TUN Hanif Omar had an illustrious career as Malaysia’s top cop, one that began with the assassination of his predecessor Tan Sri Abdul Rahman Hashim.
Catapulted to the position of inspector-general police at the young age of 35 by such violent circumstances, Hanif was to lead the force through some of the country’s most trying times.
Among his career highs were the 1975 rescue operation of the AIA hostages and and the 1989 mission to oversee the peace agreement signed between the Communist Party of Malaya, Malaysia, and Thailand in Haadyai.
The deal marked the end of the communist insurgency and the Emergency, which began in 1948.
Hanif was the IGP during the 1987 Ops Lalang, a major crackdown on activists, opposition politicians and intellectuals who were subsequently detained without trial under the now-defunct Internal Security Act.
He was as the fourth IGP who began his career in the force as the Malacca police chief in September 1970.
Hanif went on to become the Selangor police chief on December 6, 1971. Two years later, in 1973, he was named deputy IGP.
Hanif founded the elite Special Action Unit, an anti-terrorist task force, on January 1, 1975.
He was born in Teluk Intan, Perak on January 16, 1939.
Hanif received his early education at the Anglo-Chinese School and continued his studies at the prestigious Kuala Kangsar Malay College.
In addition to excelling in extracurricular activities, he was also the college chief supervisor for three years.
Hanif continued his studies at the Universiti Malaya and obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Singapore in 1959. He later received a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in Law from the University of Buckingham in London.
He was married to Hamidah Abdul Hamid and had five children.
Funeral prayers will be performed for him at the National Mosque before he is buried at the Makam Pahlawan later today. – April 20, 2024.
