Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar sworn in as Malaysia's 17th King
Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar was sworn in as Malaysia's 17th King in a solemn ceremony at the national palace on January 31, marking an important moment in the history of the constitutional monarchy in the Southeast Asian country.
Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar (front, centre) during the oath taking ceremony. (Photo: AFP/VNA)
Kuala Lumpur (VNA) - Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar was sworn in as Malaysia's 17th King ina solemn ceremony at the national palace on January 31, marking an importantmoment in the history of the constitutional monarchy in the Southeast Asiancountry.
After inspecting the guard-of-honour,Sultan Ibrahim proceeded to enter the palace to attend the 264th Special Meeting of theConference of Rulers in conjunction with the swearing-in ceremony ofthe 17th King.
The Sultan of Perak, SultanNazrin Shah, also took the oath of office as the Deputy King of Malaysia for a5-year term.
Born on Nov 22, 1958, SultanIbrahim was proclaimed the Sultan of Johor on January 23, 2010, following thedemise of Sultan Iskandar, with the official coronation taking place on March23, 2015.
Sultan Ibrahim was chosen asthe 17th King to govern Malaysia at the 263rd Special Meeting of the Conferenceof Rulers on October 27, 2023. He will replace Al-Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shahwho officially ended his five-year reign on January 30.
In an interview with The StraitsTimes ဣbefore the coronation ceremony, Sultan Ibrahim expressed his strongcommitment to the fight against corruption as well as to play an active role inthe development of the country./.
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