Abdul Ghafar Baba

Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia (1986–1993)

Tun Abdul Ghafar bin Baba (Jawi: عبدالغفار بن باب; 18 February 1925 – 23 April 2006) was a Malaysian politician who served as 6th Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia from 1986 to 1993.

Life and career

He was born on 18 February 1925 in Kuala Pilah, Negeri Sembilan, the son of impoverished villagers from Malacca state who emigrated as pastoral nomads, namely Baba Abdullah from Sungai Udang and his wife, Saodah Salleh from Bemban. Ghafar Baba became a teacher and later became a member of the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) political party, which is part of the Barisan Nasional coalition.

In 1943, he married Toh Puan Asmah Binti Alang (1927–2004) and they had twelve children, three of whom he outlived. In the early 1990s, he polygamously married his second wife, Toh Puan Heryati Abdul Rahim, with whom he had one child, and got a divorce with in 2003.

In 1986, he was appointed as Deputy Prime Minister by Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad. Previously, Musa Hitam held the deputy premiership but resigned, citing irreconcilable differences with Mahathir.^[1] On 15 October 1993, during a UMNO election, he was challenged by Anwar Ibrahim. Ghafar Baba was defeated by Anwar and subsequently lost the deputy premiership.

He died on 23 April 2006, at Gleneagles Intan Medical Centre in Kuala Lumpur due to cardiopulmonary complications. He had been in critical condition for several months prior to his death. He was buried the same day in an official state funeral at Makam Pahlawan near Masjid Negara, Kuala Lumpur.^[2][3]

Posts

• Teachers' Union secretary (1946–1948)
• Melaka UMNO Secretary (1951)
• Melaka UMNO Chairman (1957)
• Chief Minister of Malacca (1959–1967)
• UMNO Supreme Working Council member (1957)
• UMNO Information chief (1959)
• UMNO Vice President (1962–1987)
• Barisan Nasional Secretary-General^[1]
• Federal Territories Barisan Nasional liaison chief^[1]
• Deputy Prime Minister and UMNO Deputy President (1986–1993)

Election results

Honours

Honours of Malaysia

•  Malaysia:
  • Recipient of the Malaysian Commemorative Medal (Gold) (PPM) (1965)
  • Grand Commander of the Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia (SSM) – Tun (1995)^[4][5]
•  Federal Territory (Malaysia):
  • Grand Knight of the Order of the Territorial Crown (SUMW) – Datuk Seri Utama (2017–posthumously)^[6]

Foreign honours

•  Soviet Union:
  • Jubilee Medal of Moscow (1966)^[7]

Places named after him

Tun Abdul Ghafar Baba Memorial

Several places were named after him, including:

• Persiaran Tun Abdul Ghafar Baba, a major road at Peringgit, Malacca.
• Persimpangan Tun Abdul Ghafar, an intersections between Jalan Batu Berendam, Persiaran Tun Abdul Ghafar Baba and Lebuh Ayer Keroh at Peringgit, Malacca.
• The Tun Abdul Ghafar Baba Memorial, a memorial and museum in honour of his achievements located at Persiaran Tun Abdul Ghafar Baba in Peringgit, Malacca.
• MRSM Tun Ghafar Baba a MARA institution boarding school at Jasin, Malacca.
• SMK Ghafar Baba (formerly SMK Masjid Tanah), a secondary school at Masjid Tanah, Malacca.
• Tun Abdul Ghafar Baba Mosque, Sungai Udang, Malacca.
• Six FELDA settlements were renamed after him, they are FELDA Tun Ghafar Machap, FELDA Tun Ghafar Hutan Percha, FELDA Tun Ghafar Menggong, FELDA Tun Ghafar Kemendor, FELDA Tun Ghafar Air Kangkong and FELDA Tun Ghafar Bukit Senggeh.
• Kolej Tun Ghafar Baba, a residential college at Universiti Malaysia Perlis, Kuala Perlis, Perlis
• Kolej Tun Ghafar Baba, a residential college at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Skudai, Johor

Notes and references

1. Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra (1986). Political Awakening, p. 86. Pelanduk Publications. ISBN 967-978-136-4.
2. "PM hails a humble leader". www.thestar.com.my. Archived from the original on 15 May 2006. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
3. "Funeral with full honours". thestar.com.my. Archived from the original on 13 May 2006. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
4. "Senarai Penuh Penerima Darjah Kebesaran, Bintang dan Pingat Persekutuan Tahun 1995" (PDF).
5. "Ghafar made Tun in King's honours list". New Straits Times. 3 June 1995. p. 1.
6. "Late Tun Ghafar bestowed 'Datuk Seri Utama' title in conjunction with FT Day". New Straits Times. 1 February 2017. Archived from the original on 8 February 2021. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
7. "Moscow Medal award". The Straits Times. 23 December 1966. p. 7.