The Governor of Sabah (Malay:Yang di-Pertua Negeri Sabah) is the ceremonialhead of state of Sabah. The Yang di-Pertua Negeri is styled Tuan Yang Terutama (TYT; "His Excellency"). The incumbent officeholder is Musa Aman, who took office on 1 January 2025.
Appointment
The office of the Yang di-Pertua Negeri (governor) is established by the Constitution of the State of Sabah. According to Article 1(1) of the Constitution, the office must exist and be appointed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (King) after consultation with the Chief Minister.[2] Every governor is appointed for a term of four years. However, the king reserves the power to extend his term of appointment.
His Excellency has neither a deputy nor an assistant. However, in event of his inability to govern the state due to illness, absence or any other cause, His Majesty reserves the power to appoint a person to exercise the function of the Governor.
Functions, powers and privileges
Many functions and powers of the King – at the federal level – are delegated to the Governor at the state level – like the other rulers of states. The Governor, however, has no power and function towards the judiciary.
As he is the head of state, he is a member of the Conference of Rulers. He share the same power with the other members of the conference. However, he cannot be appointed as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.
Article 10 of the State Constitution describes that the Governor has to act according to the State Constitution and makes decisions based on the advice from the State Cabinet. However, he may also act on his own discretion in certain matters.[3]
The Constitution provides the power to the Governor to appoint key officers of the state, i.e. Speaker of the Legislative Assembly and his deputies; nominated members of the Assembly; ministers and assistant ministers of state; chairman, his deputy and members of the State Public Service Commission; the State Secretary; and the State Attorney General. All of them are appointed after consultation with the Chief Minister, except in appointing the Chief Minister.[4] The same process occurred during dismissal of an officeholder.
The Constitution also describes powers of the Governor in the State Legislative Assembly. All bills must be assented by the Governor in 30 days after a bill passed. The Governor also has to address the assembly annually.
List of Yang di-Pertua Negeri
The following is the list of Yang di-Pertua Negeri of Sabah:[2][5]
Two former Yang di-Pertua Negeri of Sabah are alive at the moment. The most recent death of a Yang di-Pertua Negeri was that of Sakaran Dandai who served from 1995 to 2002. He died in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah on 30 August 2021.
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