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Abdullah Ahmad

This article is about the Malaysian journalist. For the Malaysian Prime Minister, see Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. For the Islamic cleric, see Abdullah Ahmad (cleric). For the Morocco citizen held in the Guantanamo Bay detainment camps, see Abdullah Tabarak Ahmad.

Yang Berbahagia Tan Sri
Abdullah Ahmad
PSM SSAP SJMK DGPN PNBS DSAP DPMK ADK
Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department
In office
1974–1976
Member of the Malaysian Parliament
for Machang
In office
1974–1978
Preceded byconstituency created
Succeeded byMohd Kassim @ Yahya Ahmad
Personal details
Born(1933-07-04)4 July 1933
Machang, Kelantan, Unfederated Malay States, British Malaya (now Malaysia)
Died12 June 2016(2016-06-12) (aged 82)
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Political partyUnited Malays National Organisation (UMNO) (–2016)
SpouseFauzah Mohamad Darus
OccupationAcademic, politician, writer

Abdullah bin Ahmad (4 July 1933 – 12 June 2016) more widely known as Dollah Kok Lanas, was a Malaysian journalist and politician from the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO).

Biography

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Abdullah bin Ahmad was born on 4 July 1937 at Kampung Bandar, Machang, Kelantan. He received his early education at Sekolah Melayu Padang Garong in Kota Bharu before attending Malay College Kuala Kangsar. In 1960, he joined the Congressional Fellowship programme by operated by the American Political Science Association. He later attended Cambridge University, where he received a Master of Letters.[1]

Initially a special officer and later political secretary to Abdul Razak Hussein, Abdullah reportedly held significant influence during the former's time as prime minister.[1]

He became the head of UMNO's Machang division and its member of parliament in 1974, following which he was appointed deputy minister in the prime minister's department.[1]

However, he was expelled from the party and arrested under the Internal Security Act (ISA) in 1976 under Razak's successor, Hussein Onn.[1]

According to Abdullah, Hussein had warned him beforehand that he would be arrested as a balancing act for the latter's plans to prosecute Harun Idris. Believing that he would be placed under house arrest for only six-months, Abdullah agreed.[2]

Abdullah was not the only individual arrested. Razak's former press secretary and deputy minister Abdullah Majid and New Straits Times Press group deputy-editor Abdul Samad Ismail also fell victim to the ISA and they were collectively dubbed "The Three Abduls". Under pressure from the government, Abdul Samad publicly confessed to being a communist, and implicated both Abdullah and Majid.[2][3]

Abdullah was ultimately imprisoned at the Kamunting Detention Centre for five years, spending two them in solitary confinement, over alleged communist ties. A close ally of Mahathir Mohamad, Abdullah was released along with 17 other ISA detainees when Mahathir became prime minister in 1981.[2]

Following his release, he re-joined UMNO and became the head of the party's Kok Lanas division, which was previously known as Machang. He became its member of parliament in 1986 until his defeat in 1990.

In 1995, he was made a member of Utusan Malaysia's board of directors and in 2000 he was made the New Straits Times Press group executive director, later becoming the group editor-in-chief.[1]

He also served as the Malaysian special envoy to the United Nations from 1995 to 2000.[1]

In 2003, he wrote an article criticising Saudi Arabian policies that aided the United States invasion of Iraq, among other things. As a result, the Saudi government reduced Malaysian quota for haj,[4] and Abdullah was fired from the New Straits Times Press group at the request of UMNO, then leading the government and the group's largest shareholder. His contract was initially set to expire on October 2004.[5]

Ahmad died on 12 June 2016, after battling cancer. He was 82.[6] His body was brought back to his hometown in Kok Lanas [ms], Kelantan.[7]

Election results

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Parliament of Malaysia[8]
Year Constituency Candidate Votes Pct Opponent(s) Votes Pct Ballots cast Majority Turnout
1974 P024 Machang, Kelantan Abdullah Ahmad (UMNO) 13,183 71.80% Mohamed Yusoff Mohamed Nor (IND) 5,177 28.20% 19,156 8,006 75.46%

Honours

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f "Abdullah: Man of many roles". New Straits Times. 12 June 2015. Retrieved 20 August 2025.
  2. ^ a b c Razak, Aidila; Ahmad, Salhan K. (5 April 2012). "Political conspiracy put me under ISA". Malaysiakini. Retrieved 20 August 2025.
  3. ^ "Ups and downs of speaking out involved two jail terms". The Sydney Morning Herald. 23 September 2003. Retrieved 20 August 2025.
  4. ^ The Straits Times. New Straits Times chief editor sacked Archived 6 November 2010 at the Wayback Machine. Extracted 26 March 2006.
  5. ^ Reporters without borders. New Straits Times editor in chief fired as a result of Saudi pressure Archived 21 November 2008 at the Wayback Machine. Extracted 26 March 2006.
  6. ^ "Dollah Kok Lanas dies of cancer". Malaysiakini. 12 June 2016.
  7. ^ "Abdullah Ahmad laid to rest in Kok Lanas". The Star. 13 June 2016.
  8. ^ "Keputusan Pilihan Raya Umum Parlimen/Dewan Undangan Negeri" (in Malay). Election Commission of Malaysia. Retrieved 4 February 2017. Percentage figures based on total turnout.
  9. ^ "Semakan Penerima Darjah Kebesaran, Bintang dan Pingat".
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