constitutional system to exercise discretionary powers. In an address to the
Malaysian law conference in 2007 on the fiftieth anniversary of Malaysian inde-
pendence, I observed the following:
With the recognition and acknowledgment that they are now
constitutional monarchs required to act on advice of the Prime Minis-
ter, in the case of the King, and the state Chief Minister, in the case of
the state Rulers, the Rulers could be said to have emerged from the
Dark Ages. It is clear that the state and federal monarchies post the two
crises now command immense respect and support of the Malaysian
people from all walks of life. There is even an expectation on the part
of the people that the Conference of Rulers can contribute immensely
to good governance by providing the government with their collective
wisdom and sound counsel.
17Kobkua Suwannathat-Pian, a history professor at Universiti Pendidikan Sultan
Idris, observed a ‘rejuvenation’ of the Malay rulers and stated the following:
On the surface, the rejuvenation of the royalty has considerably brought
much credibility and respect to the Rulers. For the first time in the
contemporary history of Malaysia, the Malay Rulers have succeeded in
presenting themselves to the people as the most credible authority of the
land, both in theory and practice. The young generations of Malaysians
in particular see the new generation of Rulers and royalty as an impartial
non-political power with the ability and credibility to rein in political and
administrative excesses committed by discredited and corrupt politicians
to the detriment of the common people. However, upon close scrutiny,
the resurgence of royal power and its rising credentials among modern
Malaysians appear convincing mainly because of the disenchantment of
a substantial number of Malaysians, young and not-so-young, by what
they consider to be excessive power abuse, disregard for socioeconomic
decency and justice, and political leadership bankruptcy. In other words,
it is more the politicians themselves who have let self-interests get the
better of their social responsibility to the people.
18The electoral shock of 2008 and a viable opposition which can form an alternative
government have changed the political fortunes of the rulers. The rulers, in July
2007 , played an influential role as a collective body in determining not to extend
the term of retiring Chief Justice Ahmad Fairuz. In July–August 2007 , when Prime
Minister Badawi nominated Hashim Yusoff FCJ as chief justice (Malaya) in a move
engineered by Fairuz (which meant his overtaking a number of more senior judges),
(^17) H.P. Lee, ‘The Constitution of Malaysia after 50 years: retrospective, prospective and
comparative perspectives’ ( 2007 ) 9 ( 2 )Australian Journal of Asian Law 307.
(^18) Kobkua Suwannathat-Pian,Palace, Political Party and Power: A Story of the Socio-political
Development of Malay Kingship(Singapore: NUS Press, 2011 ), pp. 390 – 1.