pasir Raja. In a gotong-royong event we were also shown
how to make lemang (sticky rice cooked in a bamboo trunk) Kg Pasir Raja style.
They do it a bit differently as others in Malaysia where lemang is a favorite traditional
dish. The sticky rice was pre-processed prior to the grilling in an open
fire;it cooked thoroughly and in a shorter period of time. The taste was unbelievably
delicious. Students also had a chance to see how noodles were made first hand
and later on enjoyed the unique laksa (noodles in fish soup) of Kg Pasir Raja.
The interesting part of this gotong-royong event was that everyone, youngs and
olds, men and women, came down to help out . Later on we had lunch together. The
atmosphere was so friendly and harmony like we are all from one big family came
home to celebrate a festival. The folks of Kg Pasir Raja really know how to treat
and entertain their guest which is truly a Malay tradition that can only be
found in the remote areas of rural Malay village. Hospitality at its best with
love and honesty. 
also as a host for 3 of our students
Of course the greatest
asset that this kampong has is its tropical forest. Kg Pasir Raja is at the
foothill of the great highlands that run from the north to the south of Malaysia.
The nearby Chemerung waterfall is the highest in this region. We haven’t had a
chance to explore the beauty of the surrounding forest; but being there in the
kampong had already made us feel lucky enough to experience nature and the
forest. Maybe next time we will organize a trip to trek the jungle and wade the
streams.
exploring the river
.JPG)
unspoiled nature
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