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All 55 seats on the district councils of Brunei 28 seats needed for a majority | ||||||||||||||||
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District council elections were held for the first time in Brunei on 30 August 1962. A total of 55 seats on the four district councils were contested by the Brunei People's Party (55 candidates), the Brunei National Organisation (6), the Brunei United Party (1) and eighteen independents. The BPP won 54 seats (32 uncontested), whilst the sole independent elected later joined the party. Voter turnout was around 89%. [1]
The 1959 constitution had created a 33-seat Legislative Council (LegCo), of which 16 were to be indirectly elected by the district councils, nine were to be appointed by the Sultan and eight were ex officio. As all but one of the district council seats were held by BPP members, it was expected that the party would secure all 16 seats. However, the government postponed the opening of the Council and later suspended it after the outbreak of the Brunei Revolt in December. [1]
On 20 June 1962 the government declared that elections would take place on 30 August 1962. There were 55 district council members up for election: 24 for the district council of Brunei (present day Brunei-Muara), 12 for the district council of Belait, 12 for the district council of Tutong, and seven for the district council of Temburong. Only citizens were allowed to vote. A December 1961 Legislative Council (LegCo) law allowed all citizens older than twenty-one to vote. [2]
For each District Council, the elected council members would create an electoral college to choose delegates to the LegCo; eight from Brunei, four from Belait, three from Tutong and one from Temburong. The date of this election was set for 17 September 1962. [2]
The composition of the 1962 district council election was as follows: [3]
District | Constituencies | Seats | Ex-officio seats |
---|---|---|---|
Brunei | Padang, Sumbiling, Sungai Kedayan, Pemancha-Sultan Lama | 24 | 1 |
Tutong | Sinaut, Penanjong-Keriam, Pekan Tutong, Bukit Pasir, Kiudang, Lamunin, Kuala Abang, Kupang-Birau, Tanjong Maya, Ukong, Rambai | 12 | — |
Belait | Sungai Liang, Jalan Seria, Pekan Belait, Balai-Labi, Bukit Sawat | 12 | — |
Temburong | Labu, Ujong Jalan | 7 | — |
Total | 55 | 1 |
To win as many seats as possible, the Parti Rakyat Brunei (PRB) fielded candidates for each of the District Council's fifty-five seats. There were eight candidates from the Brunei National Organisation (BNO), Haji Hasbollah Daud himself from the Brunei United Party (BUP) and seventeen independents. It was obvious that the PRB would win the elections even before the first ballot was cast as thirteen of the twenty-four seats in Brunei, seven of the twelve seats in Belait and five of the seven seats in Temburong had only one PRB candidate, who were elected after being unopposed on Nomination Day, 21 June. This meant the PRB already held control of three of the four district councils, with only Tutong still undecided as all eight seats were contested.
