Tribute to Mr Anwarul Haque
In Memoriam in Latin stands for “in memory of”. Our dear friend Mr Anwarul Haque Bin Manir Uddin will always be remembered, loved and cherished as a dear friend and confidante, especially amongst the sports lovers in the legal profession and beyond. This sentimental narration is in memory of and to honour and ensure a lasting remembrance of our debonair and well-loved fellow legal practitioner.
Anwar was born in Singapore on 3 December 1939, the eldest of eight children. He had an illustrious career, both as a well-liked lawyer and a great sportsman. He passed away peacefully on 24 June 2025 at the age of 85 and we managed to bid farewell to him when he was brought to the Baalwie Mosque for the final jenazah prayers before being laid to rest at the Choa Chu Kang Muslim cemetery. He is survived by his three sons, Shehzad, Tariq and Kamil, and three grandchildren.
Anwar was a well-respected advocate and solicitor, having graduated from the Faculty of Law, University of Singapore in 1963. He served in the Legal Service as a Magistrate, District Judge and was for a few years the Deputy Director of the Legal Aid Bureau before venturing into business for several years. He was admitted to the Supreme Court of Singapore as an Advocate and Solicitor in May 1968 by the then Honourable Chief Justice Wee Chong Jin. He served as a member of the Inquiry Panel from 2005 till 2009. He was a well-respected and honourable advocate who specialised mainly in shipping law, and was also a qualified mediator and arbitrator. When he moved to private legal practice, he first joined Haridas Ho & Partners as a partner, then Madhavan Partnership, and culminating at Joseph Tan Jude Benny LLP as a legal consultant. He had an unfortunate fall at the Singapore Cricket Club in January 2020 and his health never quite recovered thereafter. His close family members, especially his eldest son, Shehzad and also his siblings including fellow lawyer Hamidul Haq, took good care of him, hoping and praying for his speedy recovery.
Anwar served the University of Singapore and the legal fraternity well as an outstanding hockey goalkeeper and played hockey and golf for over three decades in the Bench & Bar Games between Singapore and Malaysia. He was equally well known to the Malaysian lawyers and judges for his affable and sporting nature.
He was a very popular and well-loved lawyer and celebrated national sportsman. He was simply brilliant as a hockey goalkeeper – brave, talented, very tactful and was tenacious at goal for a good 25 years or so. He represented Singapore as an International Junior in the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne, Australia, the Asian Games in 1962 and 1970, and was in the prestigious combined Malaysian Hockey Team as one of the goalkeepers at the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games. He also played for Singapore in the 1971 South East Asian Peninsular Games (SEAP Games) and won a silver medal for Singapore. He was once hailed as the world’s best hockey goalkeeper.
Anwar served for several years in the Singapore Hockey Management Committee and was President of the Singapore Hockey Federation from 1985 till 1992. During his tenure as President, the Constitution of the Singapore Hockey Association and the Singapore Women’s Hockey Association merged and the Singapore Hockey Federation was born, combining the Men’s and Women’s Hockey Associations .
He was an excellent Club official. He served as President of the National University of Singapore Society (NUSS), the alumni body of the then University of Singapore and now known as the National University of Singapore from 1988 to 1994. He was first elected to the Management Committee in the 1980s and served in multiple key roles before becoming President. He presided over the NUSS’ 40th anniversary in 1994 and was instrumental in strengthening ties with NUS, especially with the then Vice-Chancellor, Prof Lim Pin. Anwar always championed NUSS’ role in civic society, scholarship support, and intellectual development. He played a pivotal role in building City Guild House (Amara Hotel) and expanded intellectual and cultural offerings through the Study Group (intellectual discussions between members and political and academic figures), Publications, and Socio-Cultural Committees. He enhanced and advocated for meaningful community services, urging NUSS to rise beyond comfort and contribute to Singapore society meaningfully.
He was Conferred the NUSS Distinguished Outstanding Member status in 2012 for his longstanding service and impact on the alumni body. He continued to serve on NUSS committees well into the 2000s, particularly in advisory and in disciplinary and mediation panels. He also served on the Board of Trustees of NUS.
Anwar was a visionary and brought NUSS to greater heights. His thoughts which I share below, reflected his contributions:
“Now that we have a full belly, roof over our head, and reasonable clothes, we can and must start doing more including contributing to the running of the University. If we are a serious body — and we hold ourselves to be — then, as an institution, we must show our credibility, our seriousness of purpose and our membership strength.”
“The passion and commitment of the Society’s visionaries have made all the difference … that is the priceless spirit of the Singaporean graduate.”
“Of course, the NUSS goes beyond brick and mortar which are necessary creature comforts to attract the graduates. What makes us different from other clubs is that you cannot buy your way in. Our members do get good value for their money in relation to the number of premises and the physical facilities. The additional attractions are the forums, discussions, debates, lectures, publications, and the cultural programs organized by the Study Group, Publication and Cultural Sub-committees. We have also generously contributed to the Student Loan Fund and given scholarships from time to time. The next area we are looking into is one of the questions taxing our Strategic Planning Sub-committee: what can we do by way of community service that is really meaningful? In the past, we didn’t have the resources we now have. What we’re trying to do would have been regarded as too much of a luxury.
It’s much like Singapore going through its various stages of development and improving the quality of life of our citizens. We in the NUSS want to do more than we have done. As the largest alumni organization we must be credible and show our seriousness of purpose.”
So that we know how far Singapore’s homegrown graduate society has come – its progress parallels that of NUS, whose enrolment now exceeds 15,000, whose mission is “to support the nation’s social and economic development by producing skilled high-level manpower and by promoting research and innovation”, and whose priorities include strengthening the bonding with both undergraduates and graduates. The graduate society’s development also parallels that of the nation, one of the smallest countries in the world but one which has taken its place among the biggest and the best in so many spheres, and which is striving to continue to improve.
Subsequent to NUSS, Anwar was also active in the Singapore Cricket club serving for many years in the Management Committee and was a popular President from 2001 till 2008. He advocated for gender equality, and during his Presidency, the first lady Management Committee member was elected.
In 2009 Anwar was chosen to be one of the six Executive Committee members of the Singapore Olympians Association, an arm of the Singapore National Olympic Council who mentored the athletes who were Olympians.
Anwar was a fine gentleman and was well loved by his friends, fellow lawyers and judges, and fellow sportsmen. He had the passion and dedication to sports and civic organisations, forging long-lasting friendship, sporting skills and camaraderie amongst sports enthusiasts and lawyers. He brought together friends and made sure there was friendship, love, peace and harmony with whoever he was associated.
Anwar will be missed greatly by his family, relatives and good friends. I am proud to have been a member of his hockey team in the legal fraternity, Singapore Cricket Club, and fellow management committee member of the NUSS, SCC and hockey fraternity. On behalf of all our friends, thank you dear friend, for the fond memories and wonderful years of friendship, fun, laughter and love. We salute you for having led a good life. And may your soul rest in peace, always.
Chandra Mohan K Nair
Tan Rajah & Cheah
