Ahmad Razif bin Abdul Rahman (born 7 November 1965) was the 14th

Menteri Besar In Malaysia, the Menteri Besar ( Jawi:منتري بسر; literally ''First Minister''), colloquially referred to as MB, is the head of government of each of nine states in Malaysia with hereditary rulers. For four states without a monarch, the t ...

(Chief Minister) of the

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

n state of

Terengganu Terengganu (; Terengganu Malay: ''Tranung'', Jawi: ), formerly spelled Trengganu or Tringganu, is a sultanate and constitutive state of federal Malaysia. The state is also known by its Arabic honorific, ''Dāru l- Īmān'' ("Abode of Faith"). ...

from May 2013 to May 2018. He is a member of the

United Malays National Organisation The United Malays National Organisation (Malay: ; Jawi: ; abbreviated UMNO () or less commonly PEKEMBAR), is a nationalist right-wing political party in Malaysia. As the oldest continuous national political party within Malaysia (since its in ...

in Malaysia's ruling

Barisan Nasional The National Front ( ms, Barisan Nasional; abbrev: BN) is a political coalition of Malaysia that was founded in 1973 as a coalition of centre-right and right-wing political parties. It is also the third largest political coalition with 30 se ...

coalition.

Profile

Ahmad Razif, the son of a religious teacher, was raised in Terengganu. He graduated from

Universiti Putra Malaysia University of Putra Malaysia ( Malay: ''Universiti Putra Malaysia''), abbreviated as UPM, is a Malaysian public research university located in Serdang, Selangor. Formerly it was named Universiti Pertanian Malaysia (Agricultural University of ...

with a Masters in Science and rose through the ranks of his local UMNO division.

Political career

In 2008, he was elected to the

Terengganu State Legislative Assembly The Terengganu State Legislative Assembly ( ms, Dewan Undangan Negeri Terengganu) is the unicameral state legislature of the Malaysian state of Terengganu. It consists of 32 members representing single-member constituencies throughout the state. ...

for the seat of

Seberang Takir Seberang Takir ( Jawi: سبرڠ تاكير) is a small town in Kuala Nerus District, Terengganu, Malaysia. The town consists of several fishing villages namely Kampung Baru Seberang Takir, Kampung Hulu Takir, Kampung Padang Takir, Kampung Batin a ...

, defeating a

People's Justice Party The People's Justice Party ( ms, Parti Keadilan Rakyat , often known simply as KEADILAN or PKR) is a reformist political party in Malaysia, formed in 2003 by a merger of the National Justice Party and the older Malaysian People's Party. The ...

(PKR) candidate. The State's incoming Chief Minister Ahmad Said appointed him to the State's Executive Council—akin to a

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

—with responsibility for education, higher education, science, technology and human resources. Ahmad Razif retained his assembly seat at the 2013 election. However, the Barisan Nasional state government almost lost its majority in the assembly, clinging to power with a slim 17–15 majority. In response, the coalition's national leader, and the Prime Minister,

Najib Razak Dato' Sri Haji Mohammad Najib bin Tun Haji Abdul Razak ( ms, محمد نجيب بن عبد الرزاق, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset, ; born 23 July 1953) is a Malaysian politician who served as the 6th prime minister of Malaysi ...

, pressured Ahmad Said to resign within a year. In May 2013, Ahmad Said stood down and Ahmad Razif was appointed as his replacement. He was sworn into office by

Mizan Zainal Abidin Al-Wathiqu Billah Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin ibni Almarhum Sultan Mahmud Al-Muktafi Billah Shah (Jawi alphabet, Jawi: ; born 22 January 1962) is the 18th and current Sultan of Terengganu. He served as the 13th Yang di-Pertuan Agong, th ...

, the Sultan of Terengganu, on 13 May. Ahmad Razif's first task as Chief Minister was to navigate a political crisis when Ahmad Said and two other UMNO assemblymen resigned from UMNO immediately after his appointment, potentially plunging his government into minority status. Ahmad Said stated that he was dissatisfied that he had not been allowed to remain as Chief Minister until after the wedding of his daughter in May 2013. The three assemblymen returned to the party within days, after the intervention of Najib and other senior Barisan Nasional leaders. On 22 April 2016, his 'Datuk Seri' title had been revoked by the Sultan. On 9 December 2016, the Sultan has consented to restore 'Datuk Seri' title to him.

Election results

Honours

* : ** ''(revoked 22 April 2016)'' ** MY-TER Order of Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin - Dato Sri Setia - SSMZ

Knight Grand Companion of the

Order of Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin of Terengganu The Most Select Order of Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin of Terengganu (Bahasa Melayu: ''Darjah Kebesaran Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Terengganu Yang Amat Terpilih'') is an honorific order of the Sultanate of Terengganu History It was founded by Sult ...

(SSMZ) – Dato' Seri (2014) (revoked 22 April 2016 and reinstated 8 December 2016)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ahmad Razif Abdul Rahman 1965 births Living people Malaysian people of Malay descent Malaysian Muslims Chief Ministers of Terengganu People from Terengganu United Malays National Organisation politicians Members of the Terengganu State Legislative Assembly Terengganu state executive councillors Leaders of the Opposition in the Terengganu State Legislative Assembly