MAHATHIR MOHAMAD
Mahathir bin Mohamad born 10 July 1925, is a retired Malaysian politician who was the fourth Prime Minister of Malaysia. He held the post for 22 years from 1981 to 2003, making him Malaysia's longest-serving prime minister. His political career spanned almost 40 years.
Born and raised in Alor Setar, Kedah, Mahathir excelled at school and became a medical doctor. He became active in the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), Malaysia's largest political party, before entering parliament in 1964. He served one term before losing his seat, subsequently falling out with the then prime minister Tunku Abdul Rahman and being expelled from UMNO. When Abdul Rahman resigned, Mahathir re-entered UMNO and parliament, and was promoted to the Cabinet. By 1976, he had risen to deputy prime minister, and in 1981 was sworn in as prime minister after the resignation of his predecessor, Hussein Onn.
During Mahathir's tenure as prime minister, Malaysia experienced a period of rapid modernisation and economic growth, and his government initiated a series of bold infrastructure projects. He was a dominant political figure, winning five consecutive general elections and holding off all of his rivals for the leadership of UMNO. However, his accumulation of power came at the expense of the independence of the judiciary and the traditional powers and privileges of Malaysia's royalty. He also deployed the controversial Internal Security Act to detain activists, non-mainstream religious figures, and political opponents including his fired deputy, Anwar Ibrahim. Mahathir's record of curbing civil liberties and his antagonism to western interests and economic policy made his relationships with the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia, among others, difficult. As prime minister, he was an advocate of third-world development and a prominent international activist for causes, such as the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa and the interests of Bosnians in the Balkans conflict of the 1990s.
He remains an active political figure after his retirement, having become a strident critic of his handpicked successor, Abdullah Badawi, and actively supporting Abdullah's replacement by Najib Razak.
AIDAH BINTI JAAMAT (stand in line two from left)
My mother actually is an ordinary woman but in her tiny appearance lies an extraordinary fortitude, perseverance, a altruistic soul and a very kindly heart. The kind of mother who brought me up with her whole kindly heart, the kind of persistent woman with strong willpower who had to face the toughest challenges in life, and the kind of person who always demonstrated great zeal for every unlucky lives without requiring anything in return and great willingness to help everyone's misery though she did not have much, my mother taught me more than any one else, not only inspired me the strength to overcome hardships in my life, but also left me with invaluable life lessons.
My mother is a diligent and determined woman who has left me with the right direction of my road, more importantly, she has helped me appreciate this life as precious gifts of ordinary life and true happiness by her kindly heart. The accident of my aunt gave me another lesson from my mother. My aunt Dung was unfortunately hurt mentally after this accident, and the reserved women became demented, which made anyone scared of her. Unlike other relatives, my mother was the only person who did not ignore her; in contrast, she looked after her very wholeheartedly. Thank to my mother, I was no longer scared of demented people as I used to, but instead, I understood from their eyes the hope to live stable lives.