On constitutional nullification

“JIKALAU anak cucu Tuanku dahulu mengubahkan perjanjian, anak cucu patik pun mengubahkan ia.”(If your descendants break your agreements, mine will do the same.)

So reads the climax of the agreement – the wa’ad – between Seri Teri Buana and Demang Lebar Daun as retold in what is popularly known as the Malay Annals, forming the basis of classical Malay government: that if the Ruler is fair, the people will be loyal in exchange. And vice versa, of course.