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Tuesday, 13 December 2011 08:38am

©The Star (Used by permission)
by WANI MUTHIAH

WHO becomes the Yang di-Pertuan Agong is determined by the rotation list decided by the Conference of Rulers and is not stipulated under the Federal Constitution.

This means that the Sultan of Kedah, Tuanku Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah, will have risen to the top of the rotation list twice in order for him to be appointed Yang di-Pertuan Agong again.

Besides being the 14th Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Tuanku Abdul Halim was also the country's fifth King.

Bar Council Constitutional Law Committee chairman Syahredzan Johan said although it was up to the rulers whom they wanted to elect as King, selection was actually done by way of rotation as well as in accordance with the order of names on the list.

The list, he said, was initiated after the country's independence in 1957.

“The rotation system was formulated based on the internal policies and understanding within the Conference of Rulers.”

However, the Federal Constitution, Syahredzan added, did not state that the selection of the King was upon a rotation basis but merely mentioned for him to be chosen and elected by the other rulers.

The Conference of Rulers Majlis Raja-Raja was provided for under Article 38 of the Federal Constitution to create a platform for the Sultans and the Yang Di-Pertua Negeri to meet and confer.

The first round of rotation was completed with the appointment of the Sultan of Perak, Sultan Azlan Shah, as the ninth Yang di-Pertuan Agong from 1989 to 1994.

The new list then came into effect with the appointment of Negri Sembilan Ruler Almarhum Tuanku Ja'afar, whose father Almarhum Tuanku Abdul Rahman was the country's first Yang di-Pertuan Agong from 1957 to 1960, as the 10th King in 1994.

Constitutional expert Prof Emeritus Datuk Dr Shad Saleem Faruqi said that when the first rotation list was drawn up after 1957, the first name in the order was decided based upon the seniority of tenure as Sultan.

“But at that time, the most eligible and senior candidates had turned down the offer to become the Yang di-Pertuan Agong. So, the position was offered to the next most senior and eligible candidate,” said Dr Shad Saleem.

Under the first list, both the then Sultans of Johor and Pahang, who were the first and second most senior rulers in the order of names, had declined the appointment.

Once a Ruler had either been appointed as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong or declined the post, his name would go down to the bottom of the list, explained both Dr Shad Saleem and Syahredzan.

“In the event a Ruler declines the office of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong or is disqualified by his brother rulers, the Conference of Rulers will then decide upon and pick another candidate to fill the position,” added Dr Shad Saleem.

Under Article 32 of the Federal Constitution, a Yang di-Pertuan Agong can also be removed from office by his brother rulers.

There is also no prohibition against a Ruler from becoming King twice, as shown by the historic event of Tuanku Abdul Halim's ascent to the throne again.

Dr Shad Saleem said Tuanku Abdul Halim's election as the next Yang di-Pertuan Agong was the natural progression of the rotation system.

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