KOTA KINABALU: Prominent Sabah think tank head Datuk Badil Zaman Fazul Rahman died of a stroke in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday (June 24) at the age of 61.

Badil’s body has since been flown back to Kota Kinabalu and he will be buried at his hometown of Membakut in Beaufort district on Sunday evening.

He was a successful contractor and import-and-export businessman from a humble family background and leaves behind his wife, a son and two daughters.

Badil was known for his activities to promote economic and social development through the non-governmental organisation Society Empowerment and Economic Development of Sabah (SEEDS), which was made up of prominent academics and professionals.

Commenting on Badil's death, SEEDS fellow Rahezzal Shah said that he was a father figure.

"He is our mentor and friend. We will forever remember his humility, his humour, wit and intellectual tenacity," said Rahezzal.

Rahezzal said that much was done under Badil's leadership.

"Through SEEDS, Badil wanted to see a better Sabah in Malaysia. He used to call this federation of ours as a 'federation of interest' - each component in the federation is unique and bound by common interest,” he said.

Rahezzal said one of Badil’s deep passions was to preserve the country's ethnic and religious diversity, adding that this was reflected in his 'Living Together - Multifaith Breaking of Fast' where people of many faiths gather to break fast with Muslims.

He added that Badil also encouraged SEEDS to look at Kalimantan as an area for regional growth in the future.

"Badil played an instrumental role in initiating business to business dialogue between the various parties from North Kalimantan (Indonesia) and Sabah,"said Rahezzal.

"He taught me to live deeply and more meaningfully by being kind to myself and to the ones I love,” added Rahezzal.