Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, in full Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (Arabic: عبد الله بن حاجّ أحمد بدوي) was born in Nov. 26, 1939, Kampung Perlis, British Straits Settlements colony (now Penang, Malaysia), Malay politician who was prime minister of Malaysia (2003–2009).
In 1964 Abdullah graduated with a B.A. (with honours) in Islamic studies from the University of Malaya. He then joined the Malayan civil service. He served on the National Operation Council, which exercised executive power during a nationwide state of emergency (1969–1970). In 1971 he moved to the Ministry of Culture, Youth, and Sports. He resigned from the civil service in 1978 and campaigned successfully for election to the federal parliament. Also in 1978 he received his first administrative appointment in the Federal Territory Ministry. Under Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohamad, Abdullah served asminister in the Prime Minister’s Department (1981–1984), as well as minister ofeducation (1984–1986) and defense (1986–1987). In 1991 he was appointed minister of foreign affairs, a position he held until 1999, when Mahathir named him deputy prime minister and minister of home affairs.
On Oct. 31, 2003, Mahathir stepped down, and Abdullah, his handpicked successor, became Malaysia’s fifth prime minister. Abdullah received a surprisingly strong personal mandate in general elections held on March 21, 2004. Gains by his party, the United Malays National Organization (UMNO), demonstrated widespread support for Abdullah in the ethnically and religiously diverse country. He vowed to attack poverty and to eliminate the cronyism and corruption that had been bywords of Mahathir’s long tenure. In September 2004 the Malaysian High Court’s unanticipated release of Anwar Ibrahim, the former deputy prime minister who had been imprisoned on questionable charges since 1998, resolved one of the most troubling legacies of the Mahathir era and brought praise for Abdullah’s housecleaning efforts.
Moving with quiet authority on the international stage, in January 2004 Abdullah initiated a rapprochement with neighbouring Singapore, seeking to end decades of territorial bickering; relations between the two countries, however, remained tense. Later that year Abdullah vehemently denied U.S. Pres. George W. Bush’s allegation that Malaysia was trafficking in nuclear secrets. After fighting broke out between Israeli and Hezbollah forces in Lebanon in 2006, Abdullah condemned the international community’s “paralysis” in dealing with the crisis. He later sent 360 troops to join the international peacekeeping force in Lebanon.
Domestically, Abdullah faced growing criticism. Despite his initial efforts, corruption in the government and judiciary continued. In addition, Malaysia struggled economically, and ethnic tensions persisted. In the 2008 elections, the governing National Front coalition, which had ruled the country since 1957 and of which UMNO was a member, fared poorly. Faced with opposition within UMNO, Abdullah announced in October 2008 that he would resign in March of the following year. He was succeeded by Najib Razak, who was sworn in as Malaysia’s prime minister in April 2009. Abdullah was then conferred the title 'Tun' by His Majesty Mizan Zainal Abidin for his service to the nation.
Background and early life
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi was born in Bayan Lepas, Penang to a prominent religious family. Badawi's paternal grandfather, Syeikh Abdullah Badawi Fahim, was of Arab descent.[3] Syeikh Abdullah was a well-respected religious leader and nationalist, was one of the founding members of Hizbul Muslimin, later known as PAS. After independence, Syeikh Abdullah became the first mufti of Penang after Independence.[4] His father, Ahmad Badawi, was a prominent religious figure and UMNO member. His maternal grandfather, Ha Su-chiang (traditional Chinese: 哈蘇璋; simplified Chinese: 哈苏璋; pinyin: hā sūzhāng; Wade–Giles: Ha Su-chang) (also known as Hassan Salleh), was a Utsul Muslim who came from Sanya in Hainan.[5][6][7][8][9]
Badawi is a former student of Bukit Mertajam High School. He studied at MBS (Methodist Boy's School) Penang for his 6th form. Badawi obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in Islamic Studies from the University of Malaya in 1964.[10]
Political career
After graduating from the University of Malaya, he joined the Malaysian Administrative and Diplomatic Corps (the formal term for the civil service). He served as Director of Youth at the Ministry of Youth and Sport as well as Secretary of the National Operations Council (MAGERAN). He resigned in 1978 to become the member of parliament for his constituency of Kepala Batas in northern Seberang Perai (which had also been represented by his father).
Early during Mahathir's tenure as prime minister, a bitter dispute erupted within the ruling UMNO party and it was divided into two camps, which were colloquially known as 'Team A', comprising Mahathir loyalists, and 'Team B', which supported former Minister of Finance Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah and former Deputy Prime Minister Musa Hitam. Mahathir prevailed, leading to the exclusion of Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah from the newly established UMNO (Baru) or New UMNO. Abdullah was a close supporter of his political mentor Musa Hitam in Team B and as a result, he was sacked from his post of Minister of Defence in the Cabinet. He did not join the Semangat 46 (Spirit 46) party which was set up by Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah. Semangat 46 is now defunct.
When UMNO (Baru) was formed in February 1988, Mahathir, the UMNO President and Prime Minister, brought Abdullah into the pro tem committee of UMNO (Baru) as the vice-president. In 1990, Abdullah retained his seat as vice-president. During the Cabinet reshuffle in 1991, Mahathir brought him back into the Cabinet as Foreign Minister. He held this post until November 1999, when Syed Hamid Albar succeeded him. Even though he lost his vice presidency in the 1993 UMNO elections, he remained in the Cabinet and was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs. Prior to 1998, he also served as Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, Minister of Education, Minister of Defence, and Minister of Foreign Affairs. He completed his probation when he was appointed Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia and Minister of Home Affairs following the dismissal of Anwar Ibrahim.
Family
On 20 October 2005, Abdullah Badawi's wife, Endon Mahmood, died of breast cancer. Endon discovered the disease in 2003 while her twin sister Noraini, who had earlier been diagnosed with the same illness, died in January 2003. She received treatment in the United States and returned to Malaysia 18 days before her death. She is buried at a Muslim cemetery, at Taman Selatan, Precinct 20, Putrajaya.
On 6 June 2007, the Prime Minister's office announced Abdullah Badawi's marriage to Jeanne Abdullah. On 9 June, a private ceremony was conducted at the Prime Minister's residence, Seri Perdana, and attended by close relatives. Jeanne was formerly married to the younger brother of Abdullah Badawi's late wife. She was also a manager at the Seri Perdana residential complex and has two children from her previous marriage."Prime Minister To Wed Jeanne Abdullah Badawi Saturday". Bernama. 6 June 2007. Archived from the original on 27 June 2007.However, earlier in March that year, the premier dismissed rumours about his plans to remarry even though the rumours had been circulating for more than a year.
Poetry
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is known also as a poet. His poem I Seek Eternal Peace was translated into more than 80 languages and published as a book. Ahmad Badawi. Ku Cari Damai Abadi. I Seek Eternal Peace. In 80 Languages. Editor Assoc. Professor Dr. Victor Pogadaev. Kuala Lumpur: Penerbit Universiti Malaya, 2008
Controversies
After moves to charge prominent figures such as Eric Chia and the then Land and Co-operative Development Minister, Kasitah Gaddam, with corruption, Abdullah Badawi's administration's efforts to combat corruption allegedly became less transparent. It was noted by the Economist that little progress has been made on curbing corruption.Malaysia | Cleaning up? Economist.com Archived 15 February 2011 at WebCite
Brother
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has been criticised for allowing his brother Fahim Ibrahim Badawi to buy 51 percent of the government-controlled MAS Catering Sdn Bhd. Fahim later sold this stake to Lufthansa's LSG Skychef at a huge profit.
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