In this Malay name, there is no surname or family name. The name Syed Jaafar Albar is a patronymic, and the person should be referred to by their given name, Syed Hamid. The word "bin" or "binti"/"binte" means 'son of' or 'daughter of', respectively.
Syed Hamid was born in Kampung Melayu Air Hitam, Penang, Malaysia, to Syed Jaafar Albar, an UMNO politician and former cabinet minister. Syed Hamid's father was of HadhramiArab descent, and migrated from Indonesia to Malaysia shortly before World War II.[5][6][7]
He had his secondary education at Maxwell School before going to Methodist Boys' School (Kuala Lumpur) for his Form Six education. For his tertiary education, he read law in the Inns of Court, London and was called to the Degree of an Utter Barrister by the Honourable Society of Middle Temple in 1970. As a student in London, he set up a club for Malaysian expatriates and students.
He is married with 6 children.
Political career
Syed Hamid has been active in UMNO in his student days, including while studying in the United Kingdom. After returning to Malaysia he became a magistrate, and then president of the Sessions Court, before entering the corporate world. In 1986 he won election to UMNO's Supreme Council and entered Parliament in 1990, as the member for Kota Tinggi. He was immediately appointed as Minister for Justice, and in 1995 became the Defence Minister.[8]
In 1999, he was appointed as the Foreign Minister by Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad. In March 2008, he was appointed as the Home Minister. In April 2009, he was dropped from the Cabinet. The previous month he had contested, but failed to win, one of UMNO's three vice-president positions at the party's general assembly.[9] He left Parliament in 2013, deciding not to re-contest the seat of Kota Tinggi, which he had held by large margins since 1990.[10] On 18 February 2022, he announced his retirement from politics and devotion of time to legal practice work and non-governmental organisation (NGO) activities.
Post-political career (2022–present)
Chancellor of the Asia e University (2022–present)
On 15 October 2022 during the 11th convocation ceremony of the Asia e University (AeU), Syed Hamid was appointed as its 1st Chancellor. His appointment was made based on his "vast experience in administration and management he possesses" and confidence that he would "provide AeU with the direction and leadership to further enhance its academic standing". Responding to the appointment, Syed Hamid said that it was unexpected and that he was deeply moved, humbled and touched to get the "recognition". He also described it as a "great honour and privilege".[11]
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