KUALA LUMPUR: Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah reminded the armed forces to embrace transformation for the betterment of the force.
During his Royal Address today, the King said the armed forces needs to move ahead with an open attitude to go through a transformation process to create a landscape of collaboration across agencies.
He said the future of the force constitutes a guarantee in determining that the sovereignty of the country will always be preserved and protected.
"The armed forces should continue to be strengthened in line with the national objectives to build a force capable of protecting the sovereignty of the country and at the same time handle the complex geopolitical challenges of the world.
"Therefore, aspirations towards building a credible and high-ability future armed forces should be made a national agenda," he said during the Parade of Thanks to His Majesty the Yang di-Pertuan Agong XVI ceremony at the Army Square in Sungai Besi Camp here today.
He said that the leaders of the armed forces should continue to improve the governance and control as well as uphold the value of professionalism to remain sustainable as the main fortress of the national defence.
He said concentration on welfare of the forces, aside from formation of high-quality human capital, is the main pillar in supporting the aspirations of the future forces.
"In my opinion, all this can be achieved through the synergy of close cooperation between the government, society as a whole, and the Malaysian army," he added.
He lauded the services of the armed forces throughout his tenure including during the time of the Covid-19 pandemic where the personnel was on the frontline to protect the administrative structures and ensure national security remains strong.
He also praised the commitment of the forces who were the first agency to offer help whenever disaster strikes.
The King extended his gratitude to the veterans who served the call of duty previously.
"Sacrificing body and soulto defend the sovereignty and national welfare is a noble duty that should be highly appreciated by all Malaysians," he said.
Al-Sultan Abdullah and Raja Permaisuri Agong, Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah graced the Parade of Thanks to His Majesty the Yang di-Pertuan Agong XVI at the Army Square in Sungai Besi Camp here today.
The ceremony symbolised the appreciation of the armed forces towards His Majesty who is the Supreme Commander of the armed forces and Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah at the end of their official five-year tenure as the 16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong and Raja Permaisuri Agong from 2019 to 2024.
Also present were The Regent of Pahang, Tengku Hassanal Ibrahim Alam Shah Al-Sultan Abdullah, Defense Minister Datuk Seri Khaled Nordin, and Armed Forces chief General Tan Sri Mohammad Ab Rahman.
Al-Sultan Abdullah's tenure as the 16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong ends on Jan 30 and he will be succeeded by the Sultan of Johor Sultan Ibrahim Almarhum Sultan Iskandar.