Zainul Abidin (politician)

Zainul Abidin
Singapore Ambassador to the State of Kuwait (non-resident)
Incumbent
Assumed office 27 October 2011
Preceded by	Wong Kwok Pun[1]
Mayor of North East District
In office 24 November 2001 – 30 May 2009
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	Teo Ser Luck
Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
In office 30 May 2006 – 7 May 2011
Member of Parliament for Aljunied GRC (Eunos)
In office 25 October 2001 – 18 April 2011
Member of Parliament for Cheng San GRC (Punggol East)
In office 2 January 1997 – 18 October 2001
Personal details
Born	17 March 1948 Singapore
Nationality	Singaporean
Political party	People's Action Party
Alma mater	National University of Singapore
Occupation	Diplomat
Religion	Islam

Zainul Abidin bin Mohamed Rasheed (born 17 March 1948)^[2] is a Singaporean diplomat and retired politician.^[3] He is currently Singapore's Ambassador to the State of Kuwait (non-resident) and the Special Envoy of the Minister for Foreign Affairs to the Middle East.^[4][5]

Prior to his retirement from politics, he served as a Member of Parliament (MP) in Aljunied Group Representation Constituency (Aljunied GRC) from 2001 to 2011.

Education

Zainul Abidin attended Jalan Daud Primary School, followed by Raffles Institution and then the National University of Singapore, where he read economics. He was awarded the Gold Outstanding Young Singaporean Award in 1974.

Career

Zainul Abidin worked for a long time in Singapore Press Holdings (Asia News Bulletin, The Sunday Times, The Straits Times, Berita Harian) before being seconded to the government sector, to Mendaki (1990 - 1993) and Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura (MUIS) (1991-1996).

He has held various appointments, among them being:

• Member of the National University of Singapore Council,
• Member of the board of trustees, NTUC Healthcare Co-operative Ltd
• Member of the Board of directors of Mendaki Holdings
• Member of the RI Board of Governors
• Advisor of the Singapore Port Workers Union
• Ex-deputy Chairman of the Malay Heritage Foundation
• Member of the National Medical Ethics Committee

He first stood for the 1997 Singapore general elections under the People's Action Party (PAP) under Cheng San Group Representation Constituency (Cheng San GRC), against the Workers' Party (WP), whose notable candidates were J. B. Jeyaratnam and Tang Liang Hong. The PAP won that constituency.

Zainul Abidin later moved to Aljunied Group Representation Constituency (Aljunied GRC) for the 2001 general elections. In the 2006 general elections, the PAP contested Aljunied GRC against the WP. The PAP garnered 56.09% of the votes in this GRC.

He was appointed Senior Parliamentary Secretary for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 1998 - 2001. He also held the post of Mayor of the Northeast Community Development Council from 2001 to 2008. He was then appointed Minister of State for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2004 and given a Senior Minister of State role in 2006.

In the 2011 general elections, Zainul Abidin was part of the PAP team which lost Aljunied GRC to the WP.

Personal life

Zainul Abidin is married with four children.

References

1. "MFA Press Statement : Appointment of Singapore's Ambassador to The State of Israel, Singapore's Ambassador to The State of Kuwait and Singapore's Ambassador to The State of Qatar" (Press release). Singapore: Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 28 December 2005. Retrieved 5 January 2016.
2. Curriculum Vitae. www.parliament.gov.sg, 1 June 2009. Retrieved 27 June 2011.
3. Teo, Wan Gek (10 September 2011). "Possible second advisers for Aljunied grassroots". The Straits Times. Singapore Press Holdings.
4. "MFA Press Statement: Appointment of Singapore's Non-Resident Ambassador to the State of Kuwait" (Press release). Singapore: Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 27 October 2011. Retrieved 5 January 2016.
5. "MFA Press Statement: Singapore’s Representation at the Inauguration Ceremony Marking the Opening of the New Expanded Suez Canal, Egypt, 6 August 2015" (Press release). Singapore: Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 6 August 2015. Retrieved 5 January 2016.