KUALA LUMPUR – Addressing Malaysia’s political and economic challenges during his reign, the outgoing Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah, revealed conflicting narratives regarding the nation’s finances under the leadership of two prime ministers.
During an interview aired this evening, Al-Sultan Abdullah spoke candidly, highlighting that one of the challenges he faced was that the governments under Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin had given him opposing accounts of the state of the nation’s coffers.
Al-Sultan Abdullah was asked whether there was anything that he would have done differently, looking at his years serving as the head of state.
“When I came in as Agong, the prime minister was Tun M. Every time I had a session with him, he would always tell me that the government was under financial constraints at that point in time,” Al-Sultan Abdullah said during the ‘Lambaian Mahkota’ interview session, which featured more than a dozen journalists from local and foreign media outlets.
“He (Dr Mahathir) also said that the country could not spend much and could not undertake big projects, even to the point that some of the projects would have to be cancelled.”
“I would not name those projects, but I understood the rationale behind the cancellations because I had just come in (as Agong), and I understood the rationale and accepted the reality.”
However, Al-Sultan Abdullah said that when Muhyiddin took over, following the infamous Sheraton Move in March 2020, the government appeared to have funds at its disposal.
“When he (Dr Mahathir) resigned, I found that the story was different. The government had funds to spend on it, and so on.
“But I do not want to say who was right or wrong (on the matter), as only God knows, but we know that a slight increase (in government funds) was announced in Parliament, an increase from year to year.”
Emergency declaration, Covid-19 spending
Reflecting on the Covid-19 pandemic, Al-Sultan Abdullah said he was “dissatisfied” and reluctant to sign the declaration of emergency, but he was left with no choice due to the rising number of infections at the time.
He also said that the government under Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob had indicated that the nation was in a sound financial state.
“All of this showed that the financial situation and the government’s fiscal policies, were not all that good, but okay.”
He mentioned a moderate GDP growth, competitive when compared to neighboring countries, but falling short of larger nations such as China.
Controlling leakages and proposed changes
With the present government, Al-Sultan Abdullah said he had been monitoring Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s efforts to control leakages and large spending, noting that the nation’s budget allocations were still large, despite the situation.
Nevertheless, the ruler noted Articles 39 and 40 of the federal constitution, which provides the federation’s executive authority to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong and which require the Agong to act in accordance with the advice of the cabinet or of a minister acting under the general authority of the cabinet.
“There are provisions (in the constitution) that allow the Yang di-Pertuan Agong to obtain any information that is related to the governance of the country in the federation.”
“So this shows that the powers of the Agong are far-reaching. Although acting on advice, (he) can obtain information and discuss it with the prime minister. The Agong can get information from any office, department, or ministry.”
In terms of the Agong’s role, Al-Sultan Abdullah said the functions of the ruler as the supreme commander of the military can be consolidated, adding that there were proposals to make the monarch an honorary commissioner of police, which would be raised in Parliament soon.
“It’s only a formality that allows the Agong to wear a police uniform, which is fitting because, after all, it is the Royal Malaysia Police Force.”
Today marked the end of Al-Sultan Abdullah’s reign as the 16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Malaysia’s head of state.
The 64-year-old took the oath of office as the 16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong on Jan 31, 2019. – January 30, 2024