Profile of Tun Dr

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Profile of Tun Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad

Tun Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad became the fourth Prime Minister of Malaysia on 16 July 1981.

Born on 20 December 1925 in Alor Setar, the capital of the State of Kedah, Tun Dr. Mahathir did his

early and secondary education in his home town. In 1947, he gained admission into the King Edward

VII College of Medicine in Singapore.

Upon graduation, he joined the Malaysian government service as a Medical Officer. He left in 1957

to set up his own practice in Alor Setar.

Tun Dr. Mahathir has been active in politics since 1945. He has been a member of the United Malays

National Organisation (UMNO) since its inception in 1946.

He was first elected as a Member of Parliament following the General Elections in 1964. However, he

lost his seat in the subsequent General Election in 1969. Owing to his keen interest in the country's

education, he was appointed Chairman of the first Higher Education Council in 1968, Member of the

Higher Education Advisory Council in 1972, Member of the University Court and University of Malaya

Council, and Chairman of the National University Council in 1974.

In 1973, Tun Dr. Mahathir was appointed a Senator. He relinquished this post in order to contest in

the 1974 General Elections where he was returned unopposed. Following the elections, Tun Dr.

Mahathir was appointed the Minister of Education.

In 1976, Tun Dr. Mahathir was made Deputy Prime Minister in addition to his Education portfolio. In

a Cabinet reshuffle two years later, he relinquished the Education portfolio for that of Trade and

Industry. As Minister of Trade and Industry, he led several investment promotion missions overseas.

Tun Dr. Mahathir was elected as one of the three Vice Presidents of UMNO in 1975. In 1978, he won

the Deputy President seat and in 1981, he was appointed President of the party. He was returned

unopposed as President in 1984.

In the 1987 party elections, Tun Dr. Mahathir defeated his challenger to retain the Presidency and in

1990 and 1993, he was again returned unopposed as party President. Under his leadership, the

ruling party Barisan Nasional (National Front) won landslide victories in the 1982, 1986, 1990, 1995

and 1999 General Elections.

Tun Dr. Mahathir is married to a doctor, Tun Dr. Siti Hasmah bt Mohd Ali, and they have seven

children Marina, Mirzan, Melinda, Mokhzani, Mukhriz, Maizura and Mazhar.

Tun Dr. Mahathir stepped down as Prime Minister on October 31st 2003.


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AWARDS RECEIVED BY TUN DR. MAHATHIR

DOMESTIC AWARDS

YEAR NAME OF AWARD STATE

2008 Darjah Seri Utama Mahkota Wilayah (SUMW) Wilayah

Persekutuan

2006 Certificate of Execellentfrom Multimedia University

Malaysia

2006 Anugerah Minda Agungfrom Malaysian Invention & Design Society (MINDS)

Malaysia

2005 Grand Fellowfrom Institut Kelautan Malaysia (IKMAL)

IKMAL(Malaysia)

2004 Grand Fellowfrom Dewan Perniagaan Melayu Malaysia Kuala Lumpur (DPMMKL)

DPMMKL

(Kuala Lumpur)

2004 Honorary Doctor of Philosophy in Development Studies

from University Malaysia Sarawak

UNIMAS

2004 "Wira Perdana Negara"from Persatuan Kebajikan Keluarga Bekas Polis dan Tentera (POLTERA) WP danSelangor

POLTERA

(WP&Selangor)

2004 FIABCI Award of Distinction 2004 for Nation Building Malaysia

2004 Honorary Doctor of Philosophy in Economicsfrom University Malaysia Sabah

UMS, Sabah

2004 Honorary Doctor of Philosophy in Leadership and Humanity Developmentfrom University Pendidikan Sultan Idris, Perak

UPSI, Perak

2004 Honorary Doctor of Philosophy in Science from University Sains Malaysia, Penang

USM, Penang

2004 Honorary Doctor of Philosophy in Knowledge Sciencefrom Multimedia University, Cyberjaya

MMU

2004 Honorary Doctor of Philosophy in Science from University Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Selangor

UPM

2004 Honorary Doctor of Philosophy in Management of Developmentfrom University Utara Malaysia, Sintok, Perlis

UUM

2004 Honorary Doctor of Philosophy in Law from University Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi, Selangor

UKM

2004 Institute of Engineers' Distinguished Honorary Fellowfrom Institute of Engineers' Malaysia

IEM

2004 Honorary Doctor of Philosophy in Government and Political Sciencefrom University Teknologi MARA (UITM), Shah Alam, Selangor

