Pahang - Politics and Government

Politics and Government

The constitution of Pahang came into force on February 26, 1959. The constitution proclaims that Pahang is a constitutional monarchy.

The Sultan of Pahang is the constitutional ruler of his state and he holds office for life. The 1959 constitution states that the Sultan is " the fountain head of justice and of all authority of government " in the state. He is vested with the executive power of the state, is the Head of the Religion of Islam in the state and the source of all titles and dignities, honours and awards in the state. Since 1974, the Sultan or hereditary monarch has been Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah.

The state executive council is established by the 1959 constitution. Its consists of the Menteri Besar, who is its chairman, and ten other members. The Sultan of Pahang appoints the Menteri Besar and the rest of the council from the members of the State Assembly. The current Menteri Besar is Dato' Seri Adnan Yaakob from the United Malays National Organisation, a major component party of the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition. Adnan's deputy is Datuk Tan Aminuddin Ishak.

For more details on Breakdown of State Seats Representatives elected 2008, see State_Seats_Representatives,_12th_Malaysian_General_Election#Pahang.

The state also has a unicameral legislative body, the Pahang State Assembly or Dewan Undangan Negeri. The Chief Minister, who is appointed by the Sultan, typically comes from the political party with the most seats in the assembly. According to Deputy Chief Minister Aminuddin Ishak, the BN-led state government does not have a policy of assisting constituencies with opposition members of the state assembly. Replying to an Assemblyman who asked if the government had a policy of doing so, Aminuddin answered no such plan existed, but "If you want to help the opposition, you can do so."

Pahang is divided into 11 administrative divisions: Bera, Bentong, Cameron Highlands, Jerantut, Kuantan, Kuala Lipis, Maran, Pekan, Raub, Rompin and Temerloh.