Integrity, Tun Razak's lasting legacy

Nazir Razak, the youngest son of this nation’s second Prime Minister Tun Abdul Razak has called for the emulation of the quality of integrity which was the hallmark of his father’s administration.

Tun Razak’s untimely death on Jan 14 1976, when Nazir was all of nine-years-old, robbed him of the opportunity to get to know his father better.

Nazir remembers most to this day, his father’s moral probity, incorruptibility, honesty and sense of duty, epitomised by the effort by him and his siblings who tried to cajole their father to install a swimming pool in the back garden of Seri Taman, the official Prime Minister’s residence.

Befitting his legal background, Tun Razak asked the boys to list out all the reasons why the pool should be built and for them to present their case for his ultimate consideration. Having heard them out, came the verdict – no way would he allow public funds to be used for private frolic.

Nazir’s recollection of the moral rectitude of his father was recounted in the front page of Tuesday’s (14 January) edition of Sinar Harian headlined Luahan Nazir (Nazir’s Lament). The sub-heading highlighted the thrifty ways of his PM father and the spirit of Rakyat Diutamakan (Putting the interest of the rakyat foremost).

Nazir remembers his reaction was to ask in a thunderous; “What will the people think?”

Having been deprived of the right of watching his father at work, Nazir canvassed those who did. What he found was frugality in guarding the nation’s coffers was a hallmark of his father.

“You had to account for every cent,or he would be on your back,” a former minister recounted to Nazir.

Tun Razak was just as hard on his family. On an official trip to Switzerland when one of the boys happened to be on the same retinue, he made sure that this portion of the bill was paid for personally.

On his final trip to Europe for medical treatment, Tun Razak dallied on whether to take along his wife Toh Puan Rahah to accompany as that would be a drain on the family finances. He relented only when the cabinet specifically approved her trip.

Nazir summed up the quality of integrity of his father who he said was guided by a somewhat quaint and old-fashioned concept of public service – that a public servant is first and foremost a servant of the people whose trust must never be betrayed.