Abdullah Tarmugi
عبدالله بن ترموڬي
Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore
In office
25 March 2002 – 19 April 2011
DeputyMatthias Yao Chih
Indranee Rajah
S. Iswaran
Chew Heng Ching
Lim Hwee Hua
Preceded byTan Soo Khoon
Succeeded byMichael Palmer
Member of the Singapore Parliament
for East Coast GRC
(Siglap)
In office
2 January 1997 – 19 April 2011
Preceded byConstituency established
Succeeded byMaliki Osman (PAP)
Member of the Singapore Parliament
for Bedok GRC
(Siglap)
In office
21 August 1991 – 16 December 1996
Preceded byConstituency established
Succeeded byConstituency abolished
Member of the Singapore Parliament
for Siglap SMC
In office
22 December 1984 – 14 August 1991
Preceded byAbdul Rahim Ishark
Succeeded byMaliki Osman (PAP)
Personal details
Born (1944-08-25) 25 August 1944 (age 79)
Straits Settlements
Political partyPeople's Action Party
(1984–2011)
Alma materRaffles Institution
University of Singapore
University of London

Abdullah bin Tarmugi (Jawi: عبدالله بن ترموڬي; born 25 August 1944) is a Singaporean former politician who served as Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore between 2002 and 2011.

Early life

Born to a Javanese father and a Chinese mother, Abdullah's father was a low-salaried surveyor's assistant and his grandfather ran a provision shop.

Abdullah studied at Raffles Institution and obtained a Bachelor of Social Sciences from the University of Singapore, followed by a post-graduate diploma in urban studies from the University of London in 1972[1] under a Commonwealth Scholarship.

Political career

Abdullah was a Member of Parliament from 1984 to 2011, starting out at Siglap constituency and later Bedok Group Representation Constituency (Bedok GRC) from 1991 to 1996.[1] After Bedok GRC and Eunos GRC was merged to form East Coast GRC in 1997, Abdullah still remained in the Siglap ward but under East Coast GRC. Abdullah was the Minister for Community Development (subsequently the Minister of Community Development and Sports) and the Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs from 1994 to 2002 and 2000 to 2002 respectively.[1] Abdullah was also the Deputy Speaker of Parliament from 1989 to 1993 before becoming the Speaker of Parliament on 25 March 2002. He declined to contest the Singapore Presidential Elections in 2017.[1]

Abdullah announced his retirement from politics on 24 March 2011, prior to the 2011 general elections.[2] In January 2012, Abdullah was appointed to the Presidential Council for Minority Rights by Singapore President Tony Tan[3] and a permanent member by President Halimah Yacob.[4]

Personal life

Abdullah is married to Shirley, a retired teacher and former principal who was his pre-university schoolmate at Raffles Institution. She is ethnic Chinese and converted to Islam prior to their marriage. The couple have two children.[5]

References

  1. ^ a b c d "Curriculum Vitae". Parliament of Singapore. Archived from the original on 25 November 2010. Retrieved 1 January 2011.
  2. ^ "PAP veterans to retire". AsiaOne. Retrieved 12 July 2012.
  3. ^ "Abdullah Tarmugi appointed to Presidential Council for Minority Rights". Channel NewsAsia. Archived from the original on 13 January 2012. Retrieved 12 July 2012.
  4. ^ Ng, Huiwen (22 January 2018). "Abdullah Tarmugi appointed permanent member of Presidential Council for Minority Rights". The Straits Times. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  5. ^ "Marriage Tips From Former Speaker Of Parliament Abdullah Tarmugi". Her World. 17 July 2015.
Political offices Preceded byAhmad Mattar Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs 1 July 1993 – 24 March 2002 Succeeded byYaacob Ibrahim Preceded byYeo Cheow Tong Minister for Community Development 15 January 1996 – 31 March 2000 Acting: 2 January 1994 – 14 January 1996 Succeeded byYaacob Ibrahim Minister for Community Development and Sports 1 April 2000 – 24 March 2002 Parliament of Singapore Preceded byTan Soo Khoon Speaker of Parliament 2002–2011 Succeeded byMichael Palmer
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