Why does Malaysia have a rotating monarchy? Who is its new king?

Malayasia has a new king. But no one died. Nor has anyone been deposed. Instead, Malaysia has welcomed its new monarch under its novel system – which chooses a new king every five years. But who is the new king? And what do we know about this system? Let’s take a closer look: Who is the new king? Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar is an outspoken billionaire. As per Time Magazine, he was born on 22 November, 1958. His father is Sultan Iskandar ibni Almarhum Sultan Ismail and his mother is Josephine Ruby Trevorrow. Ismail and Trevorrow met while the Sultan was studying in Britain. Sultan Ibrahim is a fully trained army, navy, and air force officer, as per his coronation website. He studied at Boston’s Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy.

The 65-year-old is one of the richest men in the country.

He has an extensive business empire ranging from real estate to telecoms and power plants. Bloomberg describes Sultan Ibrahim as “a motorcycle-riding, Ferrari-driving, Instagram-savvy royal.” His family’s assets are worth a minimum of $5.7 billion. The family has over 300 luxury cars including one from Adolf Hitler – a friend of his great-grandfather. Three Gulfstreams and a gold-and-blue Boeing 737 are among the fleet of private jets that belong to his family. Sultan Ibrahim is said to own a quarter of one of the country’s biggest cell phone service companies. He has another $483 million in private companies and $105 million in public firms. “The extent to which Sultan Ibrahim displays his riches — and speaks out on issues traditionally reserved for elected politicians — makes him unique among Malaysia’s nine hereditary rulers, who rotate the role of head of state among them every five years,” the Bloomberg piece states. Sultan Ibrahim is also the only ruler with a private army — a condition agreed upon for the state to join modern-day Malaysia. Vocal about welfare issues, he takes annual road trips on his motorbike to meet the people in his state. [caption id=“attachment_13674952” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Military band perform during a welcoming ceremony of the 17th King of Malaysia, Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar at National Palace in Kuala Lumpur. AP[/caption] As per The Guardian, he has been seen handing out charity to citizens on his Harley-Davidson. Sultan Ibrahim’s high corporate profile — including a stake in the multibillion-dollar Forest City development project in Johor with China’s beleaguered developer Country Garden — has raised eyebrows amid concerns of a possible conflict of interest. He told the Singapore Straits Times that he plans to revive a high-speed rail link project with Singapore and bolster the troubled Forest City project. The sultan has publicly advocated setting up a special economic zone between Johor and neighbouring Singapore to strengthen ties. As per NDTV, Sultan Ibrahim owns land worth $4 billion in Singapore including Tyersall Park near the Botanic Gardens. His investment portfolio alone is $1.1 billion. As per The Guardian, Sultan Ibrahim is thought to be a religious moderate. In 2017, he ordered a launderette owner to apologise for allegedly discriminating against non-Muslims. The sultan has defended his business dealings. In 2015, he quipped that he has to “earn a living, like ordinary Malaysians” as he cannot rely on his $5,700 monthly state allowance. Sultan Ibrahim’s wife Raja Zarith Sofiah, who is from another royal family, is an Oxford graduate and a prolific writer who has authored several children’s books. They have five sons and a daughter. What do we know about this system? Malaysia gained its independence from the British in 1975. Malaysia has 13 states but only nine have royal families. Some of them trace their roots to centuries-old Malay kingdoms that were independent states until the British brought them together. Under Malaysia’s system, nine ethnic Malay state rulers take turns ruling as king for five-year terms. The order of rotation among the sultans was determined by seniority, based on how long they had been ruling. But that rule was dropped after all the royal families completed a term each.

They now take turns based on the initial order.

Nevertheless, they hold a secret vote but the ballot only has the name of the sultan whose turn it is. Each sultan is required to indicate whether they believe the nominee is suitable to be king. The candidate must get a simple majority to become king. Once the result is announced, the ballot papers are destroyed in the presence of the sultans. The King is called the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong (He Who is Made Lord). The monarch is the nominal head of the government and armed forces, and is highly regarded as the protector of Islam and Malay tradition. All laws, Cabinet appointments and the dissolution of Parliament for general elections require his assent. The king also has the power to proclaim an emergency and pardon criminals. Sultan Ibrahim’s election to the national throne by his fellow rulers in October was widely expected. Sultan Nazrin Shah, the ruler of Perak state and next in line to the throne, was re-elected as deputy king. Sultan Ibrahim succeeded Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah of Pahang state, who presided over a tumultuous period that included COVID-19 lockdowns and political instability. In essence, Malaysia is a parliamentary democracy, with the monarch as head of the state and playing a largely ceremonial role. So why does it matter? Because the monarchy has become more influential in recent years due to prolonged political instability during which the king has wielded rarely used discretionary powers. The king is allowed to appoint a prime minister who he believes has a parliamentary majority, a power never utilised until 2020 as the premier is typically picked through an election. But a series of political shocks in recent years has forced the monarchy to play a greater role, with the previous king picking the last three prime ministers. As per Bloomberg, this began in 2018 when a coalition that ruled Malaysia for over six decades fell. In 2020, when then prime minister Mahathir Mohamad resigned, the king met all 222 lawmakers to decide which of them could command a majority to form the next government. He appointed Muhyiddin Yassin as the premier after those meetings. In 2021, when Muhyiddin lost his majority, the king picked Ismail Sabri Yaakob to be premier after a similar process.

He then picked Anwar Ibrahim as prime minister in late 2022 when a general election resulted in a hung parliament.

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“That has effectively made Malaysia’s politicians — including Anwar, who now oversees a wobbly government with nearly 20 parties — more beholden to the king than ever before,” the piece states. [caption id=“attachment_13253922” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Malaysian prime minister Anwar Ibrahim gestures as he delivers his speech during his visit at the Malacanang palace, in Manila, Philippines, March 1, 2023. Aaron Favila/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo[/caption] Muhamad Takiyuddin, associate professor of political science at University Kebangsaan Malaysia, told Time Magazine he has “big shoes to fill.” “In the current political atmosphere in Malaysia, we can be sure the monarchy [is] not only expected to play [an] important role as a stabiliser but also as [an] important source of psychological relief for the people,” Takiyuddin said. The king also has the power to pardon convicted people. In 2018, the then-monarch pardoned Anwar, who was imprisoned on sodomy and corruption charges that he says were politically motivated. Former prime minister Najib Razak, who was jailed last year after being convicted of graft linked to state fund 1MDB, has applied for a royal pardon. That request could be reviewed by the new king. What’s more, Sultan Ibrahim has hinted he will take an active role in affairs. Sultan Ibrahim said in an interview with the Singapore Straits Times published last month that he would not want to waste five years on the throne as a “puppet king” but will focus on fighting graft and deepening unity in the country. “There’re 222 of you [lawmakers] in parliament. There’re over 30 million [population] outside. I’m not with you, I’m with them,” he was quoted as saying by The Guardian. “I will support the government, but if I think they are doing something improper, I will tell them.” The sultan and other rulers have also warned against attempts by the Opposition to oust Ibrahim’s government, calling instead for political stability.

Sultan Ibrahim also has close ties with Anwar.

His rule is expected to bolster Anwar’s unity government which is facing a strong Islamic opposition. He took his oath of office at the palace and signed the instrument of the proclamation of office in a ceremony witnessed by other royal families, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and Cabinet members on Wednesday. A coronation ceremony will be held later. With inputs from agencies