Assalamualaikum,

Woke up this morning and discovered my school is featured in the Malaysia Hari Ini (MHI) slot. I sat and listened with my fullest attention to discover that my beloved high school have been declared as a National Heritage. I totally forgot about it as I recently very busy with ISO and never had time to open the website, but I remembered the announcement were to be made somewhere in February. What an achievement. The first school in Malaysia to achieve that status.

KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 13, 2009): The iconic Victoria Institution, more popularly known as VI, which will be exactly 116 years old tomorrow, will become the first school in the country to be awarded national heritage status.

Founded by Sultan Abdul Samad, William Hood Treacher, Loke Yew, Thamboosamy Pillai and Yap Kwan Seng on Aug 14, 1893, VI has steadfastly maintained a record of academic excellence and produced many leaders and luminaries.

Those who passed through its hallowed halls include Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei, Cabinet ministers then and now like Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz, Datuk Seri Zulhasnan Rafique, Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal, Datuk Seri Dr. Ng Yen Yen and former judge Datuk Mahadev Shankar.

Other former students include corporate giants like Tan Sri Shamsuddin Abdul Kadir, T. Ananda Krishnan and Tan Sri Francis Yeoh while in the field of sports the school has produced luminaries such as Datuk Dr. M.Jegathesan, the late Mokthar Dahari, Datuk Misbun Sidek, Foo Kok Keong, Datuk P.S.Nathan and Ishtiaq Mubarak.

During the Second World War, VI was used as the administrative headquarters by the invading Japanese army and after Japan's defeat in the war in 1945, the hand-over ceremony of the administration of Malaya to the British was also held there (on Feb 22 1946).

Unity, Culture, Arts and Heritage Minister Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal will present the award to VI tomorrow morning in a special ceremony at its school compound and many of its former students are expected to witness the historic event.

It will also hold a special meaning for Shafie, himself an alumni of VI.

Zulhasnan, the Federal Territories Minister, said: "I would not miss it for the world. It is such a great honour for VI and as a former student, I am particularly glad VI was the first school chosen to be awarded the status. This is a momentous occasion not only for VI but all its students and former students, like me."

For Zulhasnan, Feb 14 this year also holds a special meaning as it will mark three years he has been Federal Territories Minister.

In conjunction with the historic event, many celebratory programmes have been lined up including a gala dinner, charity golf tournament, centennial concert by VI's marching band, a cross-country charity run in the city and a football tournament in memory of Mokthar Dahari.

For VI's Parent-Teacher Association president, Raja Amir Shah Raja Abdul Aziz, VI's main goal after getting the status is to continue with its tradition of excellence for hundreds of years to come.

Also tomorrow, VI's marching band's cadet corps, which will be celebrating its centennial, will hold a special performance to mark the occasion. -- Bernama