SULTAN, PERMAISURI SELANGOR EXPRESS SADNESS, CONDOLENCES OVER DEMISE OF TUN ABDULLAH

SHAH ALAM, April 15 (Bernama) -- The Sultan of Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah and Tengku Permaisuri of Selangor Tengku Permaisuri Hajah Norashikin expressed their sadness and grief over the passing of former fifth Prime Minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, yesterday.

Their Royal Highnesses also expressed their condolences to the heirs and family of the deceased, especially his widow Tun Jeanne Abdullah.

Sultan Sharafuddin, who knew Abdullah since the late 1960s, described the deceased as a dedicated and calm statesman, and was remembered as a leader who was very concerned about the well-being of the people.

"For the services and contributions of the deceased, the late Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah conferred the late Tun Abdullah with the Order of Dato' Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah (D.S.S.A.) in 1992 and the Seri Paduka Mahkota Selangor (S.P.M.S.) in 2000," according to a post on the Selangor Royal Office's Facebook page.

Their Royal Highnesses prayed that the deceased's soul would be blessed by Allah SWT and placed among the righteous.

The message also included two photographs of Tun Abdullah, who was then Deputy Prime Minister, having an audience with Sultan Sharafuddin, the Regent of Selangor, at Istana Mestika, as well as a photograph taken at Istana Alam Shah in 2003 during the Enthronement and Coronation Ceremony of the Sultan of Selangor.

The deceased Tun Abdullah, better known as Pak Lah, died at the age of 85 at 7.10 pm yesterday at the National Heart Institute (IJN), Kuala Lumpur.

-- BERNAMA