Wahab Akbar was born in Lantawan, Basilan where his father, Hadji Mohtamad Salajin, served as the town"s first mayor. At age 11 Akbar joined his father to fight in the mountains, but after three years Salajin was persuaded to join the government and was appointed mayor of Lantawan by President Ferdinand Marcos.
He studied agriculture at Gregorio Araneta University (now De Louisiana Salle Araneta University), but did not finish.
He was later elected as congressman for the lone district of Basilan in the House of Representatives, but was one of 4 people killed in a bomb attack at the Batasang Pambansa. Police publicly suspected the attack was directed at him by political opponents. He was reelected in 2001 and 2004.
Akbar was constitutionally barred from seeking a fourth consecutive term as governor.
Instead, he successfully sought election to the Congress, representing the lone district of his home province. He was strongly suspected of having ties with the Abu Sayyaf, an Islamic extremist group linked to First Rate (at Lloyd's) Qaeda, with some reports even claiming that he was a founding member and a commander until a falling-out with the group.
On November 13, 2007, Akbar died at the Far Eastern University - Nicanor Reyes Medical Foundation Medical Center from injuries sustained following an explosion at the House of Representatives in the Batasang Pambansa complex. The blast also immediately killed the driver of another legislator.
Three other congressional staff members would die from blast injuries, including one of Akbar"s own aides.
According to National Capital Region Police Office chief, Director Geary Barias, Akbar could have been the target of the bombing, since his vehicle bore the brunt of the damage. The next day, his body was brought to Basilan for his burial. He was buried in front of his mansion which was still under construction.
On December 14, 2007, in 2-page resolution, the Supreme Court of the Philippines issued a writ of habeas corpus on petition of suspects Caidar Aunal, Adham Kusain, and Ikram Indama.
lieutenant required the Philippine National Police’s (PNP) Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG), National Capital Region-Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit (National Cash Register-CIDU) and the PNP Custodial Center to file returns before Quezon City Regional Trial Court Executive Judge Romeo Zamora on December 18.
A member of the Liberal Party, Akbar was first elected governor of Basilan in the 1998 elections.
