Johor does not need Malaysia but Malaysia needs Johor
Hence the Federal Government or Putrajaya cannot bully Johor or push it around. Johor volunteered to join the Unfederated Malay States in 1914 and the Federation of Malaya in 1948 on its own terms. Hence Johor does not need Malaysia but Malaysia needs Johor. Johor can easily leave Malaysia and form an ‘economic block’ with Singapore and Brunei. And then what is Mahathir going to do? Is he going to do what Saddam Hussein did to Kuwait?
THE CORRIDORS OF POWER
Raja Petra Kamarudin
Johor Ruler: Every sen of Sultan’s allowance channelled to aid needy since 1899
(The Star) – The Johor Sultanate, ever since the time of its second ruler, Almarhum Sultan Sir Ibrahim Ibni Almarhum Sultan Abu Bakar in 1899, has always donated allowances from the state government to aid the needy.
A statement by the Royal Press Office posted on Sultan Ibrahim’s official Facebook page said that this practice continued during the time of Almarhum Sultan Iskandar Ibni Almarhum Sultan Ismail, where the allowance was channelled to Yayasan Sultan Iskandar.
It said that even when the late Sultan Iskandar was the eighth Yang di-Pertuan Agong from 1984-1989, his allowances from the Federal Government were channelled to the foundation.
Yayasan Sultan Iskandar not only helped the poor, but also provides aid during natural disasters and even provides funds for education.
Allocations for this foundation, Yayasan Sultan Ibrahim, were donated from allowances received by His Majesty.
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Well, there you have it. His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim ibni Almarhum Sultan Iskandar, the Sultan of Johor, has corrected the lie that Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has been spinning since more than 30 years ago in the early 1980s that the ten Raja-Raja Melayu are leeches who suck the rakyat’s money dry.
I, for one, know that the Sultans of Johor and Selangor are wealthy in their own right and are involved in all sorts of corporate activities. And these investments are not rice monopolies, sugar monopolies, flour monopolies, import APs, quotas, government contacts, privatisation concessions, and so on, like what the cronies to those who walk in the corridors of power have been enjoying since the time when Mahathir took over as Prime Minister in 1981 and Anwar Ibrahim joined Umno in 1982.
Maybe the government does pay the ten Raja-Raja Melayu a salary. But as His Majesty the Sultan of Johor said, since 1899 the Johor Sultans have been donating that money back to the rakyat long before Malaya even existed in 1948 and when the British were still ruling the Malay Archipelago.
Most Malaysians are jahil (ignorant) regarding history and most likely the year 1899 means nothing to them. Why did His Majesty the Sultan of Johor quote the year 1899? Well, the reason is as follows.
Prior to 1826, the British presence in the Malay Archipelago was through the East India Company that was based in India. In 1826, the East India Company formed the Straits Settlements that consisted of Melaka, Penang and Singapore with its headquarters in Singapore.
On 1st April 1867, Britain took over and placed the Straits Settlements under direct British rule as a Crown Colony.
In 1895, the British formed the Federated Malay States of Selangor, Perak, Negeri Sembilan and Pahang with British Advisers to help ‘advise’ the four Raja-Raja Melayu. In short, it was British intervention in the four Malay States and the Raja-Raja Melayu were reduced to puppets. If they did not agree to what the British wanted then they would be removed and replaced with a new Raja Melayu.
Johor voluntarily joined the Unfederated Malay States in 1914 on its own terms and not on British terms
Ten years earlier, in 1885, Johor agreed to come under the ‘protection’ of the British. This is just like how the Chinese triads operate. The Chinese triads offer you protection, which you have to pay for by way of ‘protection money’, and if you refuse their protection they beat you up or murder you and/or burn down your shop.
So, the British also offered Johor protection, which came at a price. As Don Corleone said in that famous movie, Godfather, “The British made you an offer you can’t refuse.” If not, you would find your favourite horse’s head in your bed — and the Johor Palace has many horses to choose from.
The British ‘offered’ Johor protection mainly so that they could protect the Chinese-owned opium fields in Johor that were very crucial to Singapore’s and Hong Kong’s economy
In 1909, the British signed the Bangkok Treaty with Siam and control of Kelantan, Terengganu, Kedah, and Perlis were transferred to the British. These four Malay-heartland states were grouped under the Unfederated Malay States. So we now had the three Straits Settlements states, the four Federated Malay State and the four Unfederated Malay States. And then we had the independent Sultanate of Johor.
It was not until 1914 that Johor volunteered to join the Unfederated Malay States but on Johor’s terms and not on British terms.
The three Straits Settlements states (Singapore, Penang and Melaka) were British colonies. The four Federated Malay States (Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, Perak and Pahang) were British protectorates. The four Unfederated Malay States (Perlis, Kedah, Terengganu and Kelantan) were Siamese protectorates transferred to British control. And Johor was an independent Sultanate.
Umno was formed in His Majesty the Sultan of Johor’s Palace in 1946 to resist the British plan to form the Malayan Union and with that the Federation of Malaya was formed in 1948
When the British formed the Malayan Union in 1946, Umno was formed to resist the British plan. And Umno was formed in His Majesty the Sultan of Johor’s Palace in Johor Baru. Without the formation of Umno in 1946, the Federation of Malaya would have never come into being in 1948. It is because of the Johor Palace that Umno and Malaya, and later Malaysia, happened.
Hence the Federal Government or Putrajaya cannot bully Johor or push it around. Johor volunteered to join the Unfederated Malay States in 1914 and the Federation of Malaya in 1948 on its own terms. Hence Johor does not need Malaysia but Malaysia needs Johor. Johor can easily leave Malaysia and form an ‘economic block’ with Singapore and Brunei. And then what is Mahathir going to do? Is he going to do what Saddam Hussein did to Kuwait?
