‘A KING WHO GAVE HIS ALL’
Permaisuri Johor shares FB post on late Sultan Abdul Halim last days as king
RIZALMAN HAMMIM JOHOR BARU news@nst.com.my
PERMAISURI Johor Raja Zarith Sofiah Sultan Idris Shah yesterday shared an old Facebook post on the late Sultan of Kedah Sultan Abdul Halim Mu’adzam Shah’s last days as Yang di-Pertuan Agong.
Raja Zarith Sofiah shared the post, dated Dec 12, 2016, which was based on her sister-in-law Tunku Soraya’s social media posts about her father Sultan Abdul Halim’s last week of duties as king.
It also contains Raja Zarith Sofiah’s observation of the period.
“(Tunku Soraya) wrote about how emotional it was for Sultan Abdul Halim and his family to leave Istana Negara and return home to Kedah,” said Raja Zarith Sofiah, adding that she admired the ruler and had the utmost respect for him ever since her brother, Raja Iskandar Dzulkarnain, married Tunku Soraya.
“I had (several) opportunities to meet him and hear his family speak about how he viewed his role as (king). As his youngest daughter, Tunku Puteri Intan Safinaz, always said, his was a life of service. He did not expect others to serve him. He believed that he must serve his people and his state.
“Although he was old and was sometimes ill, he gave his all in fulfilling his duties as our king.”
Raja Zarith Sofiah said Sultan Abdul Halim was loved by Istana Negara staff members and that he hardly complained about anything.
“My niece wrote about how one of Sultan Abdul Halim’s butlers from Istana Negara ran into the plane and cried before the late sultan left for Kedah, and how the Kedah sultan and his family cried, too.
“He treated them well and they loved him in return.
“And now he is back in Kedah, and the people there welcomed him back with much joy and love. They waved the Kedah flag as they lined the road from the airport to the palace,” said Raja Zarith Sofiah.
She ended the post with her wish that Malaysians would know more about Sultan Abdul Halim.
She also uploaded a poem that she wrote about Sultan Abdul Halim:
A heaviness lies in my heart, A King has left this mortal world,
From his family, his people, he is apart.
Rest in peace, dear King,
You have given your all, We shall honour your name, We shall never let it fall.
The Permaisuri, Tunku Mahkota Johor Tunku Ismail and Tunku Temenggong Johor Tunku Idris represented Sultan of Johor Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar at the funeral in Alor Star yesterday.
Present were Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin and his wife, Datin Seri Rosni Omar, State Secretary Datuk Azmi Rohani and state mufti Datuk Mohd Tahrir Samsudin.