UiTM

2004 Honorary Doctor of Philosophy in Engineering and Technologyfrom University Teknologi Petronas (UTP), Tronoh, Perak

UTP

2004 Sports Personality Award 2003from National Sports Award 2003

Malaysia

2004 Doctor of Islamic Thought Honorary Degreefrom University Malaya, Kuala Lumpur

UM

2004 Honorary Degree of Doctor of Lettersfrom International Islamic University of Malaysia

IIUM

2003 Honorary Fellowfrom Acedamy of Science of Malaysia Kuala Lumpur

Kuala Lumpur

2003 "The Father of Modern Malaysia"

from Malaysian Government

Malaysia

2003 Honorary Doctorate of Management and Engineering UTM


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from University Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), Skudai, Johor

2003 S.M.NSeri Maharaja Mangku Negara

Malaysia

2003 D.KDarjah Kerabat Yang Amat Dihormati Selangor

Selangor

2003 The Father of National Unity Awardfrom Parti Bersatu Sabah

Sabah

2003D.S.B.S.Darjah Satria Bintang Sarawak

Sarawak,

Malaysia

2003D.K. The Most Honourable Order Of The Royal Family Of Kedah Kedah,

Malaysia

2002D.K. The Most Esteemed Order Of The Royal Family Of Kelantan Kelantan,

Malaysia

1997 Tuanku Syed Putra Of Perlis Royal Outstanding Award Perlis, Malaysia

1997 S.S.A.P.Knight Commander Of The Sultan Ahmad ShahPahang,

Malaysia

1996 Fellowship of The International College of Surgeons Malaysia1996 Anugerah Cemerlang Perlis, Malaysia

1995D.K.The Most Esteemed Order Of The Royal Family Of Tuanku Syed Putra

Perlis, Malaysia

1994 Wira KeadilanPasir MasFoundation

1992 Melaka Historical City's Honorary Citizen Award Melaka

1991 Wira Nusa Raya UMNO, Sabah

1989D.K.(I)The Most Esteemed Order Of The Royal Family Of Johor

Johor, Malaysia

1988D.U.K.

Kedah Order Of Merit

Kedah,

Malaysia1985 'FAR', Father of Modern Development By the Pasir Salak UMNO Division Pasir Salak

1985 P.I.SSultan Ibrahim Medal I Johor, Malaysia

1982 D.U.N.MKnight Grand Commander Of The Most Honourable Order Of Melaka Melaka,Malaysia

1982S.S.M.TSeri Setia Sultan Mahmud Terengganu

Terengganu

1982 D.K.N.SThe Most Esteemed Order Of The Royal Family Of Negeri SembilanNegeriSembilan,Malaysia

1981 D.U.P.NKnight Grand Commander Of The Most Honourable Order Of Pulau PinangPulau Pinang,

Malaysia

1981 S.P.N.SKnight Commander Of The Most Honourable Order Of Negeri Sembilan

Negeri

Sembilan,Malaysia

1981S.P.D.KSeri Panglima Darjah Kinabalu

Sabah, Malaysia

1981S.P.C.MSeri Paduka Cura Si Manja Kini

Perak, Malaysia

1980D.P.SarawakDato Patinggi Bintang Kenyalang

Sarawak,Malaysia

1979S.P.M.J.Dato' Seri Paduka Mahkota Johor

Johor, Malaysia

1978 S.P.M.S.Seri Paduka Mahkota Selangor

Selangor,Malaysia


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1977D.S.D.K.Seri Setia DiRaja Kedah, Kedah

Kedah,Malaysia

1977 SSAPPahang,Malaysia

1976 The Second Tun(Dr) Ismail Oration Academy of Medical Malaysia

1965 Pingat Perak Perak, Malaysia

INTERNATIONAL AWARDS

YEAR NAME OF AWARD COUNTRY

2007 Honorary Membership from IIUM Alumni Chapter of Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and

Herzegovina

2007 Honorary Doctorate from Universitas Syiah Kuala Darussalam, Banda Aceh Indonesia

2006 Mother Teresa Award India

2005 Gaddafi International Prize for Human Rights Libya

2005 Huesped de Honor from Alcalde de Medellin Republic of

Colombia

2005 Orden Del Congress Grado Republic ofColombia

2005 Orden De La Democracia "Simon Bolivar" - En El Grado de Gran Cruz Extraordinaria -Con Placa de Oro

Republic ofColombia

2005 Diplome-Pocasnog Clana Nastavnickog Vijeca Skole Sarajevo

2005 Honorary Citizen of the Municipality of Travnik from the Municipal Council Travnik Travnik

2005 The Linus Pauling Award from the International League of Humanists for Peace andTolerance

BosniaHerzegovina

He stepped down after 22 years in office on the 31st of October 2003.

Since stepping down Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad has been made Advisor to Petrolium

National Berhad (PERTONAS), Perusahaan Otomobil National Berhad (PROTON),

Langkawi Development Authority (LADA), Tioman Development Authority (TDA). On the

1st of April 2004, Tun was appointed Chancellor of University Technology PETRONAS.

