Brothers honoured: Army chief, TV3 official receive datukships

I don't really know why this deserve any mention in the news, Brothers honoured: Army chief, TV3 official receive datukships.

That army chief guy, he already have 3 other 'datuk'ships. "Abdul Aziz, the eldest of four siblings, had received three Datuks, a Datuk Paduka, a Datuk Wira and three Datuk Seris since 1998." So, how many does he need? Or for that matter anyone needs?

Malaysia boleh!

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Brothers honoured: Army chief, TV3 official receive datukships

By Noor Adzman Baharuddin and Alina Simon

No one was more surprised than army chief Jeneral Datuk Seri Abdul Aziz Zainal and his youngest brother Datuk Kamarulzaman Zainal when they found out that both would get an award from the Sultan of Kedah today. While Abdul Aziz, 54, was awarded with Datuk Paduka Seri Setia Abdul Halim Mu’adzam Shah (DHMS), which carries the title "Datuk Paduka", his 49-year-old brother, who heads Sistem Televisyen Malaysia Berhad news and current affairs, received the Datuk Setia Diraja Kedah (DSDK), which carries the title "Datuk".

They were among 85 people to receive the awards from the Sultan in conjunction with his 78th birthday.

Unaware of each other’s good fortune, the brothers came separately to the investiture at Istana Anak Bukit here.

It was only before the start of the ceremony that they found out and called each other on their mobile phones to offer congratulations. For Abdul Aziz, who is getting his ninth datukship, the moment gave him the perfect opportunity to tease his brother, who is receiving his third.

Abdul Aziz, the eldest of four siblings, had received three Datuks, a Datuk Paduka, a Datuk Wira and three Datuk Seris since 1998.

"I told my brother it’s all right that his award is slightly lower than mine. We’ve always had a healthy sibling rivalry and it is our friendly way of playing one-upmanship," he said after the ceremony.

Kamarulzaman, however, expressed sadness that their parents, who passed away more than 15 years ago, could share the joy.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi was the recipient of the highest honour when he received the Darjah Utama Kedah (DUK).

Kedah Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mahdzir Khalid and Datuk Seri Rosmah Mansor, wife of Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, received the Seri Setia Diraja Kedah (SSDK), which carries the title Datuk Seri.

Other recipients included Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Paduka Azalina Othman Said with the Darjah Gemilang Seri Mahkota Kedah (DGMK), which carries the title Datuk Wira.

Among the 18 recipients for the Jaksa Pendamai were Datuk Paduka Ismail Shafie, Datuk Wira Syed Zain Syed Abdullah, Kedah Malay Chambers of Commerce chairman Mohd Noor Omar and Cheng Tan Boo.

Present at the event were Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Tun Dr Siti Hasmah Mohd Ali, former Kedah menteris besar Tan Sri Osman Aroff and Tan Sri Sanusi Junid. Absent was former MB Datuk Seri Syed Razak Syed Zain, who stepped down last month.

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