'There are many who were charged in court and nothing was done to their titles. Some were even found guilty but they still hold on to their titles.'

'Dato' title of Ling, Phang suspended

Abil: We appreciate what the sultan and the Advisory Council of Selangor is doing. There must be an established practice that if a title holder is charged for a criminal offence, he or she must desist from holding the title until the court decides on his or her conviction. This cannot be selective, but should apply to all.

All datuk titleholders should sign a bond that he should immediately desist from using the title if one is charged for a criminal offence. This must be practiced without fear or favour.

Multi Racial: Sultans cannot just do what they like. There have to be consistency. There are many who were charged in court and nothing was done to their titles. Some were even found guilty but they still hold on to their titles.

I thought one is innocent until proven guilty. Is the sultan jumping to conclusion that he (Dr Ling Liong Sik) is guilty? It is not that I am supporting Tun Ling. I believe we should have the same law and same treatment applied to all Malaysians regardless of their race, their belief and their political or business association. No double standard please.

Habib RAK: I must commend the Sultan of Selangor for starting a new beginning. I hope this will indeed be the standard for all who are alleged to have committed a crime. All titles bestowed should be suspended until they are cleared of charges.

Stried: I thought there is this thing called innocent until proven guilty? I thought he was charged - and not convicted (yet).

MyGosh: Unless I have missed the news, I am waiting for the ruler to make a stand that there was nothing wrong in the Serdang MP's visit to the surau and more such visits should be made by elected MPs and Selangorians and give a word of advice to the mosque committees to explain their mosque rules when someone is invited.

By Election Fan: The value of these titles must not only be determined by the post they held. The integrity and ability of the receiver, on top of their expected performance, must also be considered.

In our country, there are eight sultans seeking to award a nation with 27 million population. Look at some states which are famous for having a list of awardees longer than my toilet roll.

Most of us have heard that titles can bought and if this continues, what is the value of having a Dato or Tan Sri or even a Tun title? What is the point sharing the title with law breakers? It will be a disgrace rather than a honour for having these titles.

I was told even an Ah Long (loan shark) in Tangkak is also a dato. You judge for yourself how much we should respect these titleholders. Did the Queen of England honour so many people on her birthday? I supposed that's why their ‘Sir' title is respected worldwide.

Mummy: My grandkids call me "datuk" and no one has the right to touch that title!

1citizen: What about those behind the Section 7 Shah Alam general hospital project? Those datuks and others are still robbing Selangorians' money. This is daylight robbery but no action has been taken.

StevenForMalaysia: Yes, there must be a standardised guideline in the suspension of the title awarded, not selectively. It may tarnish the reputation of the sultan or cause racial misunderstanding if not handled properly.

This is a democratic and modern country, do not expect the people to revere a king like God; that era is over. Some people are misusing the name of the sultan to scare the rakyat, God knows.

Philip Chong: The Agong should also withdraw the Tunship from Ling till his name is cleared.

Atheist: Can someone calculate the percentage of titled people among BN's politicians and the underworld big shots? Shouldn't be below 90 percent, my guess.

X-File: Let's be fair to all - I'm hoping that the new members of the Selangor exco from Pakatan Rakyat should also be conferred titles as what Umno excos got when they ruled the state. Why the need to wait for this long because during Umno's rule, a YB (an ex-clerk and gate keeper) was given the datuk title. Why the YBs for Pakatan are not given the titles when most of them are holding high qualifications compared to BNs reps.

Actionmined: X-File, do you want the Pakatan excos to defile their names by adding prefixes to their names which bring shame and curse? They are there to serve us.

These titles should be given all government servants in the hospitals where they slog in dirt and grime not bothering about their own health. Dr Mohd Khir Toyo's title should be stripped and given to Alam Flora workers who keep our city clean.

Nik V: My question is, who conferred the datukship to Ibrahim Ali? Shouldn't his datukship be stripped for his blatant racism?

Matrix: Why only these two? There's a gazillion ‘monkeys' out there who don't deserve any title. Maybe these two are destined to be the fall guys?

Victor Johan: Your Royal Highness Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, can your citizens of the state also propose you names of the very many others who do not deserve the various titles and awards bestowed upon them, by you and the other sultans before you?

Are the other rulers also going to follow this trend? And also the ones bestowed by the Yang DiPertuan Agong via the federal government's recommendations?

Kenneth: I'm a businessman. As matter of fact, I never trust anybody with Tun, Dato or any such titles from Malaysia. I do not understand why people keep trying to get these titles.

The above are a selection of comments posted by Malaysiakini subscribers. Only Malaysiakini subscribers can post comments. Over the past one year, Malaysiakinians have posted over 100,000 comments. Join the Malaysiakini community and help set the news agenda. Subscribe now.