Rahah Noah
Rahah Noah | |
---|---|
Spouse of the Prime Minister of Malaysia | |
In role 22 September 1970 – 14 January 1976 | |
Monarchs | Abdul Halim Yahya Petra |
Prime Minister | Abdul Razak Hussein |
Preceded by | Tun Sharifah Rodziah Syed Alwi Barakbah |
Succeeded by | Tun Suhailah Mohamed Noah |
Spouse of the Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia | |
In role 31 August 1957 – 22 September 1970 | |
Monarchs | Abdul Rahman Hishamuddin Syed Putra Ismail Nasiruddin Abdul Halim |
Prime Minister | Tunku Abdul Rahman |
Deputy | Tun Abdul Razak |
Personal details | |
Born | Muar, Johor, British Malaya (now Malaysia) | 11 June 1933
Spouse | |
Children | Najib Razak (more) |
Parent |
|
Rahah binti Mohamed Noah (born 11 June 1933)[1] is the widow of former Malaysian Prime Minister Tun Abdul Razak and the mother of former Prime Minister Najib Razak. She is the daughter of Mohamad Noah Omar, former Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat.
Biography
Rahah was born on 11 June 1933 in Muar, Johor. She is the youngest of Mohamad Noah Omar's ten children. While attending secondary school in Johor Bahru, Rahah was introduced to Abdul Razak Hussein, by then already an active member of the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), by Taib Andak, a friend of Abdul Razak while studying in London. They married on 4 September 1952.[2]
Abdul Razak became the second Prime Minister of Malaysia in 1970. As the prime minister's spouse, she served as President of the Girl Guides Association of Malaysia and patron of the Muslim Women's Action Organisation (Pertiwi).[2] In 1976, Razak died in office, leaving Rahah widowed at the relatively young age of 43.
She is the chancellor of Universiti Tun Abdul Razak, the university founded in honour of her husband.[2] Since Abdul Razak was the prime minister who established diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China, all Chinese ambassadors make a courtesy call on Rahah upon arriving in Malaysia.[3]
In an interview conducted in 2011, Rahah said she spends most of her time attending religious classes with friends.[4]
Family
Abdul Razak and Rahah have five children:[2]
- Mohd Najib (born 1953), the sixth and former Prime Minister of Malaysia.
- Ahmad Johari (born 1954)
- Mohd Nizam (born 1958)
- Mohd Nazim (born 1962) businessman, husband to former tv presenter and AIDIJUMA entrepreneur Norjuma Habib Mohammed[5]
- Mohd Nazir (born 1966), the current chief executive of CIMB, one of the largest financial services companies in Malaysia
Rahah's sister, Suhaila, was married to Abdul Razak's successor as prime minister, Tun Hussein Onn.[6]
Honours
Honours of Malaysia
Malaysia :
Grand Commander of the Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia (SSM) – Tun (1976)[7]
Sarawak :
Knight Commander of the Order of the Star of Sarawak (PNBS) – Dato' Sri (2002)
Pahang :
Grand Knight of the Order of the Crown of Pahang (SIMP) – Dato' Indera
Sabah :
Grand Commander of the Order of Kinabalu (SPDK) – Datuk Seri Panglima (1977)
See also
References
- ^ http://www.perdana.org.my/pms-of-malaysia/tun-abdul-razak/tun-hajah-rahah-binti-tan-sri-haji-mohd-noah-omar
- ^ a b c d "Tun Rahah Noah". Ensiklopedia Bahasa Malaysia. JBDirectory. Retrieved 6 June 2011.
- ^ "Malaysian PM's visit seeks more "vertical development" in ties with China". BBC Monitoring Asia Pacific - Political. 1 June 2009.
- ^ "Najib's an obedient child, always listen to advice – Tun Rahah". Bernama. 10 May 2011. Retrieved 6 June 2011.
- ^ https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2005/04/23/nazim-to-wed-former-nona-host-norjuma/
- ^ "Najib's three beloved 'swans'". The Malaysian Insider. 31 May 2010. Archived from the original on 9 August 2010.
- ^ "Senarai Penuh Penerima Darjah Kebesaran, Bintang dan Pingat Persekutuan Tahun 1976" (PDF).