Former Perlis mentri besar Abdul Hamid laid to rest

ARAU: Former Perlis mentri besar Tan Sri Dr Abdul Hamid Pawanteh has been laid to rest at the Masjid Lama Negeri cemetery. He was 78.

The funeral prayer was performed at the Arau state mosque after Friday prayers yesterday.

Dr Abdul Hamid breathed his last at about 3.15pm on Thursday at his residence due to kidney disease, with which he had been suffering for the past five years.

He leaves behind his wife Puan Sri Elham Hamid Abdullah and five children.

Dr Abdul Hamid’s son Sharif Pawanteh, 39, when met by Bernama, described his father as a person with great patience and that he always treated others with kindness.

“That’s why he was loved and respected by many,” he said, adding that his father had always reminded his siblings to lend a helping hand to those in need, regardless of who they were.

Dr Abdul Hamid served as Perlis mentri besar from 1986 to 1995 before being replaced by Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim.

He also served as a member of the Kangar Municipal Council in 1981 before winning the Arau parliamentary seat in the 1982 general election.

He was the Kangar MP from 1999 to 2003.

In July 2003, Dr Abdul Hamid was appointed the president of the Dewan Negara and held the post until 2009.