Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat

Yang Berbahagia Tuan Guru Dato' Bentara Setia Haji Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat
Menteri Besar of Kelantan
In office 22 October 1990 – 6 May 2013
Monarch	Sultan Ismail Petra Sultan Muhammad V
Deputy	Ahmad Yaakob
Preceded by	Mohamed Yaacob
Succeeded by	Ahmad Yaakob
2nd Spiritual Leader of PAS
In office 1991 – 12 February 2015
Preceded by	Yusof Rawa
Succeeded by	Haron Din
Member of the Malaysian Parliament for Pengkalan Chepa
In office 1974–1986
Preceded by	New constituency
Succeeded by	Nik Abdullah Arshad
Member of the Malaysian Parliament for Kelantan Hilir
In office 1967–1974
Preceded by	Ahmad Abdullah
Succeeded by	Constituency abolished
Member of the Kelantan State Assembly for Chempaka
In office 1995 – 12 February 2015
Preceded by	New constituency
Succeeded by	Ahmad Fathan Mahmood
Member of the Kelantan State Assembly for Semut Api
In office 1986–1995
Preceded by	Wan Mamat Wan Yusof
Succeeded by	Constituency abolished
PAS Head of the Ulama Wing
In office 1971–1995
Kelantan Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party Commissioner
In office 1978–2013
Succeeded by	Ahmad Yaakob
Personal details
Born	(1931-01-10)10 January 1931 Kampung Pulau Melaka, Kota Bharu, Kelantan, British Malaya (now Malaysia)
Died	12 February 2015(2015-02-12) (aged 84) Kampung Pulau Melaka, Kota Bharu, Kelantan, Malaysia
Resting place	Tanah Perkuburan Pulau Melaka, Kota Bharu, Kelantan, Malaysia
Political party	Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party
Spouse(s)	Tuan Sabariah Tuan Ishak (m. 1963-2015, his death)
Children	Nik Aini Nik Umar Nik Adli Nik Abdul Rahim Nik Mohamad Abduh Nik Adilah Nik Mohamad Asri Nik Amani Nik Amalina Nik Asma' Salsabila
Parents	Nik Mat Raja Banjar Aminah Abdul Majid
Alma mater	Al-Azhar University Darul Uloom Deoband
Religion	Sunni Islam

Tuan Guru Dato' Bentara Setia Haji Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat (10 January 1931 – 12 February 2015) was a Malaysian politician and Muslim cleric. He was the Menteri Besar of Kelantan from 1990 to 2013 and the Mursyidul Am or Spiritual Leader of the Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS) from 1991 until his death in 2015. Overall, his career as an elected politician lasted for some 48 years following his election to the Parliament of Malaysia in 1967.

Early life

Nik Abdul Aziz was born in Kota Bharu in 1931 as the second of five siblings. He was raised by a single father (Tok Kura) who was an aspiring blacksmith.^[1] Nik Aziz's Islamic studies began in pondok schools in Kelantan and Terengganu.^[2] He went on to study at Darul Uloom Deoband in Uttar Pradesh, India for five years. He obtained his Bachelor of Arts in Arabic Studies and Master of Arts in Islamic jurisprudence from Al-Azhar University, Egypt. During his university studies, he was one of the witnesses and a civilian to have lived in the heat of the Arab-Israeli Conflict.^[3]

Having returned from Egypt, Nik Aziz began as a teacher at various religious schools in Kelantan, hence his popular nickname "Tok Guru."^[2]

Political career

Nik Aziz joined PAS in 1967. He contested and won the Kelantan Hilir parliamentary seat by-election in that same year, and held the seat (later renamed Pengkalan Chepa) until 1986.^[2] In 1982, he was part of a movement by young members to bring change to the party leadership. PAS had lost the Kelantan state elections in 1978 and, as PAS state commissioner, Nik Aziz began to question president Asri Muda's leadership. Finally, in the PAS Muktamar (General Assembly) that year, Asri was forced to resign.^[3]

After stepping aside from federal politics, Nik Aziz won a seat in the Kelantan State Assembly in the 1986 general elections. In 1990, PAS managed to wrest control of Kelantan back from Barisan Nasional. In his capacity as party leader in the state, Nik Aziz became Menteri Besar of Kelantan.^[2] He succeeded Yusof Rawa as spiritual leader of PAS in 1991.

Nik Aziz's government was re-elected on four occasions (1995, 1999, 2004, 2008), until his retirement in 2013. During the 1990s, his administration in Kelantan frequently clashed on the role of Islam in Malaysia with the then Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad. In contrast with the racially exclusive ruling party UMNO, he openly rejected communal politics.^[4]

Nik Aziz commanded support from a large number of non-Muslims in Malaysia and played a leading role during PAS' increase in popularity among non-Muslims.^[5][6][7]

Issues

Hardline views

Nik Aziz drew some criticism for his hardline Islamic views. His advocacy of Islamic shariah law for all Malay Muslims drew criticism, as did his suggestion that women would be at a lower risk of being raped if they abandoned using their lipstick and perfume, and for a 15-year ban on the game of snooker.^[8][9] He was also recorded once stating that fashionable and sexy-dressing women deserved to be raped during a ceramah.^[10]

The "Allah" issue

In 2012, there was an issue of Catholics in Malaysia using the Arabic term for "God"; "Allah" in their Christian Bible. Initially, Nik Aziz stated that the word "Allah" can be used by non- Muslims as the origin of the word itself is evidently pre-Islamic. The issue caused a stir in the Muslim community. The PAS party was almost divided into two blocs; one that supported the use of the word, and one that did not. Aiming to restore unity in PAS, Nik Aziz took back his words and disapproved of the word "Allah" being used by non-Muslims.^[11]

Son detained under ISA

His son Nik Adli was held under the Malaysian Internal Security Act in 2001 for alleged terrorist activities including planning jihad, possession of weapons, and membership in the Kumpulan Mujahidin Malaysia (KMM), an Islamist extremist group.^{[12][13][14][15]} After 5 years in detention without trial, he was released.^[16]

Retirement and death

Nik Aziz retired as Chief Minister of Kelantan at the 2013 election. PAS was re-elected and Nik Aziz's deputy, Ahmad Yaakob, took his place. Over the ensuing two years, Nik Aziz became increasingly ill with prostate cancer, and died at 9.40 p.m. Malaysia Standard Time (UTC+08:00) on 12 February 2015 at his residence in Kampung Pulau Melaka, Kota Bharu. The following day, more than 10,000 people attended his funeral at Masjid Tok Guru, his local mosque.^[17] His death triggered a by-election for his seat, N06 Chempaka in the Kelantan State Assembly.^[18]

Election results

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat.

• Official Blog of Tok Guru Nik Aziz Nik Mat
• A Day in a Life of Tok Guru Nik Aziz Nik Mat on YouTube