Fuad Stephens

Tun Muhammad Fuad Stephens, (born Donald Aloysius Marmaduke Stephens; 14 September 1920 – 6 June 1976) was the first Chief Minister of the state of Sabah in Malaysia, and the first Huguan Siou or Paramount Leader of the Kadazandusun community. He played a fundamental role in bringing the state of Sabah into the Federation of Malaysia in 1963. He held the chief minister post until 1964, and again in 1976. During his second term as Chief Minister he died in a controversial accident on 6 June 1976, in Kota Kinabalu, the state capital of Sabah. He was a passenger in an Australian made Nomad aircraft which crashed and killed everyone on board. His body was buried at the State Mausoleum near the Sabah State Mosque, Kota Kinabalu.

Stephens was born on 14 September 1920 in Kudat. His father, Jules Stephen Pavitt later known as Jules Pavitt Stephens, was half Kadazan and half British hailing from Papar district in the West Coast Division with paternal roots in Essex, England, while his mother Edith Cope was ethnically half Japanese, half British and a quarter Dusun originating from the district of Kinabatangan, Sandakan Division. Stephens had 5 siblings; 2 younger sisters and 3 younger brothers. Two of them, John and Martin died in infancy. A third, Leo Benedict was born in 1926, later became the President of the Dewan Negara between 1985–1988.

Donald Stephens founded the political party United National Kadazan Organisation (UNKO) in August 1961. He played a key role in negotiating the independence of Sabah and the formation of Malaysia, together with Tun Mustapha of United Sabah National Organisation (USNO), and Tunku Abdul Rahman, the then Prime Minister of Malaya. The formation of Malaysia was finally achieved on 16 September 1963, which is today known as Malaysia Day. He became Sabah's first Chief Minister.

In 1964, Donald Stephens stepped down as Chief Minister to become the first Malaysian federal cabinet member from Sabah. He was replaced by Peter Lo Sui Yin from the Sabah Chinese Association. Stephens became the minister in charge of Sabah affairs under the Prime Minister's department.

In 1973, Fuad Stephens was appointed as the governor of Sabah, known as the Yang di-Pertua Negara (the post was later known as Yang di-Pertua Negeri). He held this position until 1975. Later that same year, Tun Fuad Stephens together with Harris Salleh formed the new political party BERJAYA. They won the 1976 state election, defeating Tun Mustapha's USNO and becoming the new government of Sabah. Tun Fuad Stephens became Sabah's fifth Chief Minister. Forty-four days later, he died in a plane crash.

It is an open secret in Sabah that Singapore Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew told Stephens that he (Lee) would be Prime Minister of Malaysia after Tunku and that Stephens would be made Deputy Prime Minister. After Lee, Stephens would then be Prime Minister. Stephens' about-turn surprised the Dusun who, like the Chinese, were in the majority and opposed to Malaysia. His agreement, however, sealed their fate.

Patently, it was Tunku who prevailed upon Lee to persuade Stephens to drop his opposition to Malaysia. Stephens was then very much influenced by Orang Kaya Kaya (OKK) Sedomon Gunsanad of Keningau who was strongly opposed to Malaysia. Stephens' capitulation broke Sedomon who died within three years of Malaysia.

Stephens wanted a review of Sabah's participation in Malaysia after Singapore's exit. His reasoning was that it was because of Singapore that Sabah joined Malaysia and now that the island was out of the federation, there was no longer any reason for the Borneo state to continue to be in the federation. Stephens was referring to the DPM idea, but in public it was pointed out that Sabah and Sarawak opted for Malaysia to facilitate the merger of Chinese Singapore and multiracial Malaya. The Chinese population across both sides of the causeway was greater than the Malay numbers and this was to be compensated by the Malay and other native numbers in Sabah and Sarawak through Malaysia.

On 6 June 1976 ("Double Six"), Tun Fuad Stephens and several cabinet members boarded a flight from Labuan heading towards Kota Kinabalu. About 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) from Kota Kinabalu International Airport, the plane crashed killing everyone on board.

The site of the plane crash is marked by a memorial constructed not long after the accident. The site is located in the Sembulan area near the Grace Garden housing complex in Kota Kinabalu across Jalan Coastal Highway from Sutera Harbour resort.

Stephens converted to Islam in January 1971, and he adopted the name Muhammad Fuad, meaning soul or spirit in Arabic. Stephens was also encouraged to renounce his surname at the time of his conversion, but he had refused to do so. For a number of years he held the post of High Commissioner of Malaysia in Australia.

Honour of Malaysia

•  Malaysia : Grand Commander of the Order of the Defender of the Realm (1975)

Awards

• Tun Fuad Stephens was posthumously granted the soubriquet Bapa Malaysia Dari Sabah (Father of Malaysia From Sabah) and Hugon Siou.

Places after him

Several places were named after him, including:

• Taman Tun Fuad Stephens a public garden in Kota Kinabalu.
• Taman Tun Fuad a township at Kota Kinabalu.
• SMK Tun Fuad Stephens, a secondary school at Kiulu and Tamparuli.
• SMK Taman Tun Fuad, a secondary school at Kota Kinabalu.
• Jalan Tun Fuad Stephens a major highway linking Kota Kinabalu and Sepanggar.
• Jalan Tun Mohd Fuad a road at Taman Tun Dr Ismail, Kuala Lumpur.
• SK Tun Fuad, a primary school at Kunak.
• Maktab Rendah Sains Mara Tun Muhammad Fuad Stephens, at Sandakan
• Wisma Tun Fuad Stephens, state government buildings in Kota Kinabalu.

• "Senarai Penuh Penerima Darjah Kebesaran, Bintang dan Pingat Persekutuan Tahun 1975." (PDF).