Spouse of the prime minister of Malaysia

Spouse of the Prime Minister of Malaysia
Spouse of the Prime Minister of Malaysia
Pasangan Perdana Menteri Malaysia
	Incumbent; Wan Azizah Wan Ismail ; since 24 November 2022
Style	Yang Amat Berbahagia
Residence	Seri Perdana
Formation	31 August 1957
First holder	Sharifah Rodziah Syed Alwi Barakbah

Last updated November 22, 2023

The spouse of the prime minister of Malaysia (Malay : pasangan perdana menteri Malaysia) refers to the spouse of the head of government of Malaysia, the prime minister. Since independence in 1957, the title has been held by women, therefore the spouse is also known as the prime minister's wife. Some commentators have tried to style prime ministers' wives as "First Lady of Malaysia", similar to the style of First Lady used in republics, but this is not a recognised title.^[1]^[2] To date, ten women have held the title of the spouse of the prime minister of Malaysia.

Role of the spouse of the prime minister of Malaysia

The spouse of the prime minister of Malaysia is not an elected position, carries no official duties, and brings no salary. However, she does receive some allowance as recognition of her time and energy put into being the spouse of the prime minister of Malaysia.

As the spouse of the prime minister of Malaysia, she attends many official ceremonies and functions of state either along with or representing the prime minister. There is a strict taboo against the spouse holding outside employment while serving as spouse of the prime minister of Malaysia.

Following the Asian value system, where the woman is the guiding light and pillar of the household, the spouse also represents family values and is taken as a motherly figure.

The spouse of the prime minister of Malaysia frequently participates in humanitarian and charitable work. It became increasingly common for spouses of heads of state or government to select specific causes to promote, usually ones that are not politically divisive. It is common for the spouse of the prime minister of Malaysia to form organisations and hire a staff to support these activities.

List of spouses of prime ministers of Malaysia

#	Spouse	Term start	Term end	Prime Minister (Coalition-Party)
1	Sharifah Rodziah Barakbah	31 August 1957	22 September 1970	Tunku Abdul Rahman (Alliance-UMNO)
2	Rahah Noah	22 September 1970	14 January 1976	Abdul Razak Hussein (Alliance-UMNO) (1970–1973) (BN-UMNO) (1973–1976)
3	Suhaila Noah	15 January 1976	16 July 1981	Hussein Onn (BN-UMNO)
4	Siti Hasmah Mohamad Ali	16 July 1981	30 October 2003	Mahathir Mohamad (BN-UMNO)
5	Endon Mahmood	31 October 2003	20 October 2005	Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (BN-UMNO)
6	Jeanne Abdullah	9 June 2007	3 April 2009	Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (BN-UMNO)
7	Rosmah Mansor	3 April 2009	9 May 2018	Mohd Najib Abdul Razak (BN-UMNO)
8	Siti Hasmah Mohamad Ali	10 May 2018	24 February 2020	Mahathir Mohamad (PH-BERSATU) (Interim Prime Minister from 24 February 2020 to 1 March 2020)
9	Noorainee Abdul Rahman	1 March 2020	16 August 2021	Muhyiddin Yassin (PN-BERSATU) (Caretaker Prime Minister from 16 August 2021 to 21 August 2021)
10	Muhaini Zainal Abidin	21 August 2021	24 November 2022	Ismail Sabri Yaakob (BN-UMNO)
11	Wan Azizah Wan Ismail MP for Bandar Tun Razak	24 November 2022	Incumbent	Anwar Ibrahim (PH-PKR)

List of spouses of prime ministers of Malaysia by Age

#	Name	Born	Died	Age
1	Siti Hasmah Mohamad Ali	12 July 1926	Alive	97 years, 132 days
2	Rahah Noah	11 June 1933	18 December 2020	87 years, 190 days
3	Suhaila Noah	26 October 1931	4 October 2014	82 years, 343 days
4	Sharifah Rodziah Barakbah	1920	12 March 2000	79 years 71 days to 80 years, 70 days
5	Noorainee Abdul Rahman	21 April 1949	Alive	74 years, 214 days
6	Jeanne Abdullah	29 July 1953	Alive	70 years, 115 days
7	Rosmah Mansor	10 December 1951	Alive	71 years, 346 days
8	Endon Mahmood	24 December 1940	20 October 2005	64 years, 300 days
9	Muhaini Zainal Abidin	12 November 1961	Alive	61 years, 9 days

Controversy

Controversy over the usage of the title "First Lady"

The Yang di-Pertuan Agong (King of Malaysia) is a constitutional figurehead within the framework of a constitutional monarchy. It is argued that Article 32(2) of the Constitution of Malaysia stipulates that the Consort of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong takes precedence over all individuals in the federation and is second only to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong himself. Hence, it is argued that the Raja Permaisuri Agong is, by strict analogy only, the First Lady of Malaysia. It should however be borne in mind that such a title cannot exist in Malaysia in the first place, as "First Lady" exclusively refers to wives of presidents and not monarchs.

Before Najib's premiership, there had not been a precedent in Malaysia where someone other than the wife of the prime minister served as a self-styled "First Lady". While the Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's first late wife, Tun Endon Mahmood Ambak underwent treatment for breast cancer in the United States, the title of "First Lady" was not officially designated.

The issue was brought up only during the premiership of Najib when his wife widely used the title of "First Lady". Many quarters either argue that it is reserved for the Raja Permaisuri Agong, or that it should never be used at all due to Malaysia not being a republic.

The issue didn't stop there as there was an obscure new unit established within the Prime Minister's Department with the acronym FLOM (which was not explained on the website, but taken to stand for "First Lady of Malaysia"). Datuk Siti Azizah binti Sheikh Abod was the Special Officer for the unit. The news on FLOM was widely covered by many bloggers with their own stories and analysis. This led to the government webpage containing the information of the contacts in FLOM department to be removed a few days after the story came out. However some search engines managed to store the cached version of the page.^[3] Many groups questioned the validity and functionality of the department. There were also some queries, especially in the Malaysian Parliament, on how much allocation from the National Budget was allocated for the department.

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References

↑ "debunks 'first lady' term used on wife". The Malaysian Insider. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 21 January 2011.
↑ "'First lady' lower than Queen". The Sun . 15 June 2010. Retrieved 21 January 2011.
↑ https://archive.today/20121202133809/http://www.pmo.gov.my/?menu=page&page=1947 First Lady of Malaysia Unit webpage

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[1] "debunks 'first lady' term used on wife". The Malaysian Insider. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 21 January 2011.

[2] "'First lady' lower than Queen". The Sun . 15 June 2010. Retrieved 21 January 2011.

[3] ttps://archive.today/20121202133809/http://www.pmo.gov.my/?menu=page&page=1947 First Lady of Malaysia Unit webpage

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