1. Yusof bin Ishak Al-Haj was a Singaporean journalist and civil servant who served as the second Yang di-Pertuan Negara of Singapore from 1959 to 1965 and the first president of Singapore between 1965 and 1970, both roles serving as the head of state of Singapore.
Yusof Ishak was a central figure in Utusans success, staying with the newspaper for two decades.
Yusof Ishak left in 1959 following conflicts between Utusan and UMNO, which ultimately led to UMNO buying all the shares of Utusan.
Yusof Ishak returned to Singapore from Kuala Lumpur, where Utusan was located, and was invited to serve as chairman of the Public Service Commission by then-Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew.
Yusof Ishak would serve in this role until 1965, when Singapore gained independence and the Yang di-Pertuan Negara was succeeded by the president of Singapore.
Yusof Ishak served three terms in office before he died on 23 November 1970 due to heart failure.
Yusof Ishak was born on 12 August 1910 in Padang Gajah, a kampong village in Terong, Larut, Matang and Selama District, Perak, which was then a part of the Federated Malay States.
The eldest son of nine siblings, Yusof Ishak was of Malay and Sumatran descent.
Yusof Ishak's father was of Minangkabau descent who lived in Penang before moving to Perak whilst his mother was of Malay descent who came from Langkat, North Sumatra.
Yusof Ishak's father was Ishak bin Ahmad, a civil servant who held the post of Acting Director of Fisheries.
Yusof Ishak received his early education at the Malay School and King Edward VII School, both in Taiping, Perak.
In 1923, when his family moved to the Straits Settlements after his father was posted there, Yusof Ishak studied at Victoria Bridge School.
Yusof Ishak was a part of The Rafflesian, a school newspaper, as a co-editor and a prefect.
In 1927, Yusof Ishak passed his Cambridge School Certificate examination with distinctions and entered the Queen's Scholarship Class in RI.
Yusof Ishak was one of 13 students in the Queen's Scholarship Class, along with being the only Malay student.
Yusof Ishak studied at RI for two more years, graduating in 1929 when he was unable to get the scholarship.
Yusof Ishak initially wanted to pursue law, but was unable to after his study application in London was turned down and his father could not afford to send him to study abroad.
Yusof Ishak was promised promotion to an officer by the Police Commissioner.
Yusof Ishak left the police force soon after and returned to Singapore.
In 1932, Yusof Ishak joined Warta Malaya, a Malay newspaper with the highest circulation during that time, after his friend Syed Hussein bin Ali Alsagoff invited him to join it.
Yusof Ishak worked at Warta for eight years, becoming a manager.
In 1938, Yusof Ishak was among a group of twenty other Malays who met up at the home of the president of the Singapore Malay Association to discuss creating a Malay newspaper that was owned by Malays.
Yusof Ishak was assigned with gathering funds and expertise from the Malay community for this project.
Yusof Ishak rented out a cheap office in Queen Street, the then-red-light district in Singapore, and a moveable jawi flatbed press from Hong Kong.
Yusof Ishak was released but ordered to work at Berita Malai, a newspaper that was run by the Japanese, as an editor.
Yusof Ishak worked there till 1943, when he fell ill and returned back to Taiping, Perak.
In 1948, Yusof Ishak addressed the ban on Utusan Zaman, a Singaporean newspaper, in Indonesia.
In 1949, Utusan celebrated its tenth anniversary, and Yusof Ishak gave a speech where he stated that "[Utusans] 130 employees owned more than 25 per cent of the firm's total capital", further stating that it "was perhaps the only newspaper in the world in which 95 per cent of the employees were shareholders".
In 1951, Yusof Ishak got help from Lee to represent his friend Abdul Samad Ismail after he was detained by the British; Abdul would later found the People's Action Party with Lee.
That same year, Yusof Ishak was invited by the United States to represent Malaya as a journalist along with being recommended as a nominated member of the Legislative Council.
In 1957, Yusof Ishak moved to Kuala Lumpur and in February 1958, the headquarters of Utusan Melayu was relocated to the city, making the newspaper more Malaya based with only a branch office remaining in Singapore.
Yusof Ishak initially resisted the UMNO's attempts but finally left in 1959 after he sold all his shares and left to Singapore.
In December 1959, it was announced by the government that Yusof Ishak would succeed Goode as Yang di-Pertuan Negara, the head of state of Singapore, on 3 December.
