Former Malaysian prime minister Abdullah Badawi has dementia: Khairy

Former Malaysian prime minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has dementia, Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said on Sunday (Sep 11).

Khairy, who is also Abdullah’s son-in-law, said that the announcement was made after a family discussion, as many people were asking about the former leader’s health.

Abdullah, who is also known affectionately as Pak Lah, was Malaysia’s fifth prime minister, serving between 2003 and 2009.

“Pak Lah indeed has dementia and his condition is deteriorating that he can’t even say the names of family members as he doesn’t remember. He may recognize them, he appears to, but he has reached the level of having difficulty speaking,” Khairy said at a press conference in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday.

“I asked my wife, my mother-in-law, and brother-in-law just now. I said to them that there are people who are aware of his condition while others aren’t, so could I reveal this (to the public)?”

Khairy had earlier launched new editions of the clinical practice guidelines for the management of dementia and schizophrenia.

“I’ve never shared this (information) before. Many of you may wonder where the fifth prime minister of Malaysia is. Dementia is a … very cruel condition because the body is there but the mind isn’t,” he said.

Khairy said that the management of Abdullah’s care is challenging.

“I see how my mother-in-law struggles,” said Khairy, adding that his father-in-law is wheelchair-bound.

Agencies