SMK St John’s gets national heritage status

KUALA LUMPUR: Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK) St John, popularly known as St John’s Institution, has become the second school in the country to be recognised as a national heritage building.

Deputy Information Comm­unication and Culture Minister Datuk Joseph Salang said among the factors for the recognition was the school’s age.

He said the 106-year-old school was established on Jan 18, 1904.

Moreover, he said, the school had flourished into an important educational institution in the country’s history, having produced some of Malaysia’s prominent figures, including Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

“With this recognition, we believe that the school building and other sites in Bukit Nanas should be preserved and protected by the Heritage Act.

“If there are parts of the building that need to be repaired, we will do the needful,” he told reporters after a ceremony proclaiming the school as a national heritage site yesterday. — Bernama