Malaysia’s King Sultan Abdullah emerges as major political force amid turmoil

Since independence, the country’s monarchs mainly performed ceremonial functions like swearing-in ministers or pardoning criminal convicts
But with an administration that is one of the weakest in history, the king’s decisions have become crucial in determining whether the PM stays or goes

Malaysia

Bloombergin Kuala Lumpur

Published: 11:58am, 2 Nov 2020

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After decades in the background of Malaysia’s national politics, the monarchy has moved to centre stage to fill a power vacuum this year.

King Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad, who ascended the throne last year, stepped into the political fray back in February when a two-year-old government abruptly collapsed. He resolved the impasse by tapping Muhyiddin Yassin to become the next prime minister without a parliamentary vote. Since then Muhyiddin’s majority has regularly been questioned, and the country’s top politicians have sought meetings with the king while vying for power.

Is Malaysia’s king taking sides in the current political turmoil?

For Malaysia, where one coalition ruled for six straight decades until the 2018 election, it is relatively new for the monarch to play such a prominent role in politics. The nine members of the Conference of Rulers, who rotate power among themselves, have since the country’s independence from British rule mainly performed ceremonial functions like swearing-in ministers or pardoning criminal convicts.

But now, with the government holding at best a two-vote majority in parliament, the king’s decisions have become crucial in determining whether Muhyiddin’s administration stays or goes. The monarch has the constitutional power to appoint a prime minister or deny a request to dissolve parliament for an election, which in normal times merely confirms the outcome of a vote or the sitting government’s recommendation.

A soldier guards the Malaysian National Palace in Kuala Lumpur,. Photo: EPA

The lack of a clear mandate for the current prime minister now gives the king more weight, including when he makes statements on policy matters like the budget or the right coronavirus response.

“We have now a royalty becoming more prominent, more assertive in politics,” said Johan Saravanamuttu, an adjunct senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies who has written about Malaysian politics for more than 30 years. “It’s actually making important decisions with respect to politics.”

The king’s influence will be tested in the next few weeks. He has expressed “full confidence” in Muhyiddin’s ability to lead the country through the crisis and urged lawmakers to vote for the budget his government presents on November 6. If it does not go through, pressure will increase for the prime minister to resign or call an election – adding more risks for investors already concerned about a surge in coronavirus cases.

The monarch “called on the members of the House of Representatives to respect His Majesty’s advice for them to immediately stop all political disputes and instead prioritise the welfare of the people and the well-being of the country so that the 2021 budget is approved without any interference,” the palace said in an October 28 statement.

Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin delivers a speech on Saturday. Photo: Bernama/DPA

The palace did not respond to emailed questions on the role of the monarchy in Malaysia before publication.

Malaysia’s rotational monarchy is composed of the rulers of nine Malay states. The position of the king is passed among the rulers, with each term lasting five years.

After the country’s independence in 1957, the sultans and the ruling coalition led by the United Malays National Organisation (Umno) for the most part enjoyed a mutually beneficial relationship.

That changed with Mahathir Mohamad’s rise to power in the 1980s. He sought to curtail the monarchy’s influence by ending federal veto powers, removing their legal immunity and scrapping laws barring people from criticising the king. He also attempted to transfer emergency powers to the executive branch of government.

Mahathir Mohamad sought to curtail the monarchy’s influence during his first stint as Malaysia’s prime minister. Photo: Reuters

After Mahathir’s first 22-year stint in power ended in 2003, the sultans have “found ways to come back into the limelight,” said Greg Lopez, a lecturer at Murdoch University Executive Education Centtr in Perth.

“They are a power centre, so the politicians know that it’s a mistake to give them power because then they hold you in check,” he said. “So weak politicians, weak leaders go to them.”

Muhyiddin’s government is perhaps the most unstable in Malaysia’s history. The king’s increased prominence was evident during a speech at parliament’s first sitting in May, when he called for unity and urged lawmakers to “display maturity in politics”. It was the first time in the country’s history that a one-day session hosted only the king’s speech, leaving no time for representatives to discuss policies or address the pandemic.

Last month, the king rebuffed opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim’s claims to have “convincing” evidence of a parliamentary majority. He said Anwar did not submit lawmakers’ names to back up his claim, and urged the country to unite.

Muhyiddin ‘contemplating resignation’ after king rejects emergency plan

Less than two weeks later, the king also rejected Muhyiddin’s request to declare a state of emergency to tackle the pandemic, which would have allowed the prime minister to pass the budget without a vote. That move generated calls for Muhyiddin to resign even from within his own coalition.

Many in Malaysia are welcoming the enhanced role for the king, seeing him as a voice of reason during a time of political instability, economic distress and pandemic-related anxiety. When the king stopped emergency rule, “#daulattuanku” – which roughly means long live the king – was trending on Twitter.

Regardless of their changing political clout through the centuries, Malaysian royalty command fierce loyalty from the ethnic-Malay majority. Similar to Thailand, where protesters are breaking taboos to publicly challenge the royal family, criticising the Malaysian rulers carries legal risks.

The Edge newspaper reported last month that police arrested a local opposition politician for seditious comments about the monarchy posted on Facebook.

The monarch’s actions this year have been “unprecedented”, said Oh Ei Sun, a senior fellow with the Singapore Institute of International Affairs. “The monarchy assumes a much more constitutionally enhanced position.”

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