First day cover to commemorate the formation of Malaysian Airline System.
MIRI: Living in this modern society where being technology-savvy is part of our lifestyle; learning history is just as easy as a click of the mouse.
However, to V.C Wong, an amateur collector, he shared that he is a proud owner of a wide collection of first day covers, an old-fashion way of learning yet informative.
In an interview recently, Wong was quite thrilled while showing The Borneo Post a first day cover of the 10th anniversary of the formation of Malaysia (1963-1973).
“I got this cover on August 31st, 1973 that was imprinted with all state flags of Malaysia with the Jalur Gemilang in the centre. At the time I did not notice much significance about the first day cover, but recently with many issues going on in the country especially Sarawak, I strongly believe that young people need to do a bit of reading from old sources (like library books and first day covers) on our country’s and state’s history.”
Wong also showed off his collection of postal stamps depicting the flag of the Kingdom of Sarawak (1870 to 1946) and the state of Sarawak (1963-1973).
“The flag was then changed to the current design since 1988 and remains as our state flag. So, it is nice to be able to keep the old design of postal stamps with the former flag design,” he said.
Browsing through the collection, Wong said there was a mixed feeling of excitement, happiness and sadness, probably because some of the featured figures no longer exist.
“Just like our national carrier, Malaysian Airline System (MAS) that we were once so proud of, they are no longer there,” he said in a sad tone while showing the first day cover of MAS and commemorative stamp.
The cover was released on October 1, 1973; exactly one year after Malaysian Airline System took to the skies as Malaysia’s flag carrier.
“The Kelantan Kite that featured as MAS symbol was chosen to be featured in red, white and blue with emphasis on red, because, according to the cover, it reflects the vibrancy and excitement that was the essence of Malaysia. Well, I wonder how many young and old Malaysians actually noticed this. All they know is that it was renamed, its heavy debts and several thousands of staff were laid off under a retrenchment programme.”
Wong further said collecting first day covers as a hobby might no longer be a trend among youngsters today.
“But the advantage of keeping it as habit enables us to learn as it records some of the important events that happened in the country. Keeping first day covers helps us recall and remember things that we would probably take for granted,” he
said.
As an example, he cited the commemorative postage stamp and first day cover on the 3rd World Cup Hockey Tournament that was held in Malaysia in March of 1975, in which the Malaysian team won fourth place among other participants from Netherland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Poland, Spain, Argentina, Australia, England, West Germany, Ghana and India.
“Records show that Malaysia was very active in the sports arena in the 70s, aside from badminton. It is something we should be proud of, and the government especially the sports ministry should do something to uplift our country’s sports image back to its glory days.”
Aside from local covers, Wong also owns many first day covers and postal stamps of countries like Canada.
“Back in the days when email and mobile phone and applications were not available, fixed phone and snail mail were the only option. By mailing each other, I got to collect different designs of covers and postal stamps.”
Now that he has little time to care for his collection, Wong said he wants to sell or let go some of the collection, hoping that other collectors could take good care of them.
“Perhaps, not so much of the money, but the historical value is priceless,” he said before concluding the interview.