Abdul Ghafar Baba

Allahyarham Tun Datuk Seri Utama 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.

In this Malay name, there is no surname or family name. The name Baba is a patronymic, and the person should be referred to by their given name, Abdul Ghafar. The word "bin" or "binti"/"binte" means 'son of' or 'daughter of', respectively.

Yang Amat Berbahagia Tun Abdul Ghafar Baba SSM SUMW PPM
عبدالغفار باب‎
6th Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia
In office 10 May 1986 – 15 October 1993
Monarchs	Iskandar Azlan Shah
Prime Minister	Mahathir Mohamad
Preceded by	Musa Hitam
Succeeded by	Anwar Ibrahim
Constituency	Jasin
Minister of Rural Development (Minister of National and Rural Development: 23 September 1970 – 11 May 1972, 11 August 1986 – 20 May 1987) (Minister of Rural Economy Development: 11 May 1972 – 25 August 1974)
In office 11 August 1986 – 1 December 1993
Monarchs	Iskandar Azlan Shah
Prime Minister	Mahathir Mohamad
Deputy	Tajol Rosli Mohd Ghazali (1986–1990) Ng Cheng Kuai (1986–1987) Mohd. Yasin Kamari (1990–1993)
Preceded by	Sanusi Junid
Succeeded by	Annuar Musa
Constituency	Jasin
In office 22 December 1970 – 4 September 1974
Monarch	Abdul Halim
Prime Minister	Abdul Razak Hussein
Assistant Minister	Abdul Samad Idris (1970–1973)
Preceded by	Abdul Razak Hussein
Succeeded by	Himself as Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development
Constituency	Malacca Utara
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development
In office 5 September 1974 – 14 January 1976
Monarchs	Abdul Halim Yahya Petra
Prime Minister	Abdul Razak Hussein
Deputy	Mokhtar Hashim (1974–1975) Mustapha Abdul Jabar (1975–1976)
Preceded by	Himself (Rural Development) Mohamed Ghazali Jawi (Agriculture)
Succeeded by	Ali Ahmad
Constituency	Alor Gajah
2nd Chief Minister of Malacca
In office 1 June 1959 – 5 October 1967
Governor	Leong Yew Koh Abdul Malek Yusuf
Preceded by	Osman Talib
Succeeded by	Talib Karim
Constituency	Tanjong Kling
Personal details
Born	(1925-02-18)18 February 1925 Kuala Pilah, Negeri Sembilan, Federated Malay States, British Malaya (now Malaysia)
Died	23 April 2006(2006-04-23) (aged 81) Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Resting place	Makam Pahlawan, Masjid Negara, Kuala Lumpur
Political party	United Malays National Organisation
Other political affiliations	Alliance Party Barisan Nasional (BN)
Spouse(s)	Asmah Alang Dayang Heryati Abdul Rahim
Relations	Abdul Aziz Jaafar (son-in-law) Ahmad Hamzah (son-in-law) Zahid Arip (grandson)
Children	Tamrin
Occupation	Teacher

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 divorced in 2003.

In 1986, he was appointed 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

Parliament of Malaysia

Year	Constituency	Candidate		Votes	Pct	Opponent(s)		Votes	Pct	Ballots cast	Majority	Turnout
1969	P087 Malacca Utara, Malacca		Abdul Ghafar Baba (UMNO)	15,692	63.86%		Ali Md. Salleh (PAS)	8,881	36.14%	26,088	6,811	78.49%
1974	P095 Alor Gajah, Malacca		Abdul Ghafar Baba (UMNO)	20,890	78.89%		Abdul Ghani Long (PEKEMAS)	5,591	21.11%	N/A	15,299	N/A
1978	P096 Jasin, Malacca		Abdul Ghafar Baba (UMNO)	N/A	N/A		Abdul Karim Abu (DAP)	N/A	N/A	N/A	12,067	N/A
1982			Abdul Ghafar Baba (UMNO)	27,542	81.07%		Salleh Ayob (PAS)	6,432	18.93%	35,657	21,110	76.54%
1986	P114 Jasin, Malacca		Abdul Ghafar Baba (UMNO)	20,772	76.35%		Rahimin Bani (PAS)	6,436	23.65%	28,200	14,336	71.21%
1990			Abdul Ghafar Baba (UMNO)	22,826	72.46%		Aris Konil (S46)	8,674	27.54%	32,519	14,152	77.93%
1995	P124 Jasin, Malacca		Abdul Ghafar Baba (UMNO)	25,693	78.19%		Ahmad Mohd Alim (PAS)	4,856	14.78%	34,181	20,837	75.80%
							Aris Konil (S46)	2,310	7.03%
1999	P122 Batu Berendam, Malacca		Abdul Ghafar Baba (UMNO)	37,656	55.36%		Khalid Jaafar (KeADILan)	30,368	44.64%	69,592	7,288	78.82%

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

• 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.

Preceded by Musa Hitam	Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia 1986 – 1 December 1993	Succeeded by Anwar Ibrahim