Keynote
Speaker:
Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad,
Chancellor of Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS will
be delivering the keynote address on “Towards
Sustainability: Bridging Engineering, Technology
and Humanities’ on the first day of the conference,
15 June 2010.
Born on 20 December 1925 in Kampung
Seberang Perak, Alor Setar, Tun Dr Mahathir bin
Mohamad started school at Sekolah Melayu Seberang
Perak in 1930. He was there for two years, before
continuing his education at the Government English
School (now known as the Sultan Abdul Hamid College)
in Alor Setar. During the Japanese Occupation from
1941 to 1945, he stopped school. After the Japanese
surrender, Tun Mahathir resumed his education and
received the Senior Cambridge Certificate the same
year.
Upon completing his secondary education
in 1947, Tun Mahathir received a partial scholarship
from the Government to study medicine at the King
Edward VII Medical College – the forerunner
of the University of Malaya – in Singapore.
In 1953, Tun received his MBBS degree from the University
of Malaya and immediately began housemanship in
Penang. From 1954 to 1957, Tun served the Government
as Medical Officer in Alor Setar, Langkawi and Perlis.
In June 1957, Tun went into private practice. Later
that year, he opened his own MAHA Clinic in Jalan
Tunku Ibrahim, Alor Setar – the first Bumiputera
private clinic in the state.
Tun’s political involvement
began in 1945, when he joined various organisations
like Kesatuan Melayu Kedah, Seberkas and Kesatuan
Pemuda Melayu Kedah. Whilst still at school, he
was also actively involved in the anti-Malayan Union
campaign. In 1946 he became a member of the United
Malays National Organisation (UMNO). In 1964, Tun
contested in the General Elections, won the Kota
Setar Selatan constituency and became a Member of
Parliament. It was when he became the Chairman of
Food Industries of Malaysia (FIMA) in 1973 that
he honed his administrative capabilities.
In 1974, Tun was appointed Minister
of Education in Tun Razak’s cabinet. In March
1976, Tun was named Deputy Prime Minister by Tun
Hussein Onn. On 16 July 1981, Mahathir became the
fourth Prime Minister of Malaysia, a position he
held for 22 years. He retired on 31 October 2003.
Under the stewardship of Tun, Malaysia
has witnessed unprecedented economic growth especially
in manufacturing, infrastructure, information technology
and oil and gas.
In recognition of his outstanding
contributions to nation building, Tun received numerous
prestigious fellowships, awards and honours from
universities and academic institutions, both locally
and internationally. Honorary Member, Academy of
Medicine (1983), Honorary Member , Malaysian Medical
Association (1984), Honorary Fellowship of the Royal
College of Surgeons, Ireland (1991 ) , Honorary
Fellowship, Academy of Sciences Malaysia (1996)
,Honorary Fellowship, Royal College of Physicians
of Edinburgh (1997),Honorary Professor , Kyrgyz
University (1996) ,Honorary Doctorate in Humanities,
National University of Mongolia (1997), and Honorary
Doctorate of Literature and Al-Azhar University
(1998), to name a few.
In 2001, in recognition
of his dedication to promoting human resource development
in Malaysia through educational and technological
exchange with global perspective, Tun was awarded
the Honorary Doctorate by Meiji University, one
of the most prestigious universities in Japan. After
his retirement, he continued to receive various
honours. These include an Honorary Doctorate in
the field of management and engineering from Universiti
Teknologi Malaysia (2003), and the Honorary Degree
of the Doctor of Letters, Universiti Islam Antarabangsa
(2003) for his distinguished contributions as a
Muslim writer and an outstanding intellectual.
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