Tun Dr. Mahathir was also the person behind the setting up of the Perdana Leadership

Foundation in 2003 whose aim is to preserve, develop and desiminate materials by and on

Malaysia's past Prime Ministers. He was also appointed Honorary President of the

Foundation.

As like the 3 Prime Ministers before him had their own era and achievements like Tunku

Abdul Rahman brought us independence, Tun Abdul Razak brought us development and Tun

Hussein Onn brought us unity Dr. Mahathir's era covered all of it. There are so many

landmarks that were his ideas in developing the country such as the Kuala Lumpur Tower,

Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), Petronas Twin Towers and the proudest of all

PUTRAJAYA, Cyberjaya and the Formula 1 circuit.

For all this it is only fitting that he is known as "Father of Modernisation".


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Retirement

In 2002 a tearful[21] Mahathir announced his resignation to a surprised UMNO General

Assembly. He was persuaded to stay on for a further eighteen months, in a carefully planned

handover that ended in October 2003. On his retirement, he was granted Malaysia's highest

honour, which entitles him to the title Tun from his original Datuk Seri. Since retirement, he

has been serving as an advisor to the Malaysian national oil company Petronas and the

Malaysian national car company Proton, an original core national project initiated by

Mahathir during his premiership. He is also the head of the Perdana Leadership Foundation, a

foundation whose aim is to preserve, develop and spread materials regarding or written by

previous Malaysian Prime Ministers. While he has retired from all political offices, he

remains very outspoken regarding national policies. Shortly before leaving office, Mahathir

sparked off a fierce controversy when at the 57-member "Organization of the Islamic

Conference" (OIC) summit, he claimed that "the Jews rule this world by proxy. They getothers to fight and die for them".[22] However, he also mentioned:" We also know that not

all non-Muslims are against us. Some are well disposed towards us. Some even see our

enemies as their enemies. Even among the Jews there are many who do not approve of what

the Israelis are doing." His comments were widely criticized in the West, but the issue was

ignored in Asia and Islamic countries, which felt that his remark had been taken out of

context. Mahathir later defended his remarks, saying: "I am not anti-Semitic ... I am against

those Jews who kill Muslims and the Jews who support the killers of Muslims." He tagged

the West as "anti-Muslim", for double standards by "protecting Jews while allowing others to

insult Islam." also mentioning But when somebody condemns the Muslims, calls my

prophet, "terrorist", did the European Union say anything?".[23] In 2004, he stated that both

Bush and Kerry avoided certain acts due to concerns that they would "annoy the Jewishgroup." However, his comments does not stop international criticism especially from United

States and Israel. In 2005 Mahathir brought up the issue of excessive awarding of Approved

Permits (APs) to import cars, stating that they were creating too much competition for Proton,

causing friction between him and Rafidah Aziz, the Minister for International Trade and

Industry, who oversaw the awarding of APs. His successor, Abdullah, then announced that a

National Automotive Policy (NAP) would be created to appropriately handle the issue. Later,

when touching on the issue, Mahathir lamented the government's majority in Parliament,

saying, "I believe that the country should have a strong government but not too strong. A

two-thirds majority like I enjoyed when I was prime minister is sufficient but a 90% majority

is too strong....We need an opposition to remind us if we are making mistakes. When you are

not opposed you think everything you do is right".[24]

Health

The former Prime Minister has a history of heart attack. He had a coronary artery bypass in

1989. On November 9 2006, he was admitted into Institut Jantung Negara (National Heart

Institute) in Kuala Lumpur after suffering a mild heart attack that was caused by a clot in his

arteries and has since recovered.[25] On 14 May 2007, Mahathir was admitted to the

intensive care unit of a hospital in Langkawi after suffering from breathing difficulties at

1600 (MST). The former premier's condition was reported to be stable.[26] Mohamad, 82,

underwent a second heart bypass on September 4, 2007 in a specialist cardiac hospital in


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Kuala Lumpur Sunday. [27] He is recovering in the intensive care unit and was already

conscious (in the Kuala Lumpur Institut Jantung Negara where he was operated by a team of

surgeons, including a U.S. specialist).[28] On September 23, 2007, Mahathir Mohamad,

underwent further surgery (Kuala Lumpur's National Heart Institute) due to an infection of

the surgical wound in his chest. He is currently on a respirator in the ICU.[29]

Criticism of his successor

Mahathir at the 50th Mederka National Day celebrations.In 2006 Mahathir's relationship with

his successor started to get strained. In a press conference on 7 June 2006 at the Perdana

