NURUL IZZAH ANWAR, 27
BY NATHANIEL TAN
Izzah has the sweetest laugh.
If you knew what her work and life is like, you’d be surprised at her ability to laugh at all. Where we would wince in frustration, Izzah smiles with enduring grace through demanding constituents, belligerent politicos from all sides, and being part of Malaysia’s most persecuted family.
It’s a charming smile, one all her family members share, but its power lies in its latent sincerity. Anyone familiar with the realities of public service—realities that dispel any myths about glamour or power—can appreciate the sacrifice a young mother makes in walking this path.
I’ve seen how she cares from the heart; about crime in Lembah Pantai, endemic poverty, and social justice. There’s concern in those eyes that speak to a deep compassion. Between wanting to do a good job and attending patiently to endless, unforgiving complaints and demands from all around her, not much of Izzah’s life is hers anymore. With what little time she has left for herself, she gushes over her newborn daughter and fusses about those around her (“So skinnylah you Nat, eat more!”).
I’m personally grateful not only for her concern as to my health, but for the fact that however reluctantly, Izzah has answered the call to serve. Seeing the need to replace corruption with integrity, inequality with justice and racial division with unity, she has been willing to walk the extra mile so many of us shy away from.
That a daughter, wife and mother blessed with intelligence and abilities that could land her any job in the city would sacrifice so much to heed Malaysia’s desperate call for a better breed of leaders sets the bar for the rest of us.
Nathaniel Tan is a former colleague of Nurul Izzah in the office of Anwar Ibrahim.
