KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 8 — Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah and Raja Permaisuri Agong Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah attended the parade of thanks today.
The ceremony, held in conjunction with the end of Al-Sultan Abdullah’s reign as the 16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong on January 30, took place at Kem Perdana, Sungai Besi.
Al-Sultan Abdullah started his five-year reign as the head of the nation on January 31, 2019, after taking over from Sultan Muhammad V.
The last time a similar ceremony was held was in 2016 when the late Sultan Abdul Halim Mu’adzam Shah ended his official tenure as the 14th Agong.
The ceremony today involved 40 officers and 888 members of various ranks from the three branches of the Malaysian Armed Forces (ATM), namely the Army, Royal Malaysian Navy and Royal Malaysian Air Force.
Their Majesties’ arrival was greeted with “Hormat Diraja” led by Lieutenant Colonel Mohd Azamri Abdullah, followed by the national anthem Negaraku performed by ATM Band and a 21-gun salute.
The ceremony also witnessed five ATM helicopters, each carrying the Jalur Gemilang, the ATM flag, and the flags of three ATM branches, performing a fly-past.
Al-Sultan Abdullah later inspected the guard of honour on an inspection vehicle.
There was also a special performance by one officer and 306 personnel from various ranks involving a combination of the ATM central band together with the Army’s Drumline and Brassband, which enlivened the ceremony.
At the ceremony, the five royal colours of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong were paraded by the contingents in a slow march, involving six formations, namely the keris formation, accompanied by the song ‘Ala Donde Si Donde’; the Love formation (accompanied by Battle Theme and Pantun Budi songs) and Bunga Raya formation (Jalur Gemilang).
Also performed as war defence formation (accompanied by Army of the War), bulan bintang formation (Joget Pahang), and wau formation (Kancing Suasa and Dikir Puteri) before ending with cries of ‘Daulat Tuanku’.
The energetic performance piqued the interest of Raja Permaisuri Agong, as she was seen recording the moment on her mobile phone.
Also presented was a poem recitation by Sergeant Siti Nur Ain Jasmi and Aircraftman 1 Abdullah Rosli, entitled ‘Daulat Tuanku’, which tells about His Majesty’s leadership and the challenges faced by the country during the five years of His Majesty’s reign.
The verses of the poem, which describe the personality of Their Majesties, with their caring and friendly nature, touched Tunku Azizah, who was seen shedding her tears.
After the ceremony, as the sending-off, the royal couple rode in a horse carriage and led a procession from Wisma Perwira Tentera Darat to the main control post of Kem Perdana Sungai Besi, accompanied by 14 horses from the Royal Armoured Corps’ Ceremonial Mounted Squadron, with armed personnel lining the street.
Before boarding the carriage, Their Majesties joined a prayer led by the ATM Religious Corps director-general, Major General Datuk Mohd Rashidi Bujai.
Cries of ‘Menjunjung Kasih Tuanku’, as the royal couple led the procession from Kem Perdana Sungai Besi, were the symbolic end of Al-Sultan Abdullah’s reign as Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces.
— Bernama
