Ahmad Ibrahim (Singaporean politician)

Ahmad bin Ibrahim (1927 – 21 August 1962) was a Malaysian-born Singaporean politician. He was a Member of Parliament (MP), Health Minister and Labour Minister in the 1950s and 1960s. He was an active unionist, Malay political leader, elected independent member of the 1955 Legislative Assembly, Minister for Health in the first cabinet of the People's Action Party (PAP) government in 1959.^[1]

Biography

Ahmad was born in Penang, Malaysia, and was also educated there at the Penang Free School. In 1955, he stood for the Legislative Assembly elections and won as an independent candidate, representing Sembawang. A former first branch secretary of All-Singapore Fire Brigade Employees Union, and Vice-President of the Naval Base Labour Union, he was co-opted into the PAP Central Executive Committee in 1956; and under the PAP banner in 1959 he was re-elected as a member of the Legislative Assembly. When the PAP government formed its first Cabinet that year, Ahmad served in the cabinet as the Minister for Health, and was also appointed Assistant Secretary-General of the PAP's Central Executive Committee.

In a September 1961 Cabinet reshuffle, he was made Minister for Labour. He died at the Singapore General Hospital after a prolonged illness, on 21 August 1962, while serving as the Minister of Labour. He was accorded a state funeral, attended by Singapore's Head-of-State Yusof bin Ishak, Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, other Cabinet Ministers, and the public who paid respects at his home, and at the 'lying-in-state' ceremony at the Istana.

Legacy

At present, in Singapore, a road called Jalan Ahmad Ibrahim in Jurong, two schools (Ahmad Ibrahim Primary School and Ahmad Ibrahim Secondary School),both in Yishun, and a mosque, Masjid Ahmad Ibrahim, also in Yishun is named after him.

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