Tan Sri The Malay language has a complex system of styles, titles and honorifics which are used extensively in Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia and Singapore. Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore, few provinces in the Philippines and several provinces in Indonesia ...

Dato' Datuk (or its variant Dato or Datu) is a Malay honorific title commonly used in Brunei, Indonesia, and Malaysia, as well as a traditional title by Minangkabau people in West Sumatra, Indonesia. Use of the title various between locations, in some ...

Mohamad Ariff bin Md Yusof ( Jawi: محمد عارف بن مد يوسف; born 1949) is a Malaysian politician who served as the 9th

Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat The Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat (, Jawi script, Jawi: ) is the highest-ranking presiding officer of the Dewan Rakyat, the lower house of the Parliament of Malaysia, Parliament of Malaysia. They are responsible for convening sessions of the Dewan ...

, the lower chamber of the

Parliament of Malaysia The Parliament of Malaysia (; Jawi script, Jawi: ) is the national legislature of Malaysia, based on the Westminster system. The bicameral parliament consists of the Dewan Rakyat (House of Representatives, Literal translation, lit. "People's As ...

from July 2018 to his removal from speakership in July 2020. He is a member of the National Trust Party (AMANAH), a component party of the

Pakatan Harapan Pakatan Harapan (PH; stylised as HARAPAN; ) is a Malaysian Parliamentary group, political coalition consisting of Centre-left politics, centre-left political parties which was formed in 2015 to succeed the Pakatan Rakyat coalition. It has led ...

(PH) opposition coalition. He resigned from all AMANAH party positions but not membership to become more impartial after being appointed to the Dewan Rakyat speakership. Therefore, he remains an AMANAH ordinary member.

Early life and education

Mohamad Ariff was born in

Sungai Petani Sungai Petani ( abbr. Sg. Petani or SP) is a city in Kuala Muda District, Kedah, Malaysia. The population of the municipal area of Sungai Petani is larger than Kedah's state capital, Alor Setar. It is located about 55 km south of Alor Set ...

Kedah Kedah (), also known by its honorific Darul Aman (Islam), Aman (دار الأمان; Arabic for 'The Safe Abode') and historically as Queda, is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia, located in the northwestern part of ...

in 1949. He graduated from the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...

(LSE) with a Bachelor's degree in law.

Career

Mohamad Ariff joined the Faculty of Law in

University of Malaya The Universiti Malaya (lit 'University of Malaya'; abbreviated UM) is a public university, public research university located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It is the oldest Malaysian institution of higher education, and was the only university in ...

once he graduated from LSE. In 1986, he became an advocate and a solicitor at his own legal practice called Cheang & Ariff. Mohamad Ariff joined the

Securities Commission Malaysia The Securities Commission Malaysia () is a Malaysian statutory body with responsibility for the development and regulation of capital markets in the country. It is located in Bukit Kiara, near the National Science Centre of Kuala Lumpur. Histo ...

(SC) and became the first Market Supervision Department Director from 1993 to 1995. From 1995 to 1996, he served as a Director of Kuala Lumpur Options and Super Exchange (KLOSE). He served as a member of the advisory board of Company's Commission of Malaysia from 2007 to 2008. He also was a member of the Rating Review Committee and Malaysian Rating Agency until 2008. Mohamad Ariff was appointed a Judicial Commissioner for the

High Court of Malaya The high courts in Malaysia are the third-highest courts in the hierarchy of courts, after the Federal Court and the Court of Appeal. Article 121 of the Constitution of Malaysia provides that there shall be two high courts of co-ordinate jurisd ...

in 2008. He was made a full judge of the same in 2009. In 2012, he was elevated to the

Court of Appeal An appellate court, commonly called a court of appeal(s), appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to Hearing (law), hear a Legal case, case upon appeal from a trial court or other ...

. He retired from the Malaysian Judiciary in 2015 and returned to his prior legal practice, Cheang & Ariff. Mohamad Ariff was a high court judge during the

2009 Perak constitutional crisis The 2009 Perak constitutional crisis was a political dispute in Malaysia over the legitimacy of the Perak state government formed in February 2009. It began when three Pakatan Rakyat state legislators defected, causing a collapse of the state gov ...

. He also served as the judge removing the Home Ministry's ban on the book authored by the Sisters in Islam (SIS) entitled Muslim Women and the Challenges of Islamic Extremism. As a Court of Appeal Judge, he led a panel of judges in the case of Teoh Beng Hock, a man killed while in the custody of the

Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (; Jawi: ), abbreviated MACC or ''SPRM'', (formerly known as Anti-Corruption Agency, ACA or ''Badan Pencegah Rasuah'', ''BPR'') is a government agency in Malaysia that investigates and prosecutes corrup ...

(MACC).

Politics

Mohamad Ariff was a member and candidate of the

Malaysian Islamic Party The Malaysian Islamic Party, also known as the Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party (Malay language, Malay: ''Parti Islam Se-Malaysia''; Abbreviation, abbrev: PAS), is an Islamist political party in Malaysia. Ideologically focused on Islamic fundamen ...

(PAS) for

Kota Damansara Kota Damansara is an affluent township located in Petaling Jaya, Petaling District, Selangor, Malaysia. It is a township spread across . It is also a state seat constituency which is sandwiched between Subang and Petaling Jaya. Notable landmar ...

, Selangor in 2004 general election but failed to win. Then he joined National Trust Party (AMANAH), a component party of

(PH) coalition in 2015. He resigned all of his party posts and became an

independent politician An independent politician or non-affiliated politician is a politician not affiliated with any political party or Bureaucracy, bureaucratic association. There are numerous reasons why someone may stand for office as an independent. Some politicia ...

on 1 July 2018 in order to become the PH coalition's candidate for the speakership.

Election results

Honours

Honours of Malaysia

* : **

Commander of the

Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia The Most Esteemed Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia () is a Malaysian federal award presented for meritorious service to the country and awarded by the sovereign. The order was instituted on 15 April 1966 and gazetted on 30 June 1966 ...

(PSM) – Tan Sri (2019) * : ** Knight Companion of the

Order of Loyalty to the Royal House of Kedah The Illustrious Order of Loyalty to the Royal House of Kedah (Bahasa Melayu: ''Darjah Yang Mulia Setia di-Raja'') is an honorific order of the Sultanate of Kedah. History It was founded by Sultan Abdul Halim of Kedah on 21 September 1973. Cl ...

(DSDK) – Dato' (2012)Senarai penerima Darjah Kebesaran Kedah 2012
/ref>

References

{{Authority control 1949 births Living people People from Kedah Malaysian politicians of Malay descent Malaysian Muslims 20th-century Malaysian lawyers 21st-century Malaysian judges Former Malaysian Islamic Party politicians National Trust Party (Malaysia) politicians Independent politicians in Malaysia Speakers of the Dewan Rakyat Members of Lincoln's Inn Commanders of the Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia Malaysian MPs 2018–2022