Remembering Dato’ Leela Mohd Ali – Ariff Farhan Doss

THERE are some people in our lives whom we can describe by their position, their achievements or the titles they carried. And then there are people like Dato’ Leela Mohd Ali.

No title could ever adequately describe what she meant to me.

Yes, she was the CEO of Yayasan Budi Penyayang Malaysia. She was a leader. She was
respected. She was strong, determined and incredibly passionate about the work she did.

But to me, she was so much more. She was my mentor, confidant and friend. Someone who took me in as her own and chose to become a mother to me.

She was like a mother to me. Dato’ Leela was truly a larger-than-life personality. She had presence. She had energy. She had opinions and she was never afraid to share them!

Those of us who knew her well will smile at that. She could be tough. She could be demanding.
She could tell you exactly what she thought, whether you were ready to hear it or not.

But beneath that strength was an incredibly caring heart. She cared deeply about people.
She cared about PENYAYANG. She cared about the people we served, particularly those going through some of the most difficult moments of their lives.

And when she cared about you personally, she cared completely.

That was the Leela I knew. Our relationship went far beyond work. There were conversations about PENYAYANG, programmes, budgets, problems and the hundred other things that came with our
responsibilities. But there were also conversations about life.

About family. About disappointments. About people. About our hopes, our frustrations and
sometimes our fears.

There were moments of laughter. There were disagreements. There were moments when she
advised me, moments when she scolded me, and probably moments when she wondered why
I wasn’t listening to her in the first place.

And today, strangely, I would give anything to have one more of those conversations. One more piece of advice. One more disagreement. One more laugh. One more phone call.

Because when someone has been such a constant presence in your life, you somehow
believe they will always be there. Until one day, they are not.


And that is perhaps the hardest part of losing someone like Leela. I have lost people in my life, as we all have. But some losses are different.

This one is different. I lost someone who helped shape the person I became.

She believed in me. She guided me. She corrected me when I needed correcting. She stood by me. There are things she taught me that I probably did not realise she was teaching me at the time.

She taught me that leadership is not about sitting in a position. It is about caring enough to take responsibility.

She taught me that if something matters, you fight for it. She taught me that compassion must be
translated into action.

And perhaps most importantly, she taught me that you can be strong and still have an enormous heart.
That was how she lived.

Leela did not live quietly. She lived fully. She loved fiercely. She fought hard for what she believed in.
She left her mark on people. And she certainly left her mark on me.

Today, when I look at PENYAYANG, I see her everywhere. In the work that continues. In the people whose lives have been touched. In the values she defended. In the causes she championed.

And in those of us who were fortunate enough to walk alongside her. Her chair may now be empty, but her presence is not gone. Because how fortunate was I to have had someone in my life whom I could turn to? Someone I could trust. Someone I could argue with. Someone I could laugh with. Someone I could seek advice from. Perhaps we always think there will be another day to say these things that matter to the people who matter.

So let me say them now.
Thank you.
Thank you for believing in me.
Thank you for guiding me.
Thank you for putting up with me.
Thank you for the laughter, the lessons, the arguments and the memories.
Thank you for being there during the good days and the difficult ones.
Thank you for being part of my life.

I will miss you more than words can properly express.

But I also know that the best way I can honour you is by carrying forward what you stood for.
To continue the work.
To care for people.
To fight for those who need someone to fight for them.

And to make sure that PENYAYANG continues to live up to the name and the values you gave so
much of your life to.

Leela left a little bit of herself in each of us who loved her.

And a very big part of her will always remain in me.

Al-Fatihah.

May Allah SWT forgive her shortcomings, accept all the good she did in this world, grant her the
highest place in Jannah, and give all of us who loved her the strength to carry on.

Until we meet again. – August 10, 2026

Datuk Ariff Farhan Doss is a Malaysian corporate leader and the former Chief Operating Officer of the Human Resource Development Corporation (HRDF)