Battling CPM with wits and courage

Telling his story: SAC Leong wanted to form the E3F to protect informants.

KUALA LUMPUR: It was the late 1960s and the Communist Party of Malaya, which had been forced into Southern Thailand, had regrouped and were planning a return.

They managed to train about 2,300 reserve troops in what was known as “baptism of fire” and sneaked into Gubir, Kuala Nerang and Kulim. Knowing this, a plucky Special Branch officer came up with an unconventional idea. He approached his top brass to get approval to dismantle the CPM’s underground network.