A. M. Azahari vigorously advocated for his party. [4] On 30 August 1962 the results were announced, [5] and the PRB had won all but one of the remaining seats, with Metusin Ali Akbar elected in the Labu constituency in Temburong. [5] However, Akbar subsequently joined the PRB meaning it held all seats on every council and was guaranteed 16 elected members in the LegCo. The government was embarrassed as it was an outright rejection of its strategy to include Brunei in the projected Federation of Malaysia. The overwhelming victory meant that the government was unable to continue to disregard the PRB. [4]
Party | Seats | |
---|---|---|
Brunei People's Party | 54 | |
Brunei National Organisation | 0 | |
Brunei United Party | 0 | |
Independents | 1 | |
Total | 55 | |
Source: Nohlen et al. |
On his birthday, 23 September 1962, Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien III announced the selection of members of the Executive Council and LegCo, defying persistent appeals from the PRB for a democratic administration and a change to the constitution. Pengiran Ali, the Head of the Department of Religious Affairs, was appointed to the newly created position of Deputy Menteri Besar, which was established by the Sultan after Dato Marsal's confirmation as the Menteri Besar. One of the Sultan's closest advisors, Pengiran Ali, was appointed to the new position; this may have been done to bolster his government's position in anticipation of the PRB members' admission to the two councils. [6]
Out of the thirty-three members of the LegCo, the PRB held all sixteen unofficial seats. The party also held all six of the fifteen-member Executive Council's unofficial (elected) seats. However, the party was not satisfied since it was still in the minority in both councils even though it had all of the elected seats in both. [6] The Sultan retained absolute authority to select every member of the Executive Council, in contrast to the LegCo, where the PRB selected its own delegates from each of the four districts through an electoral college. Consequently, none of the party's Central Executive Committee members were appointed to the Executive Council apart for Abdul Hapidz, the Deputy President of PRB. Initially, the PRB declined to acknowledge the Sultan's nominations, insisting on having a vote in the appointment process. Azahari, who abstained from the elections, was not appointed and the elected members of his party were not invited to become part of the government of Brunei. [7]
The sultan chaired a meeting of the committee he had formed to look into the terms and circumstances of Brunei's admission into the proposed Malaysia Federation on the day the nominees were made public. Twenty-five people made up the committee, which was established in July 1962. They included the principal local officers and traditional advisers, Dennis White, Joseph S. Gould, Dato Neil Lawson, and a Chinese community representative. [7]
One of the most important times in Brunei's political and constitutional growth was from September to December 1962. Serious ramifications resulted from the dominant PRB wanting a larger say in political decision-making, leading to the Brunei revolt. In addition, Brunei faced pressure to make a decision on its membership in the Malaysia Federation. Because of how it shaped the new nation, the era was a benchmark in Brunei's modern history. [8]
Sultan Sir Omar Ali Saifuddien Sa'adul Khairi Waddien was the 28th Sultan of Brunei, reigning from 1950 until his abdication in 1967 to his oldest son, Hassanal Bolkiah.
The Legislative Council of Brunei is a national unicameral legislature of Brunei. The council comprises 36 appointed members, that only has consultative tasks. Under Brunei's 1959 constitution, His Majesty Hassanal Bolkiah is the head of state with full executive authority, including emergency powers since 1962. The Council holds its sitting annually in March at the Legislative Council Building in Bandar Seri Begawan.
Brunei People's Party is a banned political party in Brunei. PRB was established as a left-wing party in 1956 and aimed to bring Brunei into full independence from the United Kingdom. The party sought to democratize the government by shifting the national leadership from the palace to the people.
Hashim Jalilul Alam Aqamaddin was the 25th Sultan of Brunei from 1885 to 1906.
Dato Seri Paduka Haji Marsal bin Maun was the second Menteri Besar, who served from 1961 to 1962. It was during his tenure as Menteri Besar that the Brunei Revolt broke out. He was one of the person responsible for the establishment of the Federation of Brunei Malay Teachers (PGGMB) and Brunei Scout Movement, which both still run till today. He was a prominent member of the Brunei Malay Teachers' Union, close to Sultan Omar Ali Safuddien III, and the first of the "three M's" that the British government dreaded.
Pengiran Anak Mohamed Alam OBE was a nobleman, magistrate and politician who became the fourth Speaker of the Brunei Legislative Council from 1971 until 1974 and Chief of Jabatan Adat Istiadat Negara from 1954 to 1981. He is the father of Pengiran Anak Saleha, the queen consort of Hassanal Bolkiah, the current Sultan of Brunei. He was also a maternal grandfather of Al-Muhtadee Billah, the Crown Prince.
Pengiran Muhammad Yusuf bin Pengiran Abdul Rahim CBE, pen name Yura Halim, was a Bruneian nobleman, politician, civil servant, diplomat, and writer. He served as the Chief Minister of Brunei from 1967 to 1972. He wrote the lyrics for Brunei's national anthem, "Allah Peliharakan Sultan," in 1947. The song was adopted as the country's official national anthem in 1951, when it was still a British protectorate. He was longtime member of the Legislative Council of Brunei, serving on the council until his death in 2016.