Leadership Foundation, which he heads, Mahathir said that Abdullah Ahmad Badawi was not

his first choice as successor but it was the current Deputy Prime Minister, Najib Tun Razak,

instead. He said that he felt hurt by allegations that he "finished all the government's money,

and that the government was bankrupt" because of the mega-projects initiated by him during

his tenure as prime minister.[30] Mahathir added that he has "...a habit of choosing the wrong

people" when he was answering the question whether Abdullah had stabbed him in the

back.[30] He has also criticised the present government's decision to scrap the plan to replace

Malaysia's side of the Johor-Singapore Causeway. In his opinion, Malaysia does not need to

seek the approval to build a bridge on its own soil. This and other such issues have led many

to believe that UMNO is under the threat of splitting into Mahathir and Badawi factions. A

statement was issued by UMNO to reassure the public that they wholeheartedly supported

Badawi, although as of yet, no stand has been taken over the issue of Mahathir's membership

in the party. Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, Nazri Aziz, suggested that

Mahathir "wants to force him (Abdullah) to quit. He needs to be told he is no longer Prime

Minister. His campaign is not for the sake of the country but for himself."[31] To make his

voice heard, Mahathir decided to bid to become a delegate from Kubang Pasu for the 2006UMNO general assembly. This move, if successful, would bring great chagrin to Abdullah

who seemed to use every form of censorship available to shut Mahathir up. He failed in his

bid to be elected as a representative which is surprising given the fact that Kubang Pasu is his

stronghold for over three decades. Later, an angry Mahathir claimed that the "establishment"

(in reference to the present government) were doing everything in their power including, but

not limited to using government machine that is normally reserved for general elections, to

ensure that he didn't get elected. Mahathir even went as far as to allegealbeit, without

proofthat the interested party paid RM200 for every vote casted against him. Mahathir

also challenged the government to throw him in jail if the government wanted him to shut his

mouth. On, 22 October 2006, Mahathir had a private meeting with Abdullah, in which he

voiced his dissatisfactions face-to-face for the first time with Abdullah. This meeting washighly anticipated by members of UMNO and other Malaysians to be an opportunity to

narrow the differences between both of them. However, Mahathir continued his criticisms of

Abdullah after the meeting, saying that he was not satisfied with Abdullah's answers to his

views.[32] In a press conference after the meeting, Mahathir revealed one of his

dissatisfactions; he felt that his civil liberties to voice his opinions and meeting with people

were curtailed by the government. This is a quote from the press conference on this topic.

And I pointed out to him that firstly, this has become a police state. Because every time

anybody invites me to give a talk, they would be called up by the police and warned, called

up by the police and told to withdraw the invitation. Someone was not allowed to hold any

meeting at all which involves me. This happened to many people. They were very shy to tellme about it but they were called up by the police and of course they were also called up by


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the mentri besar as well... But I consider this a police state. And I consider also that my civic

right has been taken away from me because I have every right to talk to Umno people,

university people, civil servants and thats my right.[32]

Mahathir also voiced certain conducts of Abdullah and his relatives (before and after

Abdullah became Prime Minister) that would amount to corruption although Mahathir did not

explicitly accuse Abdullah of that. Mahathir expressed his disappointment regardingAbdullah's role in the oil-for-food programme with Iraq; Abdullah's name was listed as a

beneficiary in a report published by the US government regarding the programme. Abdullah's

son-in-law, Khairy Jamaluddin, and his son had also been accused by Mahathir of offering

contracts to their connections, which amounts to corruption.

Mahathir had also criticised Abdullah's handling of the Approved Permits (AP) issue,

expressing his surprise that Rafidah Aziz was still retained as a Cabinet member although two

people on the list of persons issued with highest number of APs were linked to Rafidah.[32]

Other controversies

Former Malaysia Airlines chief executive officer, Tajudin Ramli claimed that he (Tajudin)

was "forced" to buy out the shares of Malaysia Airlines by Mahathir during a period when the

national carrier suffered financial difficulties. However, Mahathir denied this claim and said

that he only asked if Tajudin was interested in the shares.[33] In 2006 he had a 2-hour talk

with James W. Walter and William Rodriguez with regards to the US Government

involvement in the 9/11 attacks.[34]

Legacy

Mahathir was featured on the facade of Telekom Tower in Kuala Lumpur during the national

day celebrations in 2004.For his efforts to promote the economic development of the country,

Mahathir has been granted the soubriquet of Bapa Pemodenan (Father of Modernisation).

Since his resignation, there are signs that his influence is on the wane, notably the

cancellation of a Mahathir-approved double tracking rail project on grounds of cost.

Mahathir's official residence, Sri Perdana, where he resided from 23 August 1983 to 18

October 1999, was turned into a museum (Galeria Sri Perdana). In keeping with the principle

of heritage conservation, the original design and layout of the Sri Perdana has been preserved.

Profile of Tun Dr

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