Mohd Eekmal Ahmad
| Eekmal Ahmad | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
28 February 1980 Alor Star, Malaysia |
| Residence | London, United Kingdom |
| Alma mater | Sultan Abdul Hamid College Universiti Teknologi MARA |
| Occupation | Historian |
| Religion | Islam |
Eekmal Ahmad is a Malaysian historian, politician and former press secretary to former Opposition Leader of Malaysia, Anwar Ibrahim. Eekmal was Parti Keadilan Rakyat's candidate in the 13th Malaysian general election. He contested against current Menteri Besar of Kedah Ahmad Bashah Md Hanipah but lost with a margin of 895 votes.[1]
Personal background
He grew up in Alor Star, Kedah. He received his secondary education at Sultan Abdul Hamid College and had his university education at Universiti Teknologi MARA, graduated with a bachelor's degree in law. He is currently pursuing his studies in East Asian History in School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London funded by the prestigious Chevening Scholarship. His MA dissertation focuses on the formation of Chinese Nationalism during Xinhai period till May 4th Movement and its influences on Malaya.
After leaving university, Eekmal worked as Assistant Coordinator for Asian Renaissance: Capacity Building for Future Leaders in Southeast Asia based in Institute for Policy Research. He then worked as a translator at Middle Eastern Graduates Centre, an intellectual think-tank based in Kuala Lumpur. He then served as press secretary to Anwar Ibrahim from 2008 until 2012. He translated several works from English to Bahasa Melayu, among them, Thomas Paine's Rights of Man, Claude Addas' Voyage of No Return and FA Hayek's essay, Individualism True and False.
Political career
In 2008, Eekmal joined Parti Keadilan Rakyat and was appointed as press secretary to Anwar Ibrahim. During the 13th Malaysian general election in 2013, Eekmal was nominated as the PKR candidate for the state assembly seat of Bakar Bata in Kedah.[2] However he lost by a narrow margin to a veteran politician, Ahmad Bashah Md Hanipah who is currently the Menteri Besar of Kedah.
Election result
| Year | Government | Votes | Pct | Opposition | Votes | Pct | Ballots cast | Majority | Turnout | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Ahmad Bashah Md Hanipah (UMNO) | 11,999 | 50.7% | Mohd Eekmal Ahmad (PKR) | 11,104 | 46.9% | 23,658 | 895 | 83.9% | ||
| Jawahar Raja Abdul Wahid (MUPP) | 192 | 0.8% | |||||||||