Yusof Ishak had held a few minor roles in the government before his appointment such as on the Film Appeal Committee from 1948 to 1950, member of the Nature Reserves Committee for a year, and member of the Malayanisation Commission.
Yusof's brothers Aziz and Abdul Rahim Ishak believe that it was due to his strong pro-Singapore views and his previous reputation with Utusan Melayu.
Yusof Ishak was taken to City Hall the following day, where he was officially sworn in on 3 December 1959 as the Yang di-Pertuan Negara.
Aziz stated that Yusof Ishak had accepted the role as he wanted to show the Malay community that the PAP were not anti-Malay and that they believed in multi-racialism.
Yusof Ishak wanted to show himself as a humble person instead of living in the prestigious Istana building.
Yusof Ishak visited various constituencies over the years, including Bukit Panjang, Bukit Merah, Bukit Timah, Bras Basah, and the Southern Islands.
Yusof Ishak was usually accompanied by the constituency's Member of Parliament and tended to visit schools, community centres, and other points of interest.
Yusof Ishak often used these visits to unite constituents and reiterate their support for the government.
In 1960, Yusof Ishak visited the Southern Islands, where he planted a coconut tree and announced that during the Muslim's month of fasting, rice, sugar, and dates would be provided to them.
Yusof Ishak stated that the gesture was to show the government's support to the multi-religious people of Singapore.
Yusof Ishak marked the site of a new mosque that was to be built at the cost of S$3,000.
On 8 January 1964, Yusof Ishak was sworn in for a second term as Yang di-Pertuan Negara.
Yusof Ishak gave an opening speech at the theatre, emphasising his support for the initiative as it would help to develop a "deep sense of communication with one another", especially now that Singapore was apart of Malaysia.
On 21 July 1964, Yusof Ishak led a procession of 25,000 Muslims at the Padang to celebrate the prophet Mohammed's birthday.
Yusof Ishak gave a speech before the procession to the Muslims, stating that they had to be "patient, forbearing and industrious" when it came to adjusting to the merger.
Yusof Ishak continued to spread this view as he visited constituencies, such as at Telok Blangah and Punggol.
Yusof Ishak received commendations from Prime Minister Lee, Members of Parliament Rahmat bin Kenap, Lim Guan Hoo, and S Ramaswamy upon his successful election.
Yusof Ishak began his first presidential term on 4 December 1967.
In 1968, while on a tour in Australia, Yusof Ishak suffered a heart attack and was flown to Melbourne for treatment.
Yusof Ishak would serve his first presidential term until his death in office in 1970.
On 23 November 1970, Yusof Ishak died of heart failure at 7:30 am at Outram Hospital.
Yusof Ishak had been struggling with his health since his heart attack in Australia in 1968.
Countries who paid respect to Yusof Ishak include Bulgaria, Thailand, Austria, Nauru, Brunei, Barbados, Italy, Ghana, Brazil, Argentina, Peru, China, South Korea, the Philippines, Zambia, Tonga, Vietnam, France, Peru, Indonesia, Panama, Khmer Republic, Turkey, Czechoslovak Socialist Republic, United Arab Republic, Japan, India, Trinidad and Tobago, Indonesia, Hungarian People's Republic, Nepal, German Democratic Republic, Lebanon, Norway, Sweden, Malta, and Nigeria.
Yusof Ishak married his wife Noor Aishah Mohammad Salim in 1949, when she was 16.
One of Yusof Ishak's hobbies was photography, and a collection of his photographs was donated to the National Archives of Singapore by Noor Aishah.
Yusof Ishak was English educated, as were his siblings and children.
Yusof Ishak even told his wife Noor Aishah that, after he died, if she was unable to afford their children's educational fees, that she should rent out their house.
Yusof Ishak ignored stereotypes that Malays were lazy, instead encouraging more Malays to focus on their education.
Yusof Ishak's father wanted his children to understand Islam outside of rituals and to include science in the study of religion.
Yusof Ishak wanted Islam to follow modern times, including how Islamic traditions could help solve modern problems.
Yusof Ishak was a religious person in this regard, where he would visit different mosques weekly to pray.
In 2017, the Masjid Yusof Ishak was opened by his widow Noor Aishah.
In 2014, a wax figure of Yusof Ishak was unveiled at Madame Tussauds Singapore.
In 1963, Yusof Ishak was given the Grand Commander of the Order of the Defender of the Realm, which allowed him the use of the honorific title Tun.
In 1969, Yusof Ishak was given the honorary degree of Doctor of Letters from the National University of Singapore.