ABDUL HADI AWANG
Current president of Pan Malaysia
Islamic Party (PAS) Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang was Menteri Besar of
Terengganu from 1999 to 2004. He is also presently the state assemblyman
for Rhu Rendang and MP for Marang, both in Terengganu.
Abdul
Hadi has two wives, Zainab Awang and Dr Norzita Taat, as well as 13
children. His eldest child is 22-years-old and is currently studying at
Iman University in Yemen.
Born on October 20, 1947 in the
village of Rusila in Marang, Abdul Hadi is the fifth child out of nine
siblings. In his early childhood, he was taught by his own father, who
was the village’s tok guru and the imam of the local mosque.
He then received his education in the neighborhood schools before
continuing his studies at the Islamic University of Madinah between 1969
and 1973 under the sponsorship of the Saudi government. There, he
earned his first degree in Syariah law. While studying in Madinah, he
became the president of the Malaysian Muslim Students Association and
secretary-general of the Association of the Southeast Asian Students
there.
In 1974, he left for further studies abroad again at
Al-Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt. Studying Siasah Syariyyah, he
managed to complete his course under two years.
When he returned
to Malaysia in 1977, he joined the Malaysian Islamic Youth Movement
(ABIM) and quickly became its Selangor state chief. When then-ABIM
president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim joined Umno in 1982, Abdul Hadi
joined PAS together with Fadzil Noor.
His foray into politics
actually started while he was still studying in 1964, when he was
appointed secretary of the PAS branch in Rusila. Upon his return to
Malaysia from Egypt, he was elected as Terengganu PAS Youth chief.
The next year, Abdul Hadi joined PAS and contested a parliamentary seat
in the general elections, signaling his rise through the ranks. He
became PAS deputy president in 1989 before succeeding his predecessor
Fadzil, who died of a heart attack, as president in 2002.
As
PAS’ right-hand man, he was actively involved in Islamic and social
movements on a global scale. During the 1990s, his international profile
rose considerably when he was asked to represent the party on a number
of occasions.
In 1990, he joined the delegation led by the
Turkish leader of the Refah party, Dr Nermettin Erbakan, sent to resolve
the Gulf conflict that began with Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait.
In the same year, he was also appointed to the Majmak Takrik Mazhab
Islam, based in Tehran, Iran.
He was appointed to the executive
committee of the International Islamic Movement, based in Istanbul,
Turkey in 1994. He has also been involved in the International Islamic
Secretariat for the Defence of Bait’ul Maqdis and was a member of the
international Muslim delegation, led by German Muslim leaders, to settle
the disputes between Mujahideen factions in Afghanistan.
Abdul
Hadi, however, is no stranger to controversy, and his Amanat Haji Hadi
(Haji Hadi’s Message), issued in a speech given in Kampong Banggol,
Peradong in Kuala Terengganu in 1981, has put him under fire and intense
scrutiny.
In it, Abdul Hadi stated that Umno members are
infidels because the party perpetuates the constitution of the
colonialist, perpetuates the rules and regulations of the infidels, and
perpetuates the rules of the pre-Islamic Arabs, the Jahiliah. Because of
these, he said that the struggles of PAS constitute a jihad against
Umno. His message was printed in the form of a poster, and was
distributed and put up around PAS headquarters throughout that year.
After being hospitalized following a mild stroke in April 2008, Abdul
Hadi came under the spotlight again last year when he welcomed
suggestions for him to become prime minister at the PAS muktamar in
Kelantan. This statement came about after strong calls were made for him
to take up the post by delegates from the party’s Dewan Muslimat and
Dewan Ulamak.
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