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Syed Wajid Ali Shah, the head of the Ali family and the founder & president of Liaquat National Hospital passed away on June 14, 2008. He was born on December 20, 1911, in Lahore and was the third son of Sir Syed Maratib Ali. He received his early education in Lahore and later studied at the Government College. He then joined the Indian Army as a commissioned officer and served the army during the World War II..
To look after the growing business of his father, Mr. Syed Wajid Ali Shah left the army to join the family business in the early 40s. His father assigned him the responsibility of the work in Bombay. The Ali family was a staunch supporter of the Pakistan Movement and Syed Wajid Ali Shah got to know, Quaid-e-Azam very closely. He used to assist the Quaid-e-Azam in his political work and was very close to him and Mohtarma Fatima Jinnah.
Due to his close association with the Quaid-e-Azam and hard work for the Muslim League, he was nominated as a member of the committee, on behalf of the Muslim League, to oversee the referendum in the North West Frontier Province.
After the birth of Pakistan and demise of the Quaid-e-Azam, Syed Wajid Ali shah disassociated himself from political activities and devoted himself to the family’s business and philanthropic work. His business philosophy was not just financial reward but to bring technology and innovation in the country for its development.As an industrialist, Syed Wajid Ali shah established and managed many industrial projects. Among his major projects was Ali Automobiles, a Ford car manufacturing unit, which was taken over by the government in 1973. He also set up and managed the Abbasi Textile Mills Limited, Rahimyar Khan; which was established in 1945 and was famous for its bed sheets, towels and other cotton products
In his other industrial activities, he was the Chairman & Managing Director - Packages Limited; he also served as the Chairman of Treet Corporation Limited; Zuleqar Industries Limited; Loads Limited & Wazir Ali Industries Limited.
After his father’s death, Syed Wajid Ali shah took over his father’s responsibility as the chairman of Gulab Devi Hospital. During this long association, he made this small chest hospital as a major hospital in Pakistan, specializing in TB and other chest-related diseases. During his leadership, the hospital established another unit at Kasur.
Despite his hectic industrial engagements, Syed Wajid Ali shah was a great son of the soil who gave his time and money generously for extending health services and sports facilities to the people of Pakistan. His activities in the health sector included his efforts in establishing Liaquat National Hospital, Karachi, in 1953 dedicated to provide the most modern facilities to humanity, especially the poor.
Among his other contributions in the area of health included his association and services to the Pakistan Red Crescent Society where he served as a chairman from 1968 to 1998. As a result of his association with the Red Crescent, he also remained a member of the International League of Red Cross and the Red Crescent Societies, Geneva, for a number of years. He also served as the president of the ICRC Finance Commission from 1978 to 1981.
Syed Wajid Ali Shah’s dedication to sports has been exemplary and goes a long way to 1978 when he joined the Pakistan Olympic Association as its president and remained in this position till 2004. Among his great contributions to the association was the financing and creation of the Olympic Museum, which was the first of its kind in the whole of the sub-continent. Most of the artifacts in the Museum were donated by Syed Wajid Ali shah.
His natural leadership took him from Pakistan to the international level where he became a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1959. He remained a member of the prestigious body till 1996. In view of his unprecedented services to the Olympic movement, he was made an honorary member of the IOC in 1996. His other positions in the IOC were: member of the Finance Commission of the International Olympic Committee; member of the Coordination and Supervising Committee for the IOC/NOC Relations 1967-68, vice-president of the Coordination and Supervising Committee for IOC/NOC Relations 1968-71; member of the Enlarged Commission for Press and Public Relations 1968-72; member of the Commission of Enquiry for Rhodesia 1973-75.
A natural extension of his services to the Pakistan Olympic Association Award Ceremony was his involvement with the work of the Pakistan Sports Board of which he remained a member from 1978 to 2004.
Another area, which Syed Wajid Ali shah, touched was of culture and arts in which he had a deep-rooted interest. He became the chairman of the All Pakistan Music Conference in 1960. The conference introduced and promoted many classical singers and performers. On another scale, he envisioned and established the Institute of Islamic Culture in 1952. The institute, of which he was the chairman, promoted harmony among various Islamic scholars and common Muslims by publishing various books and articles of famous scholars.
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