His Highness Means Business

Sultan Ibrahim Ibni Almarhum Sultan Iskandar wants politicians and the Johor civil service to buck up and serve the people, failing which they will be booted out.

The Johor ruler stressed that this was not a “Santa Claus” government and wanted everybody in the state administration to work hard and produce results.

“They must buck up and if they cannot, then they must get out. I am fair to everyone (Opposition or ruling government).

New era in Johor: Sultan Ibrahim expecting everyone in the state administration to work hard and produce results.

“Even to the present government, I tell them to buck up and shape up,” he said, adding that he had not wanted to voice out previously out of respect for his late father.

However, now as the new Johor ruler, Sultan Ibrahim said he wanted to speak his mind and give suggestions.

“This is a new millennium. A new era and as a new Sultan, I expect a lot of changes in my state,” he said during an exclusive interview at Istana Pasir Pelangi here recently.

Sultan Ibrahim did not mince his words when he said several state executive councillors were not performing up to expectations.

“All these people were appointed during my late father’s time. I have a lot of respect for my father but now, I am the Sultan and I expect a lot of changes,” he said, singling out the tourism sector as one where there had been “zero effort” to promote arts and crafts in Johor.

Sultan Ibrahim pointed out that state exco members should come up with new ideas to improve tourism in the state, suggesting that a survey be carried out to see how this could be done.

Among his first decrees to bring about changes and development in Johor, is the directive that all state government agencies give detailed briefings on matters relating to the administration and finance of their respective departments.

“In short, I want to know everything and nothing must be hidden from me,” he said, reminding the agencies not to give false reports as he had informers in every nook and corner.

Sultan Ibrahim said the first briefing would be from Majlis Agama Islam Johor and he expected them to provide him with figures on their spending of zakat money, collection, those who had yet to pay and religious schools’ curriculum.

He said once he had finished with the agencies in Johor Baru, he would move on to the districts and get briefings from all levels, including district officers and the village headmen.

“I will question them and if I suspect something amiss, they will be in for a royal shelling. I want everyone to always be on their toes,” he said, adding that he had also directed some agencies to be audited.

He said he would also give ideas and views on ways to better the public delivery system during these sessions.

Wengers Comment:

Well what can I say except "Daulat Tuanku".  What HRH the Sultan of Johor is saying is very very good indeed. He makes it clear that he does not want to be told lies and wants the truth and nothing but the truth.

This shows a character of empowerment through information. HRH understands that there is no gain in telling lies. But why do people lie all the time? Well - they do so because they want to cover up their short comings. However, if we are truthful, we can alert the respective partners to certain issues and bite the bullet once, solve the problem and get on with it.

His comment on the lack of effort on promoting Johor's arts and craft should surely be a stinging rebuke to those holding the tourism portfolio. I would totally agree, from a tourist point of view, its only Johor Bahru and the golf courses that get heavily promoted. There is nothing like the sort in Negeri, where there are homestays, arts and crafts and preservation of the Minangkabau culture - both in terms of architecture and culture.

This kind of desire to know the truth and not be satisfied with surface and superficial answers flies smack in the face of certain elements of the right wing fringe element whom are completely ignorant on almost every single issue. Take for example MV Augusta - the right wing bloggers are completely ignorant on the fact that the firm was in Bankruptcy the moment Tun paid RM 300 million for its worthless equity, the fact that Gevi SpA was an SPV with links not to Pak Lah, but instead to the ex owner of MV Augusta, the fact that MV had huge loans with Deustche Bank, the fact that even the legendary Harley Davidson, could not turn around MV Augusta, and declared a near total write down of their investment.

So I do hope that those who scream blue murder and potray themselves as the only defenders of the monarchy get the message. HRH, the Sultan of Johor, is through listening to all these pretty stories. The truth is what HRH wants.

Now what surprises me the most is that the common picture given to all and sundry was that the Johor Public Service is supposed to be par excallence. Coupled with this is the heavy involvement of Johor SEDC in various business ventures. To date, I have heard good news about them - its not the most conclusive, as really I have had little in interest in the state and affairs of Johor per se. Johor reminds me of Big Dog, and I don't really like Big Dog, so I generally have not much desire to dig deeper.

I can only see two things. Number 1, the state is doing well and Tuanku wants to push them harder. Number 2, there are some things below the surface which Tuanku knows of and had been keeping silent, but now will seek swift solution of those issues. 

Either way - congrats to Johor for having a Sultan that means business.