Council of Cabinet Ministers explained

Council of Cabinet Ministers
Native Name:Majlis Mesyuarat Menteri-Menteri Kabinet
Seal:Emblem of Brunei.svg
Type:Cabinet
Jurisdiction:Government of Brunei
Headquarters:Prime Minister's Office
Chief1 Name:Hassanal Bolkiah
Chief1 Position:Prime Minister
Chief2 Name:Judin Asar
Chief2 Position:Secretary

The Council of Cabinet Ministers is the body of high-ranking Brunei officials, consisting of the top leaders of the executive branch of Brunei government. Led by the Sultan himself, who has also been the Prime Minister of Brunei since 1984.

The Council consists of the Prime Minister (the Sultan), the Senior Minister (the Crown Prince), ministers and the second ministers, and deputy ministers of respectives ministries. All of the ministers and deputy ministers are appointed by the Prime Minister-Sultan. The ministers are responsible directly to the Sultan and hold their seats at His Majesty's pleasure, usually reshuffle and nominate every 5 years.[1]

History

The cabinet was established in 1959. Immediately upon Brunei's independence on 1 January 1984, the following portfolios were introduced as the first cabinet line-up:

On 20 October 1986, after the demise of the late Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien III, the cabinet was reshuffled which saw the introduction of new ministerial posts, namely the Ministers of Health and Religious Affairs, and Special Adviser in the Prime Minister's Office. The reshuffle saw the cabinet being enlarged to a total of 13 ministerial and 8 deputy ministerial posts.

The cabinet was reshuffled again in 1988,[2] 2005, 2010, 2015, 2018, and 2022. Since 2005, cabinet reshuffle typically happened every five years. However, the 2015 cabinet term lasted less than five years with a "surprise" reshuffle in 2018, with no official reason given,[3] although it was speculated that corruption could be a reason.[4] In contrast to the previous cabinets which served or intended to serve for five years, the 2022 cabinet shall serve for a four-year term.

The State Mufti and Attorney General were included in the cabinet and declared ministry-level positions in the reshuffles of 2005,[5] 2010, 2015,[6] and 2018.[7]

The 2005 cabinet line-up saw the introduction of new ministerial posts, namely Senior Minister in the Prime Minister's Office, Minister of Energy in the Prime Minister's Office, Second Minister of Finance, and Second Minister of Foreign Affairs.[8] Meanwhile, the 2018 cabinet line-up saw the introduction of the new Second Minister of Defence, but the position was not renewed in 2022 reshuffle.

The 2010 reshuffle saw the appointment of Adina Othman as the first female deputy minister, holding the Deputy Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports portfolio.[9] Meanwhile, the 2022 reshuffle saw the appointment of Romaizah Mohd Salleh as the first female minister, holding the Minister of Education portfolio.[10] [11]

Current members

Composition of the Cabinet[12] !Portfolio!Minister!Portrait!Date
Prime MinisterSultan Hassanal Bolkiah1 January 1984
Minister of Defence7 September 1986
Minister of Finance and Economy23 February 1997
Minister of Foreign Affairs22 October 2015
Senior Minister at the Prime Minister's Office24 May 2005
Minister at the Prime Minister's OfficeIsa bin Ibrahim30 January 2018
Special Adviser to His Majesty the Sultan
and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam
October 1971
Minister of Religious AffairsBadaruddin Othman22 October 2015
Minister at the Prime Minister's OfficeHalbi bin Mohammad Yussof7 June 2022
Minister of Defence II27 February 2023
Minister of HealthIsham Jaafar1 December 2017
Minister at the Prime Minister's OfficeAmin Liew Abdullah27 September 2018
Minister of Finance and Economy II30 January 2018
Minister of Foreign Affairs IIErywan Yusof29 January 2018
Minister of Home AffairsAhmaddin Abdul Rahman7 June 2022
Minister of Primary Resources and TourismAbdul Manaf Metussin7 June 2022
Minister of DevelopmentJuanda Abdul Rashid7 June 2022
Minister of EducationRomaizah Mohd Salleh7 June 2022
Minister of Transport and InfocommunicationsPengiran Shamhary Mustapha7 June 2022
Minister of Culture, Youth and SportsNazmi Mohamad7 June 2022
Deputy Minister at the Prime Minister's OfficeRiza Yunos7 June 2022
Deputy Minister at the Prime Minister's OfficeSufian Sabtu7 June 2022
Deputy Minister of Energy at the Prime Minister's OfficeAzmi Mohd Hanifah24 October 2023
Deputy Minister of Finance and EconomyKhairuddin Abdul Hamid7 June 2022
Deputy Minister of Finance and EconomyPengiran Zety Sufina7 June 2022
Deputy Minister of Religious AffairsPengiran Mohammad Tashim21 May 2022

