Dato' Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi

A Portrait of "Pak Lah" – The "circle" outside and the "box" inside

by Dato (Dr) Anwar Fazal*

I have known "Pak Lah" from the time we were together in the Faculty of Arts, University of Malaya. We stayed in the Pantai Valley Campus from 1961 and graduated together – class of 1963/64. He was registered at the university as "Abdullah bin Haji Ahmad" and we called him then, "Dollah".

University Times

We received our degree scrolls at the same time from the Allayarham Tunku Abdul Rahman, our first prime minister, at the Chin Woo Stadium in Kuala Lumpur on 13 June 1964.

The very special quality of "Pak Lah" was always his gentleness, calmness and a studious, no-nonsense attitude. Yet, always ready with a smile! He was head of the Muslim Society at the university and we interacted many times as friends and colleagues. I was at that time, President of University of Malaya Students Union (UMSU), and later president of the National Union of Malaysian Students.

Pak Lah joined the prestigious Malaysian Civil Service (MCS), and later politics. I continued to do my post-graduate diploma in education, followed by joining the Royal Military College in Sungai Besi, to teach economics. (Y Bhg Tan Sri Samsuddin Osman, currently Chief Secretary to the Government, and Tan Sri Zainol Abidin, head of Income Tax, were among my students.)

Starting Work

I returned to Penang in 1965, to work as an assistant secretary for the City Council of George Town in Penang, and later as private secretary to Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu, Chief Minister of Penang. I had the occasion to meet "Pak Lah" again at a meeting in KL, to discuss youth and National Goodwill Council soon after the May 13 tragedy.

I saw there the other "Pak Lah" – strong, assertive, forceful, a confident leader and moving the agenda forward of the Ministry of Youth and the National Operations Council (NOC).

It is these 2 "Pak Lahs" – gentle and caring outside, and strong the principled inside that is truly his unique character. So I describe him a s the ‘circle outside and a box inside'.

I used to meet his father more often. His eminent father was also a close friend of my father, Allahyarham Tuan Haji Fazal Mohammed, who managed a textile business in Chulia Street, Penang – Fazal Mohammed Brothers. I believe Pak Lah, if not, certainly his father, used to buy pulaikat sarongs and prayer mats from there!

International Times

Pak Lah and I have met many times over the years, on flights or at airports, especially when we both went ‘international'. He was Foreign Minister and I was president of Consumers International, and later, head of the United Nations Development Programme's Urban Governance Initiative. He always remembered our friendship and was kindly.

The last few times he did point out my receding hairline and expanding waistline. (He was noticing that I was no longer the slim outstanding athlete with the P Ramlee thick black hairstyle!).

He was always generous with his praises. A few years' ago, he came to Penang for the National Knowledge-Economy Conference. Chief Minister, Koh Tsu Koon introduced me to him as the director of Socio Economic and Environment Research Institute (SERI), a new think-tank of Penang state government's. His words were so encouraging: "I know him; you could not have chosen a better man!"

He always remembered little things and important things, and he always cared and inspired in his gentle but firms ways.

My most recent long meeting with him was at his office in Putrajaya, where a group of us associated with the Eastern Regional Association of Planning and Housing (EAROPH), proposed an Asia Pacific regional programme of Good Asset Management and for him to declare open a national conference on the subject. This project was to lead to the setting up of the Asia Pacific Institute of Good Asset Management (ABIGEM). It was a subject close to his heart. He reminded us, "We have first world infrastructure but third world maintenance." We were to see him for 20 minutes, but ended up talking for over an hour, over this important issue. He gave us his full support and the institute is now a reality!

The Future

For the future, I see three issues having priority.

Firstly, it is promoting the Culture of Integrity, which is already among his most important agenda items. When I co-founded the Malaysian Society for Integrity and Transparency, nearly 10 years' ago, and through Transparency International (based in Berlin, Germany), of which I am a member, we had little hope for rapid change but now with Pak Lah's leadership, there are concrete steps and much hope.

We truly have a serious problem in Malaysia with "money politics", corruption in certain sections of the civil service, and with too many members of the public and business too ready to pay.

My second is a hope that he creates the "Pak Lah Dialogues". So instead of just the Langkawi Dialogue, where we help other countries, this would be a dialogue in each state, with small groups of 10-15 people brainstorming on issues about Malaysia, for Malaysia, by Malaysians!

Unlike other politicians who just have KL based ‘exclusive' kitchen cabinet types of think-tanks, Pak Lah can have a Malaysian wide network of a series of dialogues and roundtables around key issues. He must break away from "the ceremonial" and "the regulars", and have this fresh source of ideas where he stays and really listens. The Chinese word for ‘listen' consists of 3 characters: ears, eyes and the heart. This should be the inspiration! We could even call it "The colours of the rainbow" project, perhaps to symbolise its open diversity!

My third hope is about this nation's environment. Unfortunately, Vision 2020 did not include the protection for the environment. It is the "blind spot" in nine challenges posed in Vision 2020 and we have paid a heavy price over the last two decades. Pak Lah's launch of "Islam Hadhari" includes the protection of the environment as an essential component. Pak Lah must provide a vigorous leadership in this and move the National Environment Council to a new action agenda, perhaps setting up "Environment Rangers" who will provide feedback and ideas. We must not forget that every great civilisation died because they did not care for the environment. Malaysia must not make that mistake!

Pak Lah can make a truly people-centred and caring prime minister – the "prime minister with a human face", can be his lasting legacy.

*Dato (Dr) Anwar Fazal was born in SungaiBayor, Perak, in 1941, and studied at King Edwards VII School in Taiping, the Penang Free School and the University of Malaya. He had the privilege of working under the leadership of four governments – Socialist Front, Alliance, Gerakan and Barisan National! He was president, Consumers International, based in Holland and the Environment Liaison Centre International (ELCI) based in Nairobi, Kenya. He co-founded the Consumers Association of Penang (CAP), and over a dozen national and global citizen networks on health, human rights, consumers and the environment. He also served with the United Nations Development Programme from 1991, retiring as Senior Regional Advisor in 2004. He is a recipient of the Right Livelihood Award, popularly known as the "Alternative Nobel Prize", and also, the United Nations Environment Programme Global 500. The Malaysian government honoured him with the "Tokoh Pengguna" award in 2000.