Every morning for the past 23 years, L Jivanesan, 39, better known as Uncle Jiva, has shown up for work as a security guard at Kolej Matrikulasi Pahang near Gambang, Kuantan.
He was there when the salary was RM450, through the long nights and the difficult people, through the days when the job wore him down and the years when he could have left but chose not to. He is still doing the same job.
Uncle Jiva only studied until Form Three, but what he lacked in formal qualifications he made up for in persistence. When he applied to work at the college, there were no vacancies, and he was turned away. He decided to apply again, and that second attempt got him in, and he has not left since.
Why he stayed when he could have left
As reported by Harian Metro, Jiva was offered an opportunity to work in Singapore by a friend, where the pay would have been significantly higher, but he turned it down.
His mother has diabetes. His father was growing older. Leaving was not something he was willing to consider.
“Although my salary is not high, it is enough for me to help support my family. I have stayed loyal to this job because I want to live with my mother and father and take care of them as they grow older,” he told Harian Metro.
When he first started in security work, it was not a role he had been drawn to. He admitted it could be stressful and that dealing with all kinds of people was not always easy. But his parents’ advice stayed with him: work sincerely if you want your earnings to be blessed. He held onto that and kept going.
The job people look down on
Over the years, people have looked down on what Jiva does, sometimes saying it openly and sometimes just showing it in how they walk past him at the gate without a second glance, and he has learned not to dwell on it.
“I chose to continue because I wanted to earn an honest living. I just treat everyone well, no matter how they treat me,” he said.
The hours are long, and the sleep is rarely more than five hours, sometimes as little as one, and the responsibility that comes with the job is larger than most people walking through that gate would ever think to consider.
is the first face students see when they arrive and the last one they pass when they leave, and when something goes wrong, he is the one responsible for it.
The campus that became his community
Over two decades, Jiva has become far more than a familiar face at the college entrance. Students encouraged him to start sharing on TikTok, where he now posts safety tips and useful campus updates, for both students and parents. Former students return to visit him.
One of his most memorable moments on the job was helping to catch a thief on campus, an act that earned him formal recognition from college management.
He sees the students as his own children, and in the way they have treated him over the years, they seem to feel the same.
“For anyone interested in working in this field, just do it. Do not be ashamed, and do the work sincerely,” he said. “I’d also like to remind the public not to look down on jobs like mine. If there were no security guards, who would do this work?”
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Read also: ‘I gave up my family to pursue my dreams’ Shares 34 YO M’sian woman – In Real Life
https://inreallife.my/i-gave-up-my-family-to-pursue-my-dreams-shares-34-yo-msian-woman/
‘I gave up my family to pursue my dreams’ Shares 34 YO M’sian woman
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