KUALA LUMPUR – In a deeply personal message following the passing of her father, Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, his daughter Nori Abdullah expressed both sorrow and gratitude as she reflected on his long struggle with dementia and the public’s overwhelming show of love and respect.
In the message shared via the Instagram page of the Kita Family Podcast, which she hosts, Nori reflected on the late leader’s long struggle with the condition, describing it as “a long goodbye in many ways”.
“That is what dementia puts us through,” she said. “To some degree, I am grateful that because of it he was spared so much pain and worry, grief and anger at much that has transpired over the last decade – even though it was heartbreaking.”
“Even though I felt at times that I was robbed of his counsel and comfort, there is wisdom there somehow. May God allow us to see it.”
Abdullah, fondly known as Pak Lah, died on April 14 at the age of 85 due to respiratory complications at the National Heart Institute (IJN).
On April 15, he was laid to rest with full state honours at Makam Pahlawan beside Masjid Negara, near the grave of Malaysia’s third prime minister, Tun Hussein Onn. The burial took place at 2.30pm beneath the iconic dome of the national mausoleum.
His body was placed at the main prayer hall of Masjid Negara earlier in the day from 10am to 1pm, where thousands gathered to pay their respects. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim led a long list of dignitaries, including both deputy prime ministers Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof.
Also present were four former prime ministers – Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, who was granted temporary leave from his 1MDB trial, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob – along with ministers, political leaders, and foreign dignitaries.
Terengganu Ruler Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin, Singapore’s Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Tan Sri Michelle Yeoh, Datuk Ramli Sarip, and comedian Harith Iskander were also among those who came to honour the late leader.
Nori, in her post, said she believed the difficulty of Abdullah’s illness could have served as a source of purification in faith.
“The situation was such, that he was prevented from even being tempted to do anything that could have been wrong,” she said.
“I hope that his strong faith allowed Baba these thoughts for himself as a means of some solace, in what I can only imagine to have gone through his altered consciousness.”
She acknowledged the sorrow of the final farewell but found comfort in the tributes that have poured in.
“There is love and appreciation,” she said. “It was a state funeral and a burial money cannot buy. God is so generous.”
Nori also shared her hope that history would offer a clearer and kinder reflection of her father’s time as prime minister.
“I am so happy for new opportunities for people to know him. There are writings, videos and so many things thanks to technology. InsyaAllah, history will be kind and fairer to him, although he was also human and had flaws.”
“As was said to me, how someone makes you feel really does make a difference at the end of the day. Pak Lah was pretty good at making people feel good, in the sense that they mattered.”
Addressing her late father directly, she ended her post with a final prayer.
“As your Siti Baba, I hope and pray that in the end, you did enough to be pleasing to your Lord, as a man not just named ‘servant of Allah’ but who very much wanted to be a good khalifah on earth,” she wrote.
Abdullah is the fifth national leader to be buried under Makam Pahlawan’s dome. The site, a national landmark designed in the shape of a concrete umbrella, is reserved for Malaysia’s most revered statesmen.
He now rests alongside Tun Dr Ismail Abdul Rahman, Tun Abdul Razak Hussein, Tun Hussein Onn and Tun Ghafar Baba – all remembered for their contributions to Malaysia’s early development and unity. – April 17, 2025.