PETALING JAYA: While legal experts have differing views on the Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negri Sembilan’s constitutional power to revoke exco appointments, they agree on the need for the dispute to be resolved through state Constitution, adat principles and dialogue.
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia’s Assoc Prof Dr Muhammad Fathi Yusof said the phrase “at the pleasure of the Ruler” could not be read in isolation as conferring unfettered discretion on the Ruler.
“Article XXXVIII(5) itself goes on to expressly contemplate the revocation of an exco member’s appointment by the Ruler on the advice of the Mentri Besar,” he said.
Muhammad Fathi said the Negri Sembilan Constitution requires the Ruler to act on the advice of the executive council or a member acting under its general authority, except where the Constitution provides otherwise.
“While the constitutional power to revoke the appointment exists, its exercise is subject to the constitutional machinery governing advice,” he said.
Muhammad Fathi said the priority should be continuity of the state administration while pursuing a solution based on the Negri Sembilan Constitution, adat principles and dialogue.
Former Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia law professor Datin Dr Faridah Jalil said the issue should not be viewed solely as a question of the extent of the Yang di-Pertuan Besar’s discretion over the Mentri Besar and executive council.
She said the Constitution also set out an institutional framework involving the Yang di-Pertuan Besar, ruling chiefs, mentri besar, executive council and institutions of adat.
“The Negri Sembilan Constitution establishes an institutional, rather than a personal, conception of monarchical authority.
“The Yang di-Pertuan Besar does not operate as an isolated constitutional actor, but within a framework where royal authority, democratic responsibility and adat institutions coexist and interact,” she said.
Faridah said adat resam and constitutional convention were therefore important in understanding how constitutional powers should be exercised, particularly where the written Constitution was silent or ambiguous.
“The ultimate constitutional issue is not whether the Yang di-Pertuan Besar possesses power in a formal sense, but whether the Constitution authorises that power to be exercised personally and independently,” she said.
Former Malaysian Bar president Salim Bashir was of the opinion that the Negri Sembilan Ruler has the constitutional power to revoke exco appointments.
Salim pointed to Article XXXVIII(5) of the Negri Sembilan Constitution, which stated that exco members, except the Mentri Besar, served at the pleasure of the Ruler.
“The state Ruler has constitutional powers to revoke the appointment of exco members in two situations: first, upon the advice of the Mentri Besar, or secondly, due to a breach of oath,” he said.
“Since the exco members have breached their oath of office by retracting their allegiance against Tuanku Muhriz, it is imperative for the Ruler to sack the current exco members and call for a fresh list,” he claimed.
Salim said the fresh appointments should be expedited to prevent disruption to the running of the state government and the welfare of the people.
Nusantara Academy for Strategic Research senior fellow Dr Azmi Hassan said the phrase “at the pleasure of the Yang di-Pertuan Besar” gave the Ruler discretion to revoke an exco appointment.
“From the legal perspective, ‘at the pleasure of the Yang di-Pertuan Besar’ gives the Ruler discretion to revoke an exco member’s appointment,” he said.
Azmi said the dispute should ultimately be resolved through legal mechanisms based on the state Constitution.
He said failure to resolve the matter could lead to a constitutional impasse or crisis, particularly if questions remain over the status of the terminated excos.
“The best way forward to resolve this impasse is through legal means via the courts,” he said, adding that any decision reached through the courts should be accepted by all parties.
