PM Anwar Backs Tuanku Muhriz and Menteri Besar, Urges Orderly Resolution of Negeri Sembilan Crisis
By TENGKU NOOR SHAMSIAH TENGKU ABDULLAH
KUALA LUMPUR, April 28, 2026 – Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has backed Yang di-Pertuan Besar Tuanku Muhriz Ibni Almarhum Tuanku Munawir and Negeri Sembilan Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Utama Aminuddin Harun, calling for the state’s constitutional crisis to be resolved in an orderly and consensual manner in accordance with the rule of law.
In a formal media statement issued today, his first direct public intervention since the crisis erupted nine days ago, Anwar said he had sought an audience with Tuanku Muhriz the previous evening to discuss developments involving both the royal institution and state administration, and conveyed his appreciation for the Ruler’s wisdom in navigating the matter.
“I support the decree of His Highness for Dato’ Seri Utama Aminuddin Harun to continue performing his duties and responsibilities as Menteri Besar to ensure administrative stability in the state, protect the interests of the rakyat, and uphold the rule of law in force.” – Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim
The Prime Minister also confirmed that questions involving the Undang institution were being addressed through proper legal channels and established processes, and pledged the Federal Government’s full cooperation to ensure continuity of economic progress and public wellbeing in Negeri Sembilan.
“In any circumstances, the sanctity of the royal institution and the laws of the state must continue to be preserved and defended,” he said.
He closed his statement with an Adat Perpatih perbilangan, a Minangkabau proverb carrying particular resonance in Negeri Sembilan’s customary legal tradition:
“Kemenakan beraja ke mamak, mamak beraja ke muafakat, muafakat beraja kepada kebenaran, dan kebenaran itu berdiri sendiri.”
— Anwar Ibrahim
The proverb translates as: The nephew is sovereign to the maternal uncle, the uncle is sovereign to consensus, consensus is sovereign to truth, and truth stands on its own a pointed signal that authority, at every level, is ultimately answerable to truth and genuine consensus rather than to unilateral assertion.
Political Fallout: BN Withdraws Support, Government Hangs in the Balance
Anwar’s intervention comes as the constitutional crisis takes a sharp political turn. On Monday, all 14 Umno state assemblymen announced they were withdrawing support for Aminuddin over his handling of the dispute, leaving the Menteri Besar’s Pakatan Harapan coalition one seat short of a simple majority in the 36-seat assembly. Negeri Sembilan Barisan Nasional subsequently claimed it had the numbers to form a new state government with the backing of five Perikatan Nasional assemblymen.
Earlier on Tuesday, speaking on the sidelines of an event in Kuala Lumpur, Anwar urged Negeri Sembilan BN to prioritise harmony over political ambition. He acknowledged that resolving the crisis would not be easy and said it was not the right time, given current economic pressures, to be contesting for positions. He indicated he might meet BN chairman and Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi later in the day to discuss the situation at both the state and coalition levels.
On the possibility of a snap state election, Anwar said it was not currently under consideration, noting that the decision would ultimately rest with Tuanku Muhriz and the state assembly. He cautioned against excessive speculation, warning that premature assumptions risked deepening public confusion.
What the PM’s Statement Establishes
Tuanku Muhriz’s authority as Yang di-Pertuan Besar is affirmed and supported by the Federal Government.
Menteri Besar Aminuddin Harun is to continue in office under Tuanku’s decree, a position now backed by the Prime Minister.
The Undang matter is being addressed through proper legal channels, with no direct federal intervention.
No snap election has been confirmed or recommended.
The Federal Government will cooperate fully to protect economic continuity and public welfare.
How the Crisis Unfolded: A Ten-Day Chronology
The Negeri Sembilan crisis has its roots in the state’s unique constitutional and customary framework. Unlike any other Malaysian state, Negeri Sembilan practises Adat Perpatih — a matrilineal system of Minangkabau origin — under which the Yang di-Pertuan Besar is elected by the four Undang of the Luaks of Sungei Ujong, Jelebu, Johol and Rembau, and may, under defined constitutional conditions, be called upon to withdraw from duties or to abdicate.
The immediate trigger was the removal, in May 2025, of Dato’ Klana Petra Mubarak Bin Thahak as Undang Luak Sungei Ujong, following proceedings in which 33 charges under customary law were brought against him. The Menteri Besar and the state government recognised that removal as lawful. Mubarak and the remaining Undang disputed that position.
On 19 April 2026, the four Undang — including Mubarak, whose own removal remains contested — issued a declaration at Balai Undang Luak Sungei Ujong, co-signed by Tunku Besar Tampin, purporting to remove Tuanku Muhriz as Yang di-Pertuan Besar under Article 10(1)(b) of the Negeri Sembilan Constitution 1959. No specific allegations, evidence, or witnesses were named. Constitutional lawyers have since identified the declaration as procedurally defective and ultra vires the powers granted under Article X of the State Constitution, which limits the Undang to calling upon the Ruler to withdraw for a period or to abdicate — not to remove him outright.
Three days later, on 22 April, the Undang issued a Joint Media Statement asserting that a 12th Yang di-Pertuan Besar had already been appointed under Article 11, and directing that the DUN opening scheduled for 23 April be postponed. The Undang boycotted the sitting. On the same day, a People’s Memorandum signed by anak waris from nine Luaks was submitted to Tuanku Muhriz and the Menteri Besar, explicitly endorsing the Ruler’s continued authority and rejecting the declaration as contrary to Adat Perpatih and the State Constitution.
The Menteri Besar declined to countersign the removal declaration — a further procedural defect identified in legal analyses — and the state government has maintained that Tuanku Muhriz remains the lawful Yang di-Pertuan Besar. Tuesday’s statement by the Prime Minister aligns the Federal Government firmly with that position.
What Happens Next
The situation in Negeri Sembilan remains fluid on two parallel tracks, constitutional and political, and resolution on either front is not imminent.
On the constitutional track, the validity of the 19 April removal declaration and the 22 April claim to have appointed a 12th Yang di-Pertuan Besar remains unresolved. Constitutional lawyers have identified multiple procedural defects, and the courts may yet be asked to rule on the legality of the process. Datuk Mokhtar Ngah, a constitutional lawyer who has analysed Federal Court precedent in Dato’ Musa Wahab v Menteri Akhir Zaman Undang Luak Jelebu, has noted that while the courts are unlikely to intervene in the substance of the Undang’s authority, they may examine whether the procedure adopted complied with the minimum requirements of law and natural justice.
On the political track, the immediate question is whether Aminuddin Harun’s administration can survive the Umno withdrawal. That depends substantially on whether Anwar’s discussions with Ahmad Zahid Hamidi produce a federal-level direction to state Umno assemblymen, and on whether any individual assemblymen can be persuaded to return to the fold short of a formal coalition reconfiguration.
What Tuesday’s statement makes clear is the federal posture for now: back the Ruler, back the Menteri Besar, respect legal process, and preserve public order. The perbilangan Anwar chose to close with was not ornamental. In invoking the sovereignty of truth and consensus over individual claims to power, he placed on record, in the most culturally resonant language available, where the Federal Government believes legitimate authority in Negeri Sembilan ultimately resides. – ENDS
Published: TNS News | tnsnews.com.my | April 28, 2026