BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN: Brunei’s ruler Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah is in good health after being admitted to hospital in Malaysia due to tiredness during a regional summit, his office said on Tuesday.
The 78-year-old sultan was admitted to the National Heart Institute in Kuala Lumpur and would stay there for several days on the advice of Malaysian medical experts, his office said.
“His majesty … is in good health,” it said in a statement. “His majesty has been feeling tired.”
The hospitalization of the sultan, who has ruled Brunei since 1967, was earlier confirmed by Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, current chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and host of this week’s leaders’ summit.
“He’s a little bit tired and resting,” Anwar told a press conference, without elaborating.
The sultan was once the world’s wealthiest man and remains hugely popular in the oil-rich nation on the island of Borneo,despite holding a firm grip on power in the country of nearly half a million people.
The sultan holds multiple roles in Brunei, serving also as its prime minister, armed forces commander, finance minister, foreign minister and defense minister.
Under his rule, Brunei gained full independence from Britain in 1984 and has seen a rise in living standards to among the highest levels in Asia.
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