KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak today signed the condolence book at the Singapore High Commission here as a mark of respect for former Singapore President S R Nathan who passed away on Aug 22.

Najib, who arrived at 8.30am and spent about 10 minutes at the commission, was greeted on arrival by Singapore High Commissioner, Vanu Gopala Menon.

Speaking to reporters later, Najib on behalf of the government and the people of Malaysia expressed heartfelt condolences to the family of the late former president.

“The late former president when he was a high commissioner and subsequently as a president of Singapore was a great advocate of ties with Malaysia and Singapore.

“For this, we are very much appreciative for all his contribution,” Najib said. S R Nathan, 92, passed away peacefully at Singapore’s General Hospital at 9.48 pm on Monday.

On July 31, the Singapore prime minister’s office announced that Nathan suffered a stroke and was in critical condition in the intensive care unit at Singapore General Hospital.

Nathan who was appointed as Singapore’s High Commissioner to Malaysia in 1988, was the longest-serving President in Singapore, and was in office for two terms from 1999 to 2011.

He officially stepped down as the sixth president on Aug 31, 2011 and was succeeded by the current President Tony Tan Keng Yam. — BERNAMA