Pengiran Anak Damit was the Queen of Brunei as the wife of the 28th Sultan of Brunei, Omar Ali Saifuddien III.
Mohammad Jamil Al-Sufri bin Umar, pen name Wijaya, was a nobleman, historian and teacher from Brunei who previously served as a member of the Royal Council, member of the Royal Succession Council, member of the Islamic Religious Council, and member of the Privy Council. He has also been referred to as the National Historian. He wrote works on the country's history, ancestry, customs and traditions, royal titles, Malay Islamic Monarchy (MIB), education, writings on Brunei heroes, and other topics.
Pengiran Abu Bakar bin Pengiran Umar MBE was a nobleman, civil servant, and politician who became the fifth Speaker of the Brunei legislative council, serving from 1 December 1974 until his retirement on 14 December 1981. Notably, he is the father-in-law to Princess Masna Bolkiah.
Pengiran Mohamed Ali bin Pengiran Mohamed Daud, simply known as Pengiran Ali, was a Bruneian nobleman, teacher and politician whom formerly held the position of Deputy Menteri Besar from 1962 to 1965, Legislative, Executive, and Privy Councils. He emphasised the significant impact he played in Brunei's history, notably from the 1950s to 1960s, and was also the first of the "three M's" that the British government dreaded.
Mohd Salleh bin Masri, pen name H. M. Salleh, was a Bruneian nobleman, nationalist politician, activist and an experience teacher who was among the founding members of the Brunei Youth Front and Brunei People's Party. Him alongside Yura Halim were considered to be the country's first novelists. He was the initial head of the Brunei Nationalist Movement in the 1940s and 1950s.
Dato Seri Paduka Haji Abidin bin Abdul Rashid was a Bruneian nobleman and politician whom formerly served as the Deputy Minister of Home Affairs from 1986 to 2002, and a member of the Privy Council.
Pengiran Muhammad Salleh was a Bruneian nobleman and politician who formerly held several high-ranking positions which included being a member of the State Council, Privy Council, Legislative Council, and the Chief Kadi.
Muhammad Yasin bin Abdul Rahman, also known as Yassin Affandi, was a Bruneian politician who served as the president of the National Development Party from 2005 to 2010. He worked with A.M. Azahari during the Brunei revolt of 1962, when they called for the unification of Brunei, Sarawak, and North Borneo (Sabah) under a single administration. Together with other rebels, they directed against Brunei's proposed inclusion in the Federation of Malaysia.
Barisan Pemuda (BARIP), also known as the Youth Front or Brunei Youth Front, was an early left-wing political party formed in Brunei. It began as a political youth organisation in late 1946 with the goal of bringing the Bruneian Malays together and achieving independence for Brunei. It was said that the three main founders of BARIP were Salleh Masri, Pengiran Yusuf, and Jamil Al-Sufri.
Although Brunei attained full independence in 1984, it was able to establish autonomous government in 1959. According to the Constitution of Brunei, the Sultan of Brunei has a great deal of political authority and can reject the choices made by the Executive Council as long as he justifies it in writing. The Privy Council, which counsels the Sultan on questions of compassion, constitutional modifications, and honorific designations, the Legislative Council, which is supposed to consist of both elected and appointed members, and District Councils were also formed under the constitution. As the head of state and religion, the Sultan Brunei is in charge of the legislative, executive, and judicial departments of government. Brunei is a unitary state with a constitutional monarchy. Islam is the recognised state religion.
Zaini bin Haji Ahmad is a Bruneian politician, civil servant and writer who served on the Partai Rakyat Brunei's (PRB) Executive Committee and founding the anti-government newspaper Suara Bakti, he was detained in Brunei, escaped to Malaysia in 1974, participated in the PRB's UN Mission in 1976, and was considered the A. M. Azahari's personal assistant. He and Azahari headed the PRB when the Brunei revolt erupted in December 1962.