KUCHING: “He was very supportive of us and most importantly, he loved us and was our pillar after our mother’s passing seven years ago.”
This was how the late Corporal (Ret) Etin Jam’s eldest daughter, Linda Nacha described her father.
“There were four of us, all girls, and one of (our) siblings has passed away.
“My father was very soft spoken. He never went to school. When he became a police officer, he did his best to serve the country.
“He began working in 1963 and received the SP medal, the Seri Pahlawan Gagah Perkasa, in 1971 during the communist insurgency,” she told reporters.
“His job was to take care of the country against communist insurgency. I believe at the time, he wasn’t looking for a glamorous award,” she said.
“At that time, he was asked to escort a Public Works Department (PWD) team tasked with sending explosives for road breaking activities.
“The communists wanted to take away the explosives but the police managed to defend the convoy carrying the explosives until reinforcements arrived,” she said.
The late Etin was awarded the Darjah Kebesaran Seri Pahlawan Gagah Perkasa (SP)- the highest award for bravery by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.
For the record, the title is ranked higher than the Order of the Royal Family of Malaysia (DKM) awarded to Malaysian royalty.
