KUALA LUMPUR: For decades, Yap Kok Sun’s name remained little known, even as his work sat at the heart of Malaysia’s history of nation-building.
Now 90, the former Survey and Mapping Department (Jupem) artist was in the small team entrusted with preparing the Proclamation of Malaya’s Independence in the lead-up to 1957.
The historic document was hand-rendered on vellum and framed with gold-leaf borders.
Yap was responsible for the watermark and several intricate line details, work that demanded precision and repeated revisions.
“We had to redo it many times until it met expectations. They wanted something distinctly Malaysian, created by Malay-sians,” he said.
Designs were drawn at a large scale, then photographed and reduced using glass negatives. Any correction required retouching and rephotographing, long before the era of digital tools.
At the time, Jupem still had European supervisors. One suggested that Yap leave a trace of his work.
“One of them said, ‘Kok Sun, why don’t you sign at the back?’ I asked how I could do that. He said one day my grandchildren might want to know it was done by me,” Yap recalled.
He eventually signed the document as KS Yap.
Yap’s contributions extended beyond the Merdeka proclamation. He worked on numerous confidential government documents, including security designs for road tax discs used in earlier decades.
He embedded discreet initials within the designs, a security feature known only to him and a small circle of Road Transport Department officials.
The hidden markings later helped authorities uncover forged documents. In one case involving a fake road tax disc, enforcement officers were preparing to charge a lorry driver before seeking verification from the Survey Department.
“They asked who knew the security features. I said I could check,” Yap said.
The disc was examined under ultraviolet light and magnification.
“I told them it was not mine because my initials were not there,” he said.
The transport company later admitted that the disc was a copy and pleaded guilty.
“Thankfully, I did not have to go to court,” he added.
Yap also worked on other national documents, including the proclamation declaring Kuala Lumpur a Federal Territory in 1974.
Despite the significance of his work, public recognition came only decades later. In 1985,
during Jupem’s centenary celebration, he received acknowledgement on behalf of the original Merdeka design team.
“I was the only surviving member of the team by then,” he said.
Reflecting on his career, Yap remains matter-of-fact. “I’m very proud to have been part of Malaysia’s history,” he said.
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