Malaysia bids farewell to Pak Lah

Hundreds gathered at Malaysia's National Mosque to pay their final respects to former Prime Minister Ahmad Abdullah Badawi during a state funeral in Kuala Lumpur. The solemn ceremony saw senior Malaysian officials in attendance, including Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and Deputy Prime Minister Zahid Hamidi.

Abdullah's flag-draped coffin was carried in procession to the Heroes' Mausoleum where he was laid to rest among Malaysia's most distinguished leaders. He passed away at the National Heart Institute in Kuala Lumpur at the age of 85, reportedly from complications related to multi-organ failure.

Affectionately known as "Pak Lah," Abdullah served as Malaysia's fifth prime minister from 2003 to 2009, taking office after the resignation of Mahathir Mohamad who had led the country for 22 years. Abdullah stepped down a year after the 2008 election when the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition lost its parliamentary supermajority for the first time in Malaysian history.

The funeral proceedings began with his remains arriving at the National Mosque around 8:15 AM. The Malaysian flag flew at half-mast as the nation mourned. The ceremony was attended by numerous dignitaries, including all four living former prime ministers—Mahathir Mohamad, Najib Razak, Muhyiddin Yassin, and Ismail Sabri Yaakob—as well as Singapore's Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

During his tenure, Abdullah was recognized for introducing various institutional and human rights reforms and was regarded as the country's father of human capital development. In 2022, his family had publicly disclosed that he was battling dementia, which had kept him away from public appearances in his later years.

His burial at the Heroes' Mausoleum places him alongside other esteemed Malaysian leaders, including former prime ministers Abdul Razak Hussein and Hussein Onn, cementing his legacy as a compassionate leader committed to national development.