KUALA LUMPUR – Despite being hailed as an exceptional political and corporate figure, the late Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim saw his career in governance and commerce coloured by both controversy and intrigue.
Khalid, a maverick of sorts, died late yesterday evening at the Cardiac Vascular Central Hospital in Kuala Lumpur. The 75-year-old passed away in the company of his family and loved ones, and is survived by his widow, four children, and two grandchildren.
His body was finally laid to rest at the Shah Alam Royal Mausoleum at about 2.40pm this afternoon, with his final rites and prayers recited by the Selangor mosque’s grand imam Muhammad Farhan Wijaya, The Vibes' Bahasa Malaysia sister publication Getaran reported.
Among notable individuals present at the burial were Sultan of Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, Khalid’s wife Puan Sri Salbiah Tunut, and family members.
Khalid, who had served as an adviser to a London-based company, was among the select individuals to be buried at the royal mausoleum, placing him alongside the likes of former religious figure Tan Sri Hassan Azhari, educationist Tun Dr Arshad Ayub, and former menteri besar Tan Sri Abu Hassan Omar, due to their contributions to the state and country.
Most known for being the opposition’s first menteri besar in Selangor after the then Pakatan Rakyat opposition took the state from Barisan Nasional in 2008, Khalid remarkably raised the state’s reserves to more than RM1 billion within several years.
During his time administering Selangor, Khalid was also credited with successfully stabilising a host of state subsidiaries, elevating the loss-making companies to highly profitable entities, thanks to his decades-long experience as a corporate figure.
By the end of his removal from the menteri besar post in 2014, the Selangor government had a whopping RM3.3 billion in reserves, a third of which was quickly spent on infrastructure projects in the state by 2020.
Khalid, born in Kuala Selangor in 1946, had obtained a degree in economics from Universiti Malaysia, before he graduated with a Masters in Business Administration from the University of Queensland in 1975.
By 1979, Khalid was made the chief executive of Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB), a post he held until 1994.
One of his most notable achievements took place on September 7, 1981, when he staged the infamous “Dawn Raid” at the London Stock Exchange, which saw PNB obtain 51% majority shares in foreign-owned Guthrie, in a shock takeover of the company that took place in less than two hours.
The raid subsequently led to the London Stock Exchange changing some policies to avoid the recurrence of such events.
During his time in the Selangor office between 2008 and 2014, Khalid introduced the “Peoplising Selangor’s Economy” initiative, which involved RM1.6 billion in spending mostly focused on the people’s welfare.
Under his administration, Selangor contributed to 24% of the country's GDP and turned the state into a choice destination for investment. Selangor also became the country’s wealthiest state while he was in office.
Khalid’s achievements also earned him praises from politicians on both sides of the political divide. On Facebook, former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak hailed Khalid for looking beyond partisan politics, especially with regard to the water supply problems faced in Selangor.
Najib said in February 2014, Khalid took the “brave” step of signing a memorandum of understanding with the federal government on the restructuring of Selangor’s water supply and approval of the Langat 2 water treatment plant, as well as the supply of untreated water from Pahang, despite facing backlash from opposition politicians.
Najib claimed the steps Khalid took led to his removal from the menteri besar post and from his political party.
In politics, Khalid joined Umno in the late 70s before switching sides to PKR in 2006 and becoming the latter party's treasurer.
In 2008, he won both the Bandar Tun Razak parliamentary and Ijok state assembly seats, and introduced 20 cubic metres of free water for each Selangor household, as well as the country’s first legislation on freedom of information.
Although he was successful in elevating Selangor, Khalid previously claimed he was asked by the party leadership to use the state’s money for PKR’s campaigns.
Furthermore, he was already estranged from his party members over the MoU on water with the government.
The issues he faced with PKR led to the infamous Kajang Move, which sought to replace Khalid with party president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, and which backfired and led to his deputy Datuk Seri Azmin Ali being sworn in as the state’s 15th menteri besar instead.
Following his removal as menteri besar, Khalid kept out of the public eye, but was appointed as an economic adviser for Terengganu in 2018. – The Vibes, August 1, 2022
Additional reporting by Aiman Sadiq
