The Early Malay Doctors: Tan Sri Arshad Ayub

Monday, 12 May 2014

Tan Sri Arshad Ayub

I had Dr Arshad Ayub (ITM Shah Alam) confused with another man named Arshad Zainal (Klang). Dr Arshad Ayub was the Director of ITM Shah Alam when Tun Dr Ismail b Abdul Rahman visited the campus on 14 July 1973. On the other hand, Arshad Zainal is the son of Zainal Ismail, a private tutor to Sultan Abdul Samad of Selangor.

Dr Arshad Ayub was born in 1928 in Muar to a rubber tapper father. His father died early from dysentery. Arshad was the eldest and had to struggle from young without his father. Rising from poverty to become one of Malaysia's intellect is a dream come true for him. Education was the only road to becoming better and making it in this world, and leaving poverty behind for good. He could not enter the University of Malaya based in Singapore then, but entered the College of Agriculture in Serdang. My uncle Pak Cik Hassan bin Mohd Rashid spoke about his father Tok Rashid Serdang (UPM founding father) and mentioned about Arshad Ayub to me. Pak Cik Hassan told me to look up Arshad Ayub. In Serdang, Tok Rashid moulded Arshad Ayub to become a respected Malay intellectual. If you know Arshad Ayub, then you should know Tok Rashid Serdang.

I remember an old photo I obtained from Arkib Negara Malaysia. It had Tun Dr Ismail and Dr Arshad Ayub. Today, I read an article on my smartphone about Tan Sri Arshad Ayub (85). I checked my blogs whether I wrote about him before - I had deleted an earlier post that featured him for I had the wrong person for my family blog.

Visit by the Deputy Prime Minister, Tun Dr Ismail Al-Haj to Institut Teknologi MARA (ITM), Shah Alam, Selangor on 14 July 1973. Accompanied by its Director, Dr Arshad Ayub, he visited several places on campus. Photo: Tun Dr Ismail Al-Haj looking at some books in the Tun Abdul Razak Library on campus. Dr Arshad Ayub is looking on (centre) (Arkib Negara Malaysia Photo: G.12818 (ATDI N.204) Ref no: 2001/0042159).