Followers of late Jamalul Kiram III, sultan of the Philippine island-province of Sulu, carry his coffin during burial rites in Maimbung township, Sulu island, southern Philippines yesterday.


Manila Times/Manila


While the late Sultan Jamalul Kiram III was laid to rest yesterday, the Council of Elders of the Sultanate of Sulu and north Borneo are set to meet, to choose his successor.
Sultanate spokesman Abraham Idjirani said the council is mandated to select the next possible successor to the throne in case a Sultan passes away.
He said the Council will start the selection process after the 40-day mourning.
However, Idjirani hinted that Kiram’s brother, Sultan Bantilan Ismael Kiram, is likely to succeed him based on the Sultanate’s law and order of succession.
Bantilan has been the officer-in-charge of the Sultanate in Sulu while Kiram was undergoing dialysis in Manila.
Bantilan’s son, was one of those who was arrested and is being tried by the Malaysian government in connection with the intrusion of the Sultanate’s forces in Lahad Datu, Sabah.
Kiram, the Sultan of the Sultanate of Sulu and north Borneo, grabbed the limelight when he sent his brother, Raja Muda Agbimuddin Kiram, along with 200 fighters of the Royal Security Forces (RSF) in Lahad Datu to reclaim Sabah from Malaysia.
Idjirani said before the Sultan died, he issued a Royal Order directing his brothers, Bantilan and Raja Muda to continue the fight to regain Sabah from the Malaysian government.Princess Jacel Kiram, the sultan’s daughter said the death of her father has only strengthened their desire to repossess Sabah from Malaysia.“Although he did not succeed in reclaiming Sabah during his term, the Filipino people are now fully aware of his position and it has only strengthened our fight,” she added.
Idjirani said the Sultan was laid to rest in Maimbung, Sulu, yesterday morning. His remains were buried in a town cemetery, where the ancient patriarch of the Sulu royal family are traditionally laid to rest.He added Kiram’s remains arrived in Jolo, Sulu aboard a chartered Lion Air flight from the Manila domestic airport.
The 75-year-old sultan died of multiple organ failure on Sunday after battling a liver ailment.
“It was Sultan Kiram’s wish to be buried in Maimbung, Sulu’s ancient capital,” Idjirani said.
Kiram’s remains were brought to his residence in Maharlika Village, Taguig City from the Philippine Heart Centre in Quezon City on Sunday morning and was subsequently displayed at the nearby Blue Mosque before being flown to Sulu.