MB stuck in palace controversy

JUST a dispute? A constitutional crisis? Or merely a storm in a royal teacup?

A senior lawyer, in a well-articulated argument, insisted that the tussle surrounding the Negri Sembilan palace or Istana Seri Menanti as it is known, is not a constitutional crisis.

However, Tan Sri Dr Rais Yatim, the foremost authority on the state’s unique adat perpatih or Minangkabau customary system, has declared it to be a crisis of epic proportions or to quote him more precisely, “krisis yang paling besar”.

The unprecedented conflict has pitched the palace against the state’s four powerful chieftains or Undang Yang Empat whose clout lies in their authority to choose or dispose of the Ruler.

The issue erupted when a video of the four Undang calling on the Ruler or the Yang di-Pertuan Besar Tuanku Muhriz Tuanku Munawir to step down went public.

It was like a bomb had gone off. No living person in Negri Sembilan had ever seen anything like this and some people even thought it was fake news.

Two days later, the four Undang, this time joined by their brother chieftain Tunku Besar Tampin, demanded that Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Aminuddin Harun also step down, claiming that he had overstepped his role in their clash with the palace.

They took their challenge further by boycotting the opening ceremony of the state legislative assembly on Thursday (April 23).

The sight of five empty chairs flanking the Ruler and his consort on the yellow-carpeted platform in the state assembly screamed crisis louder than words could.

Or as someone noted on social media, it was like “a roof without pillars”.

One of the empty chairs belonged to the Undang of Sungai Ujong, Datuk Mubarak Dohak, who was not invited because he was deemed to have been removed as the Undang. His removal has been disputed and is perceived to be the flashpoint of the crisis.

The other three, the Undang for Rembau, Jelebu and Johol as well as the Tunku Besar Tampin, who according to protocol, would usually lead the other Undang onto the stage, snubbed the event.

However, Tuanku Muhriz kept his composure and called for calm, restraint and respect for the law in his speech.

The state assembly sitting was postponed indefinitely shortly after the royal address.

State assembly Speaker Datuk M.M. Ibrahim Abd Rahman was less composed and struggled to explain the postponement.

The Speaker, who is from Parti Amanah, was probably aware of speculation about the threat of a vote of no confidence against the Mentri Besar whom the four Undang had openly called “a liar” and accused of taking sides instead of being a neutral voice.

The falling-out within the circle of nobles and royals in this normally serene state had spilled over into politics and it was no longer possible to pretend that it was a passing storm.

Perception is everything and social media has been throbbing with all kinds of opinions from the good to the bad and the ugly.

Rais has been proven right in his opinion that this is a crisis like no other. The Jelebu-born Rais was Mentri Besar in the state before becoming a federal minister.

He is also the author of “Adat: The Legacy of Minangkabau” and, although in his eighties, his mind is still as sharp and brilliant as lightning.

There are whispers that Umno, which has been eyeing the Mentri Besar post, is behind the crisis. But this crisis is too high-level for even the most cunning of schemers in Umno.

The precise genesis of the controversy is still unclear for now.

But from published reports thus far, it appears to have been sparked off by the removal of the Undang for Sungai Ujong in May 2025 after he acted on some alleged fraud by some nobles in his territory. The nobles implicated were said to have retaliated with a coup against him.

The Sungai Ujong chieftain is considered the most senior of the four Undang and his purported removal hung in the air until recently, on April 17, when the Dewan Keadilan dan Undang, the topmost council of elders that includes the Ruler and the Mentri Besar, affirmed his removal.

That was when all hell broke loose and two days later, the four Undang asked the Ruler to step down, citing “misconduct” but without providing details.

They also named Tunku Nazaruddin Tuanku Jaafar, the youngest son of the Ruler prior to Tuanku Muhriz, as the new Ruler.

Another interesting aspect of the state’s adat perpatih system is that there are four designated princes or, for want of a better term, “rulers-in-waiting” for the Undang to choose from.

At this point in time, one of these royals is from the Tuanku Muhriz clan and three are from the Tuanku Jaafar Tuanku Abdul Rahman clan. Tunku Nazaruddin, who is being pushed to be the new Ruler, is from the latter clan.

The post of Ruler carries high stakes because Negeri Sembilan’s turn as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong will come after Perak.

No one expects the sitting Ruler to cave in. However, the Mentri Besar is in a vulnerable position because when elephants fight, the grass gets trampled.

That things have reached this stage suggests that the feud has been brewing for some time and there is much more below the surface yet to be revealed.

“Nobody can predict how this will end,” said an Umno lawyer with close ties to some of the royals.

Asked about a possible resolution to the impasse, Rais said there is pride and reputation involved and the warring parties need to find a middle point and to seek a formula that is forthright and acceptable to both sides.

But have things gone too far for that to be possible? As Rais also pointed out, so much water has passed under the bridge that it may have reached the estuary.

Was that a nice way of saying that it has reached a point of no return?