Ahmad Mattar | |
|---|---|
| Minister for the Environment | |
| In office 2 January 1985 – 30 June 1993 | |
| Prime Minister | Lee Kuan Yew Goh Chok Tong |
| Preceded by | Ong Pang Boon |
| Succeeded by | Mah Bow Tan |
| Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs | |
| In office 5 September 1977 – 30 June 1993 | |
| Prime Minister | Lee Kuan Yew Goh Chok Tong |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Abdullah Tarmugi |
| Member of the Singapore Parliament for Brickworks GRC | |
| In office 3 September 1988 – 16 December 1996 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Succeeded by | Constituency abolished |
| Majority |
|
| Member of the Singapore Parliament for Brickworks | |
| In office 23 December 1976 – 17 August 1988 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Succeeded by | Constituency abolished |
| Majority |
|
| Member of the Singapore Parliament for Leng Kee | |
| In office 2 September 1972 – 6 December 1976 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Succeeded by | Ow Chin Hock |
| Majority | 6,893 (43.07%) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Ahmad bin Mohamed Mattar (1940-08-13) 13 August 1940 |
| Party | People's Action Party (1972–1996) |
| Alma mater | University of Singapore (BSc; DSc) University of Sheffield (MSc) |
| Occupation | Politician |
| Profession | Lecturer, academic |
Ahmad bin Mohamed Mattar (born 13 August 1940)[1] is a former Singaporean politician and academic who served as the inaugural Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs from 1977 and 1993 and Minister for the Environment from 1985 to 1993. A former member of the governing People's Action Party (PAP), he was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Leng Kee Constituency between 1972 and 1976, Brickworks Constituency between 1976 and 1988 and the Brickworks division of Brickworks Group Representation Constituency (GRC) between 1988 and 1996.
Early life and education
Born when Singapore was part of the Straits Settlements, Ahmad studied at Raffles Institution (RI) before graduating from the University of Singapore (now the National University of Singapore) with a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in physics in 1963. He later obtained his Master of Science (MSc) at the University of Sheffield on a Colombo Plan scholarship and earned his Doctor of Science (DSc) at the University of Singapore.[2]
Career
Prior to entering politics, Ahmad was a lecturer at Singapore Polytechnic (SP) and conducted the first large-scale study on the effects of traffic noise on housing estates in Singapore; the study would later inform future legislations and studies on traffic noise.[2] In 1982, he founded Mendaki, an organisation established to look into the educational and welfare needs of the Singaporean Malay–Muslim community, and served as its president until 1989.[3]
Political career
During the early 1970s, Ahmad was recruited by the PAP. On the recommendation of Abdul Rahim Ishak, incumbent MP for Siglap Constituency and younger brother of Yusof Ishak, the inaugural President of Singapore, he stood in Leng Kee Constituency during the 1972 general election and won. From 1977 to 1993, he served as the inaugural Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs, a role created to strengthen understanding and improve relations between the Singaporean Malay–Muslim community and the government.[4]
From 1985 to 1993, he served as the Minister for the Environment in the 7th and 8th Cabinets under Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew. During his tenure, he was noted for tightening restrictions on the sale of aerosols containing chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), continuing the clean-up of the Singapore River and introducing the corrective work order (CWO) to combat littering through the public shaming of "litterbugs". Despite plans to resign from the Cabinet after the 1991 general election, he was persuaded by newly elected prime minister Goh Chok Tong, who succeeded Lee, to remain for a final term in his first Cabinet.
In 1993, Ahmad resigned from the Cabinet; he remained a backbencher until his full retirement from politics at the 1997 general election. He has largely kept a low profile since.[5]
Personal life
Ahmad is the uncle of Siti Alia Mattar, a Workers' Party (WP) candidate for Punggol GRC in the 2025 general election. The WP team lost to Gan Kim Yong and his PAP team with 44.83% of the vote.[6]
References
- ^ National Library Board, Singapore. "Ahmad Mattar". Eresources.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 17 December 2014.
- ^ a b "Distinguished Science Alumni Awards 2004: Ahmad MATTAR". National University of Singapore. 2004.
- ^ "Annual Report – Aspiring Beyond Limits" (PDF). Yayasan MENDAKI. 2014. p. 12. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 November 2016. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
- ^ "How did the Post of "Minister-in-Charge of Muslim Affairs" Come About?". Majulah!: 100–101. July 2016. doi:10.1142/9789814759885_0009. Retrieved 15 September 2025.
- ^ Kong, Lily (1994). "'Environment' as a Social Concern: Democratizing Public Arenas in Singapore?". Journal of Social Issues in Southeast Asia. 9 (2): 277–287. doi:10.1355/SJ9-2H. JSTOR 41056891.
- ^ Daud, Sulaiman (15 September 2025). "WP candidate Alia Mattar shares photo of dinner with uncle Ahmad Mattar, ex-PAP cabinet minister". mothership.sg. Retrieved 15 September 2025.
