The internet was abuzz when the Sultan of Pahang, Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah, recently stripped Datukship titles from a couple of public figures in Malaysia.

Among those affected were celebrities and business entrepreneuers

From Datuk to ‘orang biasa’ real quick

According to Bernama, the Pahang palace made an announcement that five individuals were revoked from their ‘Datuk’ titles including two local actors, Farid Kamil and Boy Iman, whose real name is Noruliman A. Rahman.

State Secretary Datuk Seri Dr Sallehuddin Ishak, who is also the state Registrar of Awards, said the order was issued by the Sultan of Pahang Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah, and the letters of withdrawal came into effect 1 February.

The three others who were affected by the order were local businessmen Wong Shee Kai @ Ricky and Syed Mohammad Faiz Syed Azemman, and Vietnamese businesswoman Tran Thi Mai @ Maimunah.

The withdrawal letters for Wong and Tran Thi Mai will also took effect on 1 February, while Syed Mohammad Faiz's letter was effective 12 November 2020.

Tran Thi Mai @ Maimunah
The five had previously been bestowed with the Darjah Indera Mahkota Pahang (DIMP) award, which carries the title of Datuk.

No reason was given for the revocation of their titles, but interestingly, all of them had court cases or have been prosecuted in court for various offences before.

"The nominees are not allowed to use any title bestowed previously and must return the award to the Pahang State Secretary's Office," the State Secretary said.

Past crimes haunting their Datukship?

Farid receiving the award in 2017.
If you do a quick search on all of them and relate them to court cases, you wouldn’t be surprised as to why their titles were stripped.

Wong Shee Kai, who is also the former CEO and founder of Asia Media, Malaysia's largest Transit-TV network operator, is listed as a wanted person in connection with offences under the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001.

Wong is reportedly still at large and his whereabouts cannot be traced by his family.

Tran Thi Mai, meanwhile, was sentenced to three years jail and fined RM1.75 million by the Sessions Court on 26 September 2020 after she was found guilty on two counts of offering bribes to a Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) officer.

Farid Kamil, on the other hand, was sentenced to a total of 17 months prison for using criminal force to deter a policeman from discharging his duty and disorderly conduct in a police station and another 13 months for using THC cannabis or Tetra Hydrocannibol. The incidents took place in January 2018.

You can read about it here.

Boy Iman wants to know why the palace has stripped his title.
As for Boy Iman, he has been linked to several scam schemes in the past including housing projects but so far he has been fined RM5,000 earlier this year after he failed to comply with the award issued by the Malaysian Consumer Claims Tribunal (TTPM) three years ago, as reported by The Sun Daily.

He was ordered to pay RM12,000 to Hanis Mohd Samah, 58, as the claimant, within 14 days of the award being handed down. The actor was declared bankrupt in 2020.

Not much info can be found on Syed Mohammad Faiz Syed Azemman, but he apparently contested in the 13th General Election as an independent candidate when he was only 26 years old and was charged in court in 2018 for a bauxite mining offer which did not exist and resulted in a RM90,000 loss, according to this Berita Harian report.

Kudos to His Royal Highness for ensuring that the awards are only given to those worthy of them.