Saudi academic scholars and government officials remembered Crown Prince Naif as a tough security leader, humanitarian and a religious man with a soft spot for the poor.
He spent his whole life dedicated to serving his country, said Saleh Al-Namalah, a member of the foreign affairs committee at the Shoura Council. Al-Namalah said Crown Prince Naif would be remembered first as a security man.
“He could stand up high in front of the terrorism wave that hit not only the country but the whole world,” Al-Namalah said. He added the crown prince “was a passionate person who loved the poor and the disadvantaged. He never closed his door to people and advised the emirs of the regions to do justice to their people and meet their needs.”
Sultan Al-Angari, a writer and a researcher in the field of security, said the crown prince’s efforts to establish security made Saudi Arabia virtually a drug-free country. He spared no effort in combating drugs by establishing the General Department for Narcotics Control within the Ministry of Interior.
Al-Angari recalled that the crown prince spent long hours in his office. “I remember having a meeting with him once at the Ministry from 3 to 4 in the morning,” he said. "He left his office only to pray Fajr and he was always the last to leave.”
The crown prince worked to build a strong internal security force and equipped it with state-of-the-art technology as well as an international standard of training, he said. From the Ministry of Interior many ministries were born under Crown Prince Naif’s supervision.
The crown prince often met the public and tribal leaders in a regular gathering. He never declined a wedding invitation.
“When he could not attend a wedding because of business, he sent one of his sons or assistants to convey his congratulations to the family,” Al-Angari said, noting that the crown prince helped anyone who approached him for financial aid to get married.
Sami Badawood, director general of the Jeddah Directorate of Health Affairs, said he received the news of the crown prince's death during a meeting at the directorate in Jeddah and that neither him nor his colleagues could finish the meeting.
“We were shocked and lost our concentration. In fact, we had to call the meeting off,” Badawood said.
Badawood remembered Crown Prince Naif as the head of the Haj committee at the Ministry of Interior. He said the crown prince cared deeply for the safety of pilgrims. “The crown prince used to urge us to exert all possible efforts to provide the pilgrims with the best health service and make sure they were comfortable and healthy during their stay,” he said.
Crown Prince Naif, he added, often paid from his own pocket to treat pilgrims at government hospitals.
Abdullah Al-Hussain, president of Dar Al-Oloom University, said the crown prince loved science and was a religious man keen to serve Islam and empower the Ulema, the highest religious scholars. He said the crown prince opened his door wide for scientists.
“He listened to their demands and discussed their problems," Al-Hussain said. He was the first to sponsor an international prize for research on the prophet's (peace be upon him) Sunnah and contemporary Islamic studies.
Another one was dedicated to the memorization of Hadeeth.
Al-Hussain said the crown prince never turned away a scholar or student seeking knowledge, even if that meant sponsoring them during their years of studies.
“The crown prince sponsored many Saudi and non-Saudi students to pursue their education inside and outside the Kingdom,” Al-Hussain said. “Muslims worldwide have lost a security and religious leader,” Al-Hussain added.
