KUALA LUMPUR: The visit by His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, to Brunei to personally present the Instrument of Royal Invitation for the Installation of His Majesty as the 17th King of Malaysia on July 20 to the Sultan of Brunei, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, underscores the close relationship between the neighbouring countries.
Istana Negara Grand Chamberlain Datuk Azuan Effendy Zairakithnaini said Sultan Ibrahim’s visit to Istana Nurul Iman in Bandar Seri Begawan on June 25 highlighted the strong and unique bond forged between the heads of state.
Azuan Effendy, who accompanied His Majesty during the visit, described the meeting as beautiful and special, carried out in a cosy atmosphere.
“Even though Brunei is not part of Malaysia, the fraternity among the Malay Rulers led Sultan Ibrahim to consent to a visit to Brunei and personally present the invitation letter to Sultan Hassanal.
“The audience and the presentation of the Instrument of Invitation uses specific honorifics in the palace language, but (during the meeting) His Majesty referred to Sultan Hassanal as ‘abang’ (elder brother), while the Brunei Sultan addressed Sultan Ibrahim as ‘adik’ (younger brother).
“It is truly extraordinary,” he told Bernama recently.
Azuan Effendy said that during the meeting, the Sultan of Brunei expressed his gratitude and delight over Sultan Ibrahim’s visit.
He added that the Brunei Ruler stated his intention to attend the ceremony even though he would be occupied with various programmes as Brunei celebrates His Majesty’s 78th birthday on July 15.
“His Majesty (Sultan Hassanal) said he would rearrange official events planned to attend and show support for Sultan Ibrahim’s installation ceremony,” Azuan Effendy said.
On the Instrument of Royal Invitation, Azuan Effendy said it was specially made from goatskin and presented to Malay Rulers and Yang di-Pertua Negeri, as well as foreign royalty, requesting them to grace the installation ceremony, which is the traditional practice.
“The words remain unchanged, handwritten in Jawi script using the Malay language and placed in a special capsule before being presented by the delegation to the invitees,” he added.
Sultan Ibrahim took the oath and signed the instrument of office as the 17th King of Malaysia on Jan 31.
