He was an Economics man, number one. Number two, I thought he was a very honest man. I think he has proved to be a very honest chap... even when I sometimes wanted something done, he refused,” Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia’s first Prime Minister, in 1984. *** “I’ve heard friends joking behind his back. They said even the ringgit is scared of him and that’s why it never falls,” Tun Hussein Onn, Malaysia’s third Prime Minister, in 1980. *** “If you want to find someone who presents an incorruptible image, he is the one to be cited. His integrity was unquestionable. I was struck by his knowledge, he is in complete control, he knows his subject very well,” Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Malaysia’s fourth and seventh Prime Minister, in 2018. *** “I personally pray the youth of Malaysia – Malay, Chinese and Indian – can take him to be a great role model on how to conduct himself or herself when he or she chooses to enter public service to serve the country and its people,” Robert Kuok, business tycoon, in 2018.