Anwar leaves Istana Negeri Sembilan after hour-long audience with Tuanku Muhriz

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim waves as he leaves Istana Negeri Sembilan in Changkat Persekutuan, Kuala Lumpur, on September 21, 2026. — Bernama pic

By Malay Mail

First Published: Monday, 21 Sep 2026 8:11 PM MYT

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 21 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim held a nearly hour-long audience with Negeri Sembilan Ruler Tuanku Muhriz Tuanku Munawir this evening, as a dispute over the status of the state executive council continued to unfold.

Anwar left Istana Negeri Sembilan in Changkat Persekutuan here after completing the audience, Astro Awani reported.

He had arrived at the palace grounds at about 6pm.

No details of the discussions during the meeting were immediately disclosed.

The audience came after Tuanku Muhriz revoked the appointments of the Negeri Sembilan State Executive Council members with immediate effect late last night.

According to a statement by Istana Negeri Sembilan comptroller Datuk Azizi Mohamad Ali, the decision was made after the ruler found that the exco members had breached their oaths of office.

The palace cited Article 38(5) of the Negeri Sembilan State Constitution 1959, which states that a member of the State Executive Council holds office for as long as he or she has the pleasure of the Yang di-Pertuan Besar.

The exco members had taken their oaths and signed pledges of loyalty on August 7 before being appointed to the council.

Negeri Sembilan Menteri Besar Datuk Ismail Lasim, however, disputed the validity of their removal in a statement today.

He said any action to dismiss or terminate the membership of an exco member without the advice or formal request of the Menteri Besar was “invalid, unconstitutional and had no legal effect”.

Ismail said he had not been consulted or provided advice on the removal of any exco member under Article 38(5).

He maintained there was therefore no need to submit a new list of proposed exco members, saying the existing line-up remained legally valid and would continue to carry out its duties as usual.