See also

References

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: Constitution of Brunei Darussalam. Attorney-General's Chambers, Brunei. 2010. Bandar Seri Begawan.
  2. News: Pg. Hajah Fatimah . Pg. Haji Md. Noor . Rombakan Kabinet . 22 October 2015 . 24 October 2015 . Pelita Brunei . 1 . 127 . ms . 19 July 2022 .
  3. News: Brunei ruler replaces top ministers in surprise cabinet reshuffle . 30 January 2018 . . 19 July 2022 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20181214195015/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-brunei-politics-idUSKBN1FJ19K . 14 December 2018 .
  4. Book: Ward, Oliver . The underlying reason behind Brunei's cabinet reshuffle . ASEAN Today . 20 February 2018 . 19 July 2022 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20210805010831/https://www.aseantoday.com/2018/02/the-underlying-reason-behind-bruneis-cabinet-reshuffle/ . 5 August 2021 .
  5. News: . Jawatan Mufti Kerajaan dan Peguam Negara bertaraf Menteri . 24 May 2005 . Pelita Brunei . 25 May 2005 . 21 . 1 . ms . 19 July 2022 .
  6. News: . Jawatan Mufti Kerajaan, Peguam Negara bertaraf Menteri . 22 October 2015 . 24 October 2015 . Pelita Brunei . 3 . 127 . ms . 19 July 2022 .
  7. News: . Jawatan Mufti Kerajaan, Peguam Negara bertaraf Menteri . 30 January 2018 . 31 January 2018 . Pelita Brunei . 4 . 14 . ms . 19 July 2022 .
  8. News: Jaafar . Ibrahim . Rombakan keahlian Majlis Mesyuarat Menteri-menteri Kabinet . 24 May 2005 . Pelita Brunei . 25 May 2005 . 21 . 1 . ms . 19 July 2022 .
  9. Web site: HM reshuffles Cabinet, appoints first woman deputy minister The BT Archive . Ubaidillah . Masri . btarchive.org . 30 May 2010 . 19 July 2022 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220719130135/https://btarchive.org/news/national/2010/05/30/hm-reshuffles-cabinet-appoints-first-woman-deputy-minister . 19 July 2022 .
  10. News: Rasidah . Hj Abu Bakar . Ain . Bandial . HM: New cabinet must carry out duties with "full loyalty and responsibility" . The Scoop . 7 June 2022 . 19 July 2022 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220706085753/https://thescoop.co/2022/06/07/hm-new-cabinet-must-carry-out-duties-with-full-loyalty-and-responsibility/ . 6 July 2022 .
  11. News: . Sultan Brunei rombak Kabinet, menteri wanita pertama dilantik . 8 June 2022 . . ms . 19 July 2022 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220617115536/https://www.bharian.com.my/dunia/asean/2022/06/963527/sultan-brunei-rombak-kabinet-menteri-wanita-pertama-dilantik . 17 June 2022 .
  12. Web site: Ahli-Ahli Majlis Mesyuarat Menteri-Menteri Kabinet . 2024-07-24 . Jabatan Majlis-Majlis Mesyuarat . ms.