Adham Baba

Background

• Born 6 October 1962 in Batu Pahat, Johor; a medical doctor trained at the University of Malaya and UMNO Tenggara division chief.[1]
• Minister of Health (2020-2021), then Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation (2021-2022).[1]
• MP for Tenggara (2004-2008 and 2018-2022); Pasir Raja assemblyman across two terms (2008-2018).[1]
• Fielded by BN at Pasir Raja in place of the dropped incumbent, returning to a state contest after eight years away.[1]

Controversies

A controversy here just means something that drew public debate or criticism. We show it so you can weigh it up yourself, not to pass judgement.

• As Health Minister, in a 19 March 2020 RTM interview early in the COVID-19 pandemic, he suggested that drinking warm water helps flush the virus into the stomach where acid kills it; the claim was rejected by the WHO, the Health Director-General and other doctors as having no scientific basis.[1][2]
• In April 2020 he said he had joined a WHO videoconference with 'over 500 countries', later correcting the figure to about 500 participants from 50 countries.[1]
• At a July 2021 Universiti Putra Malaysia event he referred to the 1918 'Spanish flu' as 'Spanish fly' and cited a death toll far below the actual figure, an error noted publicly given his medical training.[1]

References

1. 1.en.wikipedia.org (2026-06-28)
2. 2.malaysiakini.com (2026-06-28)