Sibu Tales : Tung Hua Primary and Secondary School

The Tung Hua School  at Queensway (later Tun Haji Openg Road) was established in 1922. The founding fathers were Chiong Swee Nguong, and Kong Chu Soon who valued education for the new generation, especially those who were not in school due to lack of facilities. Land was probably donated by the two founding fathers.

1936 - 1942

It started as a thatched wooden school with only primary levels. But by 1936, there were enough students for Junior School.  More members of Board of Directors were recruited and teachers engaged.

It was reported that just before the Second World War it was already very well established with good classrooms, a kitchen for boarding students (which was very essential facility) , library, school garden and water tanks.

The kindergarten was the pride of the school.

One of my aunts went to school there and related some very interesting stories of taking a bus to the school on Sunday afternoon after spending t he weekend at home. The bus driver was rather unpleasant in character and was not kind to the students who took the bus. 

She also said that during the Japanese time, before the school was closed, as boarders she and her brother had to collect fire wood, and they had to cook their own meals. But fortunately t he school closed not long after the Japanese took over the management and she and her brother went home to shelter themselves from the Japanese. They chose not to study Japanese because they lived too far away

Unfortunately when the Allied army planes flew over Sibu, they dropped a bomb on the kindergarten and hostel buildings causing a lot of damage and heart breaks to the students, board of management and the community. According to a relative, the bomber planes targeted clusters of bigger buildings in Sibu where they believed the Japanese were billeted. Sibu town was damaged by at least two bombs, Sg. Merah by one bomb and the Sibu airport, one bomb. Another bomb was dropped near the Lau King Howe Hospital, but luckily it did not hit the hospital directly. The resulting fire was quite big

At that time one of my distant aunts, Lau Nga Hung (who went on to be the first Foochow lady Principal of a school later in the history of Sarawak), was a teacher there, and later principal.

A single lady, who saved a lot of money founded Sibu Secondary (Private ) School later. Today at the very site of her land stands the Sibu Medical Centre.

Today this school is still a leading school in Sarawak and is an aided government school.