TRIBUTE ABDUL - Perdana Library

MALAYA'S MAN OF DESTINY
Y.T.M. Tunku Abdul Rahman
Putra Al-Haj
(Francis Cooray)
In Malaya's Hall of Fame in which will be enshrined one
day the names of men and women who have contributed to the
making of modern Malaya, none will occupy a more prominent
place than that of Tunku Abdul Rahman, the first Prime Minister
of Malaya. But there is another place, in the hearts of Malayan
men and women, where he will find an abiding place long after
brick and mortar and gold and marble have disappeared.
In an age when the revival of nationalism is being exploited to
emphasize racial, communal and religious differences the Tunku's
achievements like ASA and Malaysia are of considerable significance.
ASA, now confined to Malaya, Thailand and the Philippines
but open to other countries in South-East Asia which wish
to join, has already begun to pay dividends. Malaysia, which
will bring all the Malay-speaking territories except Indonesia under
one flag and one Parliament, will come into being on Aug. 31, 1963.
Neither of these projects could have been thought out and carried
to the present promising stage except by a statesman of the highest
calibre possessing both courage and vision. The Tunku is the
originator of both ideas and has spent a great deal of time and energy
in giving them shape and substance and in smoothing out innumerable
difficulties.