The first time I heard about Brunei Darussalam was when my parents bought me a copy of the Guinness Book of World Records, 1999 edition. In the section about wealth, there was a little paragraph and a picture of the Sultan of Brunei, who, for a little while there, was one of the top three richest people in the world.
Now he has dropped a little lower on the list. He only has $20 Billion in the bank, which puts him behind Putin and King Bhumidol of Thailand in the list of richest heads of state, and in front of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia.
Brunei is a tiny, oil rich country sandwiched into the Malaysian state of Sarawak on the northern coast of Borneo. At one time, the Sultinate was the most powerful force on the island, until the military might of the United Kingdom forced the secession of what are now the Malaysian states of Sarawak and Sabah. Brunei, too, eventually fell under British rule, and didn’t regain full independence until 1984, by which time oil, and the Shell Corporation, had brought a lot of money into the country, making economic independence a viable option.
Most of that money fell into the hands of the royal family, and continues to do so. Brunei functions like a 400,000 person company, everyone working for a benevolent, autocratic boos that treats them pretty well. There is no income tax in Brunei, nor is there any cost for education or medical service. There is also a democratically elected Legislative Council, reformed by the Sultan in 2004, when he also declared himself President and Prime Minister, with full executive authority, infallible under Bruneian law. As Minister of Defense and Finance he is the Supreme Commander of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces, Inspector General of the Royal Brunei Police Force, and holds honorary positions in the British and Indonesian Navies. His wardrobe of decorated military uniforms is plastered on every available public space in Brunei. The Sultan salutes into the distance in Army fatigues, Air Force uniform and Admiralty decoration. He is a truly renaissance man.
He is Brunei. When he dies, his son will become Brunei. His cult of personality is also tied to the state religion – Islam – through the Malay Islamic Monarchy, which makes him first in the line of defense of his people’s faith.
What he may lack in domination on the world’s list of the richest, the Sultan, (full title: His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu'Izzaddin Waddaulah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar 'Ali Saifuddien Sa'adul Khairi Waddien, Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Negara Brunei Darussalam) makes up for with sheer swag and absurdity. His official house, claimed to be the largest operating palace in the world, has 1,888 rooms, with nearly three hundred bathrooms and covers over 2 million square feet. According to Wikipedia, his car collection tops out at 1,932 with 531 Mercedes-Benzes, 367 Ferraris, 362 Bentleys, 185 BMWs, 177 Jaguars, 160 Porsches, 130 Rolls-Royces and 20 Lamborghinis. Once, on a visit to London, he had specially manufactured a Porsche, Rolls hybrid, with the distinctive Porsche backside and intimidating hood of a Rolls.
He has a 100 Million dollar Boeing 747, six small aircraft and two helicopter. A friend of mine, a bus driver in Belgium, was once the driver for Janet Jackson’s crew during a European concert swing. Between stops, they received a call from the Sultan’s staff, and my driver friend was redirected to a private 747 waiting on the airport tarmac. Janet got into the plane, flew halfway around the world, performed privately at the birthday party of the Sultan’s daughter, and was flown back. This man balls hard.
Oh, and he has a Jacuzzi made of pure gold.
I visited Brunei for six hours, saw his face everywhere, and continued on my way. He might be my favorite modern man.
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| There are also some really beautiful mosques in Brunei's capital, Bandar Seri Begawan |
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