Raja Mohamed Affandi
Raja Mohamed Affandi bin Raja Mohamed Noor is a Malaysian former Chief of Army and Chief of Defence Force.
Early life and education
Raja Mohamed Affandi was born into a family descended from the royal families of Perak, hence the prefix Yang Mulia instead of Yang Berbahagia, on 20 June 1957 at Kampung Raja, Besut, Terengganu.He received his primary education at Sekolah Raja, Besut, and secondary education at Sekolah Menengah Sultan Ismail. He later attended Pre-Officer Cadet Training Unit at Sebatang Karah Camp, Port Dickson before continuing his training as Cadet Officer at Royal Military College, Sungai Besi. He was commissioned as Second Lieutenant on 11 May 1977 and assigned to the Royal Malay Regiment.
He continued his study while he was still in the service. He obtained Master in Defence Studies from University of New South Wales and Master of Science in Defence and Strategic Studies from Quaid-i-Azam University.
Military career
General Tan Sri Raja Mohamed Affandi was directly involved in the Second Malayan Emergency during his early days as an army officer. He led his unit as platoon commander and later as company commander fighting with communist insurgents. He then became Aide-de-camp to Deputy Chief of Army, Lead Instructor at Army Basic Training Centre, Commander of 18th Battalion, Royal Malay Regiment, Staff Officer 1 at National Operations Council, Administration Staff Officer 1 at Army Human Resources Branch, chief-of-staff at 3rd Division Headquarters, assistant chief-of-staff at Army Planning and Development and Commander of 2nd Division.He was promoted to Lieutenant General on 2 June 2008 and entrusted to hold Army Field Commander position. On 31 October 2009, he was assigned to chief-of-staff of Malaysian Armed Forces post. He was then promoted to rank of general on 15 June 2013, and in the same time promoted to Chief of Army position.
With his vast experience in the military and administration, he was promoted to the 19th Chief of Defence Forces on 16 December 2016, replacing General Zulkifeli Mohd Zain who retired from the Armed Forces.
Retirement from Armed Forces
Raja Mohamed Affandi retired from armed forces on 20 June 2018. His position as Chief of Defence Forces is succeeded by General Tan Sri Zulkifli Zainal Abidin.Raja Mohamed Affandi was named as BN's candidate for the Kemaman by-election. He lost by 37,220 votes.
Personal life
General Tan Sri Dato' Sri Raja Mohamed Affandi is married to Puan Sri Datin Sri Norlida binti Hj Abdul Mubin and together they had three daughters and one son.Honours
Honours of Malaysia
- * Commander of the Order of the Defender of the Realm – Tan Sri
- * Commander of the Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia – Tan Sri
- * Commander of the Order of Meritorious Service – Datuk
- * Companion of the Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia
- * Officer of the Order of the Defender of the Realm
- * Recipient of the Loyal Service Medal
- * Recipient of the General Service Medal
- * Recipient of the United Nations Missions Service Medal with "MOZAMBIQUE" clasp
- * Recipient of the 12th Yang di-Pertuan Agong Installation Medal
- * Recipient of the 13th Yang di-Pertuan Agong Installation Medal
- Malaysian Armed Forces
- * Courageous Commander of the Most Gallant Order of Military Service
- * Loyal Commander of the Most Gallant Order of Military Service
- * Warrior of the Most Gallant Order of Military Service
- * Officer of the Most Gallant Order of Military Service
- * Recipient of the Malaysian Service Medal
- * Golden Jubilee of the Grup Gerak Khas Medal - Gold Medal
- * Knight Commander of the Glorious Order of the Crown of Kedah – Dato' Wira
- * Knight Companion of the Order of Loyalty to the Royal House of Kedah – Dato'
- * Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Crown of Kelantan – Dato'
- * Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Noble Crown of Kelantan – Dato'
- * Knight Commander of the Exalted Order of Malacca – Datuk Wira
- * Knight Grand Companion of the Order of Sultan Ahmad Shah of Pahang – Dato' Sri
- * Knight Companion of the Order of Sultan Ahmad Shah of Pahang – Dato'
- * Knight Commander of the Order of the Defender of State – Dato' Seri
- * Companion of the Order of the Defender of State – Dato'
- * Knight Grand Commander of the Order of Taming Sari – Dato' Seri Panglima
- * Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Crown of Perlis – Dato' Seri
- * Grand Commander of the Order of Kinabalu – Datuk Seri Panglima
- * Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Crown of Selangor – Dato' Seri
- * Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Crown of Terengganu – Dato'
- * Companion of the Order of Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin of Terengganu
Foreign honours
- * Order of Paduka Keberanian Laila Terbilang First Class – Dato Paduka Seri
- * Darjah Utama Bakti Cemerlang (Tentera) –
- * Recipient of the ONUMOZ Medal with "2" award numeral