Kuala Lumpur: Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama) chairman Datuk Seri Wong Chun Wai described the late Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi as a great, kind, patient, and decent statesman. “He had no malice and always had kind words. He always had time for the accompanying reporters, no matter how tiring the day had been for him, by inviting [them] to his room to listen to [them] on the events that had taken place,” said Wong, who followed the former Prime Minister and Foreign Minister on many overseas trips.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Wong, who has covered four Malaysian Prime Ministers in his career as a journalist, said Abdullah was an exceptional man. Fondly known as Pak Lah, Abdullah, 85, passed away at IJN at 7.10 pm. The news was confirmed by his son-in-law, Khairy Jamaluddin, in an Instagram post.

Born on November 26, 1939, in Bayan Lepas, Penang, Abdullah served as Malaysia’s Prime Minister from October 31, 2003, to April 3, 2009, following the